According to Arrow star David Ramsey, who plays John “Dig” Diggle, Season 6 villain Ricardo Diaz will have a personal connection to the team. In an interview with TVLine, Ramsey described Diaz as “someone very important” to his character.
“I almost said something that would give it away but… Ricardo Diaz ends up being someone very important to Diggle specifically. His thread plays out on a relationship with Diggle particularly,” Ramsey revealed.
RELATED: Arrow Reveals Dark Secret About Dig’s Green Arrow
Asked how Dragon is different than a villain like Season 5’s Tobias Church, he added, “He was a street-level thug. There is a street element to Ricardo, but Ricardo is much bigger than Tobias Church, his tentacles are much longer. Tobias Church was really street-level.”
Kirk Acevedo’s Dragon will make his series debut in Season 6’s sixth episode “Promises Kept, where Dig’s Green Arrow “leads the team into battle against “The Dragon,” a villain who is stealing valuable tech in Star City.” According to the character’s breakdown, he is “a hardened ex-con recently released from prison for crimes he didn’t commit” who “is bent on taking over Star City’s criminal underworld” and “has yet to meet a foe he can’t take down.”
RELATED: Arrow: Star City’s Anti-Vigilante Act Enters A New Phase
While the Dragon has traditionally been portrayed as a martial arts hero and the trainer of many expert hand-to-hand fighters in the DC Universe, The New 52 introduced a new, villainous version of the character. This version was a man named Ricardo Diaz Jr., who murdered his master and took his name. In Arrow, he will be a master of hand-to-hand combat and a force to be reckoned with in the Star City criminal underworld.
Starring Stephen Amell as the Emerald Archer (well, not currently), Arrow airs Thursdays at 9pm ET/PT on The CW. The series also stars Emily Bett Rickards, David Ramsey, Willa Holland and more.