‘Arrow’: Juliana Harkavy on Black Canary’s ‘Desire for Justice’

Juliana Harkavy is bringing an exciting energy to Arrow as the new Black Canary, Dinah Drake. As a dark vigilante struggling to reclaim her humanity, she’s much more like Oliver Queen than she is like Laurel Lance, but like the former Black Canary’s dad says, “Laurel didn’t want someone to take her place; she wanted someone to carry on in her place.” We talked with Harkavy about where her character is, where she’s going, and the surprising cast member who dominates the dreaded salmon ladder.

“She’s just started to go with the flow, in terms of settling down,” says Harkavy of Drake. “She’s finding her own place and her own identity that is separate from just being a roaming vigilante.” It’s an interesting contrast to Oliver, who also embarked on a quest for vengeance and then tried settling down after three years. The fact that Arrow isn’t currently set in Ivy Town — where Oliver and Felicity tried to settle down — suggests Drake may not be so successful either, but Harkavy says it’s a process. “They have the same desire for justice and sometimes they have to take hard way there,” says the actress. “They have true remorse about it and they’re both coming to terms with their humanness in their own ways.”

Even though Oliver convinced her to come to Star City with the promise of helping her cope with that remorse, she says it’s a two-way street. “They do help each other. It’s an ongoing battle to fight that — the darkness and the light inside of you — and they help each other out with that.”

Harkavy says she differs from her character in many ways. “I’m a bit more neurotic,” she admits. “I go through life with a lot more anxiety, so it’s really nice to have this character who is so strong, but then she has these moments where, what’s underneath all that strength is a lot of fear and pain and confusion. It made me feel good about myself in the sense that you don’t have to be solid rock all the way through.”

This isn’t Harkavy’s first foray into comic book properties; she was Alisha on The Walking Dead, where she almost killed Tyreese, and has even already appeared in the DC universe on the late, lamented Constantine. “I really do love this area of the iconic comic books — recreating characters and images.” She’s not sure if she gets cast because of her passion or because producers think she has a comic book look, though maybe its a bit of both. “I probably go in there a little extra charged up for those auditions, so it just works,” she says with a laugh.

Filming in Vancouver can be grueling at times, especially as the shooting goes deep into the night. It isn’t the late hours that get to them, though. “Last week’s episode — the fight scene with Liz Warner and China White and Cupid — that was really cold. It was in a cemetery in the snow all night,” she says. “It’s tough to run fast and jump off roofs when your feet are freezing off!” Everybody pulls together on shoots like that, says Harkavy, though she’s particularly thankful for co-star Echo Kellum. “Echo always makes me laugh the most in those situations, which is good because it keeps your mind off of it.”

Despite the rough moments, it’s the physical aspect of the show that excites her the most. “I’m really falling in love with the fighting and training,” she says. “I want to do be able to do more of my own stunts and really be proficient with my weapons.” So, does that mean she’s ready to take on the dreaded salmon ladder? Harkavy laughs. “I feel like it’s this ongoing thing that looms over the entire cast. I know that Rick [Gonzalez] has done it. I think even Emily [Bett Rickards] has done it — she is so incredibly strong. She is fitness goals. David Ramsey’s done it. I think Echo’s tried it. It’s just sitting there in the lair, so you see people walking by and give it a look like, ‘Should I?’” For the record, Harkavy plans to take on the ladder by the end of the season.

Pay attention this week, because Harkavy says her favorite line of the season is in it. “I can’t really say anything about it, but when I read it in the script, I was like, ‘Oh, that is so bad ass!’ The way that she’s written is just so cool!”

Arrow airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on The CW.

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