Warning: the following article contains spoilers for The Flash season eight.
The Flash is returning for season nine on The CW and there’s a lot of information to consider. The series that follows the adventures of Barry Allen (Grant Gustin) received an early renewal which makes it the longest-running Arrowverse show, beating out Arrow for the title. Showrunner Eric Wallace spoke with Deadline about where he’s looking to go with the series in the future.
In the season eight finale, Flash faces off against Negative Reverse-Flash (Tom Cavanagh) in an epic battle. This version of his archnemesis returns after the Scarlet Speedster is tricked by the Negative Forces into killing his wife Iris (Candice Patton) who had been experiencing Time Sickness, which temporarily displaced her. Her energy enters the good version of Eobard Thawne (Matt Letscher) and the Negative Thawne (Tom Cavanagh) emerges to wreak havoc.
Iris, however, isn’t dead (though Barry thinks she is). Her consciousness transfers inside of a time stone and she breaks through with the help of Damien Darhk (Neal McDonough) to return home. Flash defeats the Negative Reverse-Flash with the help of Impulse (Jordan Fisher), XS (Jessica Parker Kennedy), and new speedster Meena (Kausar Mohammed). The death of the last Thawne saved Central City and the universe reset itself, but there’s still more trouble ahead for the heroes.
The Flash season 9 story
Season eight ended with multiple cliffhangers that set up season nine. It’s explained in the finale that due to Iris’s time sickness, she was used as an incubator for the negative forces avatar. Now that she no longer has her temporal affliction, the negative forces will have to choose a new avatar to use. Wallace confirmed that since the universe needs balance, a new Negative Speed Force avatar will be coming, but the question regarding who it’ll be remains unanswered.
Earlier in the season Dr. Caitlin Snow (Danielle Panabaker) lost her metahuman sister Killer Frost and ever since she’s been obsessed with bringing her back to life. Despite Barry’s warnings and destroying of her lab, Snow continued her experimentations, and in the season eight finale an unseen character emerges from the chamber. Wallace hinted that it’ll be some version of Panabaker and viewers will find out who this is immediately in season nine.
The Flash season 9 villain
The death of Eobard Thawne leaves an opening for another villain to threaten Central City. The main Big Bad hasn’t been confirmed for season nine, but it will be filled with some familiar evil faces from previous seasons. Flash has faced off against some mighty enemies including Gorilla Grodd, Captain Cold, and Bloodsport, so there’s many to choose from. Fan-favorite villains are expected to return, so the most popular ones have the greatest likelihood of showing up again.
The Flash season 9 cast
The CW hasn’t officially announced which actors will be returning, but Gustin already signed the deal to return as the Flash in early 2022. It was confirmed in June that Patton will also be returning, and fans are hoping for more screentime where she’s not stuck in another alternate dimension. As for the others, it’s a safe bet that most of the main cast — Danielle Nicolet, Kayla Compton, and Brandon McKnight — will come back. The showrunner has previously expressed how much he cares about Team Flash.
What will happen to Joe West?
Jessie L. Martin as Joe West has been a staple on The Flash from the very beginning. Joe is Barry’s surrogate father who takes the young Barry in after his biological father is accused of murdering Barry’s mother Nora. It was announced in April that Martin will depart Flash for the new NBC drama The Irrational, which calls into question his involvement in season nine. Wallace confirmed that although the season is still being worked out, they don’t want Jesse to disappear from the show and he will be featured in the story at the beginning of the new season. Actors have gone from series regulars to recurring roles, like Cavanagh and original Team Flash member Cisco — played by Carlos Valdes — so Williams won’t be gone for good.
When does The Flash season 9 return?
The Flash won’t be back until early 2023. Typically, a new season of the series would begin in the fall, but ever since the coronavirus pandemic derailed production schedules, the network’s lineup has experienced inconsistent shifts.
Will The Flash have a season 10?
It’s unclear if The Flash season nine will be the last season. Wallace didn’t know if the series would continue while he was working on season eight, and he seems to be playing it by ear. If season 10 does happen, it’ll cross the 200-episode milestone, and Wallace shared that he’s open to the possibility of doing spinoffs. There’s still a lot of information unknown about The Flash season nine, and we will update this story as more details become available.