‘Arrowverse’ Stars Left Out of Flash Crossovers Over Pay Disputes, Says Danielle Panabaker

Before Arrowverse concluded last year, fans noticed that even in the latter series of the franchise, some familiar faces were missing from recent Flash crossover events, and it turns out money was a big part of the reason.

The popular crossover episodes, which started back in 2014 with The Flash season 1 and Arrow season 2, brought together heroes from different shows and quickly became a fan favorite. But behind the scenes, things weren’t always smooth.

Danielle Panabaker, who played Killer Frost on The Flash, revealed in a recent interview on the podcast Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum that actors who asked for pay equal to what they earned on their main shows often got written out of these crossover episodes.

She explained how complicated and frustrating the pay situation was, especially in the early days.

Panabaker said the first crossover was pretty intense for the cast because they were essentially doing two jobs at once. She said, “So in Flash’s first season, they did the first crossover and it was just The Flash and Arrow. It was Stephen Amell, David [Ramsey] and Emily [Bett Rickards] crossing over to The Flash, and Grant [Gustin], Carlos [Valdes] and I crossed over to Arrow.” But the pay they were offered for these extra roles was shockingly low.

She added, “The offer to do two jobs at the same time — to do the same role — when we guest-starred on Arrow, it was top of show. So at the time, less than $10,000.” Panabaker pointed out that “top of show” didn’t mean they were getting their usual salary.

Instead, it meant they were getting paid just a fraction of what they made on The Flash. “You’re going to do this job at the same time, and you’re going to work twice as hard. So you’re doing two jobs, we’re going to pay you a fraction of what you’re paid to do that job on The Flash.”

Back then, crossover appearances weren’t included in the actors’ contracts because The Flash was still new, and Arrow had already been running. Panabaker mentioned that other shows like Legends of Tomorrow and Supergirl had this pay situation built into their contracts from the start. Over time, though, some big-name stars started demanding full pay for crossover roles.

She shared, “I know someone who said, ‘No, pay me my salary.’ And they wrote that person out of the crossovers.” This tension over pay reportedly caused some actors to be left out of the crossover events, disappointing many fans.

With the Arrowverse coming to an end last year after Superman & Lois season 4 wrapped up in December 2024, this behind-the-scenes drama helps explain a lot about what was really going on in the franchise as a whole.

It’s worth noting that not all the stars from Superman & Lois returned as permanent cast members in the final season, largely due to budget cuts. Ultimately, only the main leads, Tyler Hoechlin as Superman and Elizabeth Tulloch as Lois Lane, appeared in every episode.

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