Stephen Adam Amell came into the world on May 8, 1981 in Toronto, Canada. Of British, German and French ancestry, he was always very interested in the world of acting. At age 19 he decided to fight for his dream and moved to California to study drama. During this time, he worked as a spinning teacher while trying to get a role in some movie or television series.
Curiously, his first role was on the small screen as a spinning instructor in 'Queer as Folk' in 2004. Over the years, his artistic career has been on the rise and has become a celebrity, especially for giving Life to Oliver Queen in the series 'Arrow'. He is considered by many as one of the best modern heroes, especially related to the television world.
In Movie'n'Co we wanted to know more about the actor and is that behind all this facade of justice, arrows and action films, there are many details of Amell's life that deserve to be remembered. One of the most important aspects of his life is his relentless philanthropic charity work.
Adolescent Idol
Although he has not yet strolled to the Oscars as a nominee, the actor has been nominated and honored in other more youthful awards. Among the most recent is the MTV Fandom Awards, which won the best relationship award, along with Emily Bett Rickards in the fiction of 'Arrow'.
For his professional fight at SummerSlam, he won the prize for the best moment. Finally, remember his first prize, which was at the Gemini Awards for 'ReGenesis' to the best guest actor in a dramatic series. If you want to know more about the life of Stephen Amell, do not miss any details of this report.
Fun facts about Stephen Amell!
1 Wine connoisseur
There are many facets of Stephen Amell, and not all of them are relative to acting. One of the fields where the Canadian also works is business. The actor has a wine company, Nockingpoint Wines, which began in 2013 with his friend Andrew Harding. Vineyard production takes place in Walla Walla, Washington. And is the result of a road trip from Los Angeles to Oakland. The names of the wines are curiosities in and of themselves, such as New Bow, Wicked Aim and some of the labels have been made by DC artists like Jim Lee. The benefits usually go for Amell's charitable work.
2 Wrestling fan!
On several occasions our dear Oliver Queen of 'Arrow' has shown his interest in the sport. Stephen Amell has a great passion for wrestling, so for a time he campaigned to appear on WWE's weekly RAW show. Finally, at the end of May of 2015 he was informed that he would fight on August 23 against Stardust in the SummerSlam of WWE. The $300,000 collection was for the third child-friendly campaign at the Emily's House hospice in Toronto. Both Stardust and Amell handed the check to the orphanage.
3 Important political origins
Surely when Stephen Amell asked about his family origins, he ended up very impressed with the history of his family. Stephen's great-great-grandfather, Benjamin Devitt was mayor of Waterloo in Ontario, while his great-great-grandfather, Louis Jacob Breithaupt, was an important political figure of the same city, specifically the mayor of Berlin, which is now known as Kitchener. Finally, the son of Breithaupt, that is to say, his great-grandfather was deputy of the Canadian Parliament and soon, a lieutenant governor of Ontario from 1952 to 1957. Despite all this political conglomerate that was in the family, Amell has never been dedicated to the policy nor has it been related to it.
4 Committed to charitable causes
Being an actor there are certain pressures of being a perfect example for society, but it also allows the possibility of carrying out humanitarian works for the most disadvantaged. Stephen Amell throughout his life has partnered with several charities, such as Fuck Cancer, where in 2014 he managed to raise almost a million dollars for a T-shirt with his face. The actor often uses the platform Represent.com to carry out fundraising campaigns for those who need it most, and this was also seen in 2015 in which he benefited two organizations struggling for mental health: the Paws and Stripes and the Stand For The Silent. An actor who is committed to the cause.
5 Physical or chemical
If you had to judge Stephen Amell for the roles he plays on television or in the movies, he clearly likes the action and the performing of some of the high-voltage fight scenes. The actor became Casey Jones, one of the most mythical characters in 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' in the movie 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2'. Although many will believe that his choice was related to his passion for sports and his scandal physique, the reality is that there is another reason.
6 LGBT series
Stephen Amell is best known for playing the role of Oliver Queen in 'Arrow', Warner Bros's spearhead with DC Comics. In its long history of acting, there are two series that were once an icon of the LGBT community. The Canadian appeared in two episodes of the fourth season of 'Queer as Folk', where he played the spinning instructor of Liberty Ride. After his small role, he performed another work as Adam, one of the recurring characters of 'Dante's Cove', but was replaced in the second season by Jon Fleming.
7 Loyal to local teams
For many, Stephen Amell has become a full-fledged television celebrity thanks to his role in 'Arrow', but the Canadian continues to maintain several of the customs he had before he came to fame. From a young age, Amell was a big fan of the local teams in his city like the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Raptors or the Blue Jays. He is still very committed to these teams, as was seen in 2015 when he campaigned for Josh Donaldson of the Blue Jays to be chosen for the All-Star games. As an anecdote, the actor is often joking with fans who sees 'Arrow' when one of their teams have a rival too strong. Currently, he also follows the LA Kings and LA Rams teams.
8 Married twice
It seems that Stephen Amell is not happy if there is no second chance. The Canadian actor married for the first time on December 8, 2007 with his first wife, Carolyn Lawrence, in Toronto, but the relationship ended in divorce in 2010. As we mentioned earlier, second chances are something that Amell loves and returned to. To marry on December 25, 2012 with model Cassandra Jean, with whom she has a daughter, Mavi, born in 2013. The couple believed that a ceremony had not been enough, but joking aside, both went back to the altar on 26 of May of 2013 in a more public ceremony.
9 Difficult childhood
Stephen Amell's life has been harder than we can imagine. During his childhood in Canada, he had to attend a private school for men only. He also had to live in hell to see how his mother had breast cancer, something that made her perspective on life change and tried to help others, especially those who suffer from diseases of this type. Before becoming an actor, he performed the work of spinning teacher, something that made him stay in shape. There are still some fans who ask for advice on social networks about this part of their life.
10 The Mr. Grey we were waiting for
One of the most famous literary phenomena of recent years is the saga of 'Fifty Shades of Grey' by E.L. James. The series of erotic books was a success, so when it was announced that it would be taken to the big screen was not a big surprise. At first, it was Charlie Hunnam chosen to become the enigmatic and sensual Christian Gray, but after his refusal there was a dance of very interesting names. Stephen Amell was one of those who sounded too strong to be Dakota Johnson's partner, but he finally rejected it because he felt he was not made for that role. In the end, the choice as we all know it was Jamie Dornan.
11 Dreams outside of acting
Stephen Amell's closeness to the fans and the press has allowed us to be able to know more about the actor, including his appearances after finishing, for example, the TV series 'Arrow'. The Canadian has admitted that on the day he has to hang the bow, he would like to take it back but away from the lights of the camera, without hood and in a professional manner. Another dream, which could somehow fulfill, is to be a professional wrestler of the WWE, something that even today would like to dedicate if it were not for his labor commitments as an actor. We will see in the future if he can do either.
12 A long television career
Although the character of Oliver Queen is now the most important of the career of Stephen Amell, it must be remembered that the actor has made a very interesting tour on the small screen. We have seen him in such well-known series as 'Degrassi: Next Class', 'CSI: Miami', 'NCSIS: Los Angeles', 'The Vampire Diaries', '90210' or 'New Girl'. He has also performed more regularly in fiction such as 'Private Practice' or 'Heartland', in addition to being Arrow in four different series: 'Vixen', 'The Flash', 'Legends of Tomorrow' and the very same 'Arrow' , his cameos in these series have been much applauded by the public.