‘The Flash’ Season 3 Preview: Candice Patton Teases ‘Flashpoint’

“The Flash” returns Tuesday night on The CW for its third season, and with it, the introduction of “Flashpoint.”

Barry Allen ended Season 2 after making what will turn out to be a life-changing decision in more ways than one. He ran back in time and saved his mother from being killed by arch nemesis Reverse Flash, and in doing so, ended last season in a new present – one where both of his parents (Nora and Henry Allen) are alive.

With both of his parents in the picture in “Flashpoint,” Barry didn’t grow up with Joe and Iris West, and as Candice Patton told Access Hollywood on Monday, that means “Barry and Iris don’t really
know each other.”

But that will change as “Flashpoint” begins to play out. So, for more details on what to expect from the new chapter in The CW’s “The Flash,” Access Hollywood turned to Candice for a few hints.

AccessHollywood.com: Did you guys have any idea where [‘The Flash’] was going to go earlier this year … when you finished Season 2?

Candice Patton: No, I didn’t. I think we knew that ‘Flashpoint’ was going
to happen, but I don’t think any of us had details of what that would look
like, how long it would last — any of those details. So we were all kind of
pretty excited to get that first script. I think I got it around June or July
and I remember reading it and thinking – it reminded me of the pilot with just
so many exciting elements to the storyline. It gives us kind of a fresh jolt
into Season 3.

Access: Did you get a chance to actually pick up the
comic book ‘Flashpoint’? As actors, sometimes you just want to go off the
script and not influence yourself.

Candice: Right. Well, you know, I’d had ‘Flashpoint’ the comic book, I think since I started this
job, so I was very familiar with it. And I have a 6-year-old nephew who’s seen the animated version, so I’ve seen all of
those and read them and I knew ours was quite different.

Access: As an aside, since you mentioned it, do you get
to watch ‘The Flash’ with your [nephew]? That’s so cute. They must freak out
knowing that their aunt is Iris West.

Candice: It’s probably the coolest part of this job and I say that all the
time. I do these conventions or going to San Diego Comic-Con, you meet families
and what they love so much about the show is, yes, it’s a great show, but it’s
a show that they can watch with their son or their daughter or their
grandmother or grandfather. And so for me, as an actress on this show, it makes
it really special that I can watch this with my nephew. He can enjoy it. He
loves superheroes, and it’s really cool for him to have an aunt that’s, you
know, hanging out with superheroes all day (laughs).

Access: Do the kids that meet you ever say the same thing? … I’m just curious if you get any surprise comments [or ones] that have become a pattern?

Candice: Not surprising. I guess kids always say, ‘You’re The Flash’s girlfriend.’ So, I’m always Flash’s
girlfriend to little kids, which is fine. I’ll take it.

Access: Many people are hoping that you will become The
Flash’s girlfriend [on the show]! Any chance we’re going to get sort of hints of that
in this episode — in the premiere?

Candice: Yeah, absolutely. … What’s really interesting about ‘Flashpoint’
is Barry and Iris don’t really know each other. They went to school together,
but they don’t have a relationship or even a friendship with each other, so it’s
really nice in this first episode you see Barry and Iris really get to kind of
meet each other for the first time and watch that iconic spark that they have
in every timeline and every Earth kind of re-happen in ‘Flashpoint,’ so it’s
really, really special.

Access: Obviously we can tell that Cisco’s very different
because the trailer has revealed he’s a billionaire … I’m curious if Iris is
more the same, or different?
Candice: I think what’s really interesting and special is that [out] of
everyone, Iris is almost exactly the same. I mean, her personality, the core of
who she is, is the same and that’s something that we touch on. … Kind of no matter where we
go or where Barry goes, Iris is Iris. She’s kind of this fixed point in the
timeline, and on every Earth for him, so it’s really nice.

Access: Is Iris still a reporter or is she just sort of a
curious problem solver in this ‘Flashpoint’ universe?
Candice: Yeah, she’s definitely a reporter in this timeline but she also
has another side job, which is really cool. In this timeline we actually get to
see her working with The Flash, which we’ll find out is Kid Flash, Wally West,
her brother. So, in juxtaposition of Season 1, where Iris had no idea about The
Flash and she was kind of kept in the dark, in this timeline we get to see her
kind of in the thick of it with her brother, which is really, really nice.

Access: Tell us a little bit about what Keiynan
[Lonsdale] is like as Kid Flash. I  mean, the promos make him look pretty bada**.
Candice: Yeah, I mean I knew Keiy was super excited to kind of put that
suit on and nervous, obviously, because Grant [Gustin] does it so well, and it’s
a big task to live up to, but he did a great job and it’s really cool to see
two Flashes on our show. I know Wally West and Barry Allen are both so beloved, so for us to be able to have both of them on screen in Season 3 is really a
treat and I think fans will love it too.

Access: So what is sort of the big threat this episode? … I’m curious if Barry’s own problems are the big threat as opposed to say Reverse Flash or … [The Rival].

Candice: All of that. We definitely have our episode to episode villains, we have our big bad for the season, but I think you touched on something too because Barry has altered the timeline and now, he’s going to deal with the repercussions of that for the rest of the season. Everything is a little bit different when he decides to leave ‘Flashpoint,’ so we are going to have to deal with the repercussions of that.

Access: I’ve got to know what Todd Lasance is like as The Rival.
Candice: I didn’t get to work with him very much – at all, I think. But he’s a lovely guy. Just meeting him at the table read, I know he’s super excited to be a part of the show and we’re very, very lucky to have him. He just joins a long list of really great guest stars.

“The Flash” returns Tuesday at 8/7c on The CW.

— Jolie Lash