By: John M Jerva

Fans of Stephen Amell have anxiously been waiting for the newest endeavor from the former Arrow star and his next role couldn’t be anymore different than panting Oliver Queen on The CW’s long running DC series.

Amell is front and center for the new Starz series Heels which also features Alexander Ludwig of Vikings and The Hunger Games fame. The series features in ring wrestling action coupled with outside world drama and fans of wrestling should eat up this behind the scenes look at one of the most brazen professions out there.

“Heels” is a story about the men and women who chase their dreams in the world of small town pro wrestling. Set in a close-knit Georgia community, it follows a family-owned wrestling promotion as two brothers and rivals war over their late father’s legacy. In the ring, somebody must play the good guy and somebody must play their nemesis, the heel. But in the real world, those characters can be hard to live up to – or hard to leave behind.

Also starring are Alison Luff, Mary McCormack, Kelli Berglund, Allen Maldonado, with two-time Super Bowl champion James Harrison serving up some acting chops. Chris Bauer, and Peter Segal round out the cast.

I actually had the opportunity to see Amell live at the Boston Fan Expo a few years back and the star talked about this new project which is a switch from his anti-hero Oliver Queen he played to almost perfection on the DC series. It’s great to see him back on the screen and busy with this one as well as the Code 8 franchise he is working on with cousin Robbie Amell.

Heels will debut later this summer on August 15th at 9 PM ET/PT on the STARZ pay network.