‘Arrow’ Star Stephen Amell Suing Neighbor for Illegal Business

Stephen Amell played a hero on The CW’s Arrow for eight seasons and now he’s hoping to play a hero in court. Amell and his wife, Cassandra Jean Amell, are suing their neighbors in Lod Angeles because they are allegedly running an illegal animal adoption business in their backyard. Amell, 41, claims he has been having problems with the issue since his neighbors moved in in 2015.

Amell and Cassandra are suing Kristen Stavola and Jeremy Gardiner, according to court documents TMZ obtained this week. Stavola and Gardiner run Rescues Rock Inc., which they claim is a pet adoption and foster business. The Amells said the business has been disrupting their lives since 2015 and say that up to 60 animals live there, including at least 18 dogs and many cats. They claim the business is illegal since the operation is being run in an area zoned for residential only. They said they are only suing Gardiner and Stavola after exhausting other options.

Amell and Cassandra claim in the lawsuit that the animals are making noises at all hours of the day, making it impossible for his wife and children to sleep. Amell and Cassandra, who played Nora Fries in the Arrowverse “Elseworlds” crossover, have two children, daughter Maverick, 8, and 3-month-old son Bowen. The Amells also claim the business snells and they are concerned that the dogs may carry diseases. Amell is asking a judge to shut down the operation. Rescues Rock, Inc. has not publicly commented on the lawsuit.

Amell is best known for playing Oliver Queen/Green Arrow on The CW’s Arrow, which ran from 2012 to 2020. The series spawned the Arrowverse franchise, which also includes The Flash, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, Supergirl, and Batwoman. Last year, Amell joined the Starz series Heels, which centers on two brothers who work in professional wrestling. The series was already renewed for a second season.

Amell might already be focused on Heels, but he looks back on his time as Green Arrow fondly. He recently told Den of Geek he wouldn’t turn down a chance to play the character again. All eight seasons of Arrow are still available to stream on Netflix.

“I owe so much to the people of DC, The CW, and Warner Bros. Television,” Amell said. “I love the character so much and only love it more now that it’s coming up on two years since we wrapped the show… But having a little space now, I saw that I miss it. I do look back very, very, very fondly on it… Listen, I’m the namesake. So if I can ever be of any… help, if I can be of service to the Arrowverse in any way, shape, or form, or better still take it to a new place, which I think would be the more interesting route to go, be that in a limited capacity or on a different platform, maybe one where we could show blood, that’d be really cool.”