‘Arrow’ Season 7 Spoilers: Star Katherine McNamara Teases Maya’s Compelling Backstory

It was announced back in September that Katherine McNamara was joining the cast of “Arrow” Season 7, but tonight is the night when fans will finally get to meet her character, Maya.

“What I can tell you about Maya is she’s a fighter,” McNamara told International Business Times at New York Comic Con in October. “She had a very conflicted childhood, and she grew up in sort of a rough place, and that has kind of shaped her into the person that she is, which is why she’s a fighter.”

While IBT found some evidence, a few weeks ago, suggesting Maya could actually be the mysterious Blackstar mentioned at the end of Season 7, episode 6, the only thing we know for sure is that McNamara’s character will be “introduced in a very interesting way,” according to the star.

Although some people might see similarities between the actress’ “Arrow” and “Shadowhunters” characters, McNamara told IBT she worked hard to separate the two.

“I’m actually really excited for people to see [Maya], as well, because it’s very different than Clary,” she said. “It’s a completely different person, and I made sure to create that separation, because the fandoms do cross over, but I definitely want this to be a new person.

“Out of respect for both characters, I wanted to make sure that there was a clear separation between the two. And there definitely is. She’s sort of the antithesis of everything that Clary was. And that’s very exciting.”

Her two characters might be very different, but the 23-year-old actress shared that the sets for both of the shows were pretty similar.

“The way that everyone has welcomed me in has been very lovely,” McNamara said. “It’s eerily similar to the energy on ‘Shadowhunters,’ which is great. Everyone’s a family, everybody’s saying that it’s one of their favorite jobs they’ve had in the industry, and that’s really lovely. It reminds me of what ‘Shadowhunters’ would’ve been if we’d made it to Season 7. So, it’s bittersweet in that sense.”

McNamara makes her “Arrow” debut tonight when the show airs Season 7, episode 8 on The CW at 8 p.m. EST.