'Arrow' season 5 spoilers, updates: EP weighs in on Dolph Lundgren's season 5 character

"Arrow" season 5 will not be a walk in the park for hooded vigilante Oliver Queen, as he's expected to square off with someone connected to his past.

As Star City's mayor, Oliver (Stephen Amell) will apparently be dealing with the mob as the upcoming season's criminal element. There were reports that season 5 will be using a storyline that is much like the first season of the show, which means there will be little to no participation of magical villains. Everything in the fifth season will feel more lifelike, so it seems.

However, revisiting elements of the first season will mean exploring Oliver's past, particularly his time with the Russian mafia, Bratva. Speaking to TV Line, showrunner Wendy Mericle teased that "Arrow" season 5 will mostly feature flashbacks, but this time around, they will not be taking place on the island. Apparently, the flashbacks will zero in on Ollie's struggles with the Bratva and the man who made his time there painful.

Dolph Lundgren has been tapped to play this still-unnamed villain, and according to Mericle, the character will be extremely powerful.

"[Dolph's character] is a government strongman," the showrunner told TV Line. "He is scary and formidable — and he had a role in some stuff with Taiana's family last season. He's a bit of a bad---."

Mericle shared that they want to be as authentic as possible this season 5, and so "Arrow's" writers are doing plenty of research on the Bratva and Russian prisons.

"We really wanted to go gritty, dark, and make it feel very real," she explained.

Fans could expect the upcoming installment to reveal what happened to Oliver during the time he was away from Star City.

In an earlier interview with TV Line, Mericle said that they know which direction Oliver is headed this year; thus, it will be less of a struggle for everyone involved in the production.

"We know what we're working up to," she said back in April. "The season will be easier to break because we have an endpoint, and we work backwards from there."

However, aside from flashback fights with Lundgren's character, Oliver will also be facing tough villains in the present, which will be led by Tobias Church (Chad L. Coleman). It looks like the latter will unite Star City's criminal elements in order to take down Green Arrow, which is probably why four new masked vigilantes will be stepping in to help Oliver in his quest to stop Church and his minions.

"Arrow" season 5 premieres Wednesday, Oct. 5 at 8 p.m. EDT on The CW.