Credit: Warner Bros.The DC Extended Universe may be almost over and done, but it seems that Warner Bros is bringing controversial actor Ezra Miller back as the Flash at least one more time.
The troubled and tangled cinematic history of The Flash is notorious, even among comic book adaptations. Warner Bros and DC Comics began developing a solo movie starring Barry Allen (or possibly Wally West, depending on who was in charge at the moment) all the way back in the 1980s, but it took until 2023 for Ezra Miller to bring the character on screen.
However, the Ezra Miller movie was first announced in 2014 with a scheduled release date of 2018, which means that it took just about five years too long for it to really happen. The Andy Muschietti film was widely touted by Warner Bros, newly minted DC Studios co-head James Gunn, and, notably, CEO David Zaslav, only to become one of the biggest box office bombs of all time.
Related: James Gunn Dismisses Fan Hopes For ‘The Flash’
The failure of The Flash essentially destroyed what was left of Warner Bros’ faith in the long-gone Zack Snyder’s DCEU. It did not recoup its gargantuan estimated production budget of $220 million, and even the return of Michael Keaton as Batman was not able to raise fan enthusiasm enough for it to end up as anything but an embarrassment.
It did not help that Ezra Miller came under intense negative public scrutiny around the same time. Miller was arrested multiple times, was accused of assault and burglary, and had their relationship with indigenous activist Tokata Iron Eyes described as the grooming of a minor by her parents.
In short, it seemed that Ezra Miller had lost their place in the Justice League, not to mention another Warner Bros franchise, the Harry Potter spinoff series Fantastic Beasts. While James Gunn has been mostly clear that he does not intend to repopulate his new DC Universe with previous actors, it does seem that Miller will appear one more time alongside Aquaman (Jason Momoa).
In the run-up to Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, reportedly the final DCEU movie, DC Comics has been releasing tie-in comics to try to build some excitement or even memory that this film is coming out. Now, in the canonical Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom Special #1, the Flash unexpectedly appears to aid the King of Atlantis, making this likely to be the final appearance of the Ezra Miller version of the character.
Related: DC Tried To Fix ‘The Flash’ by Giving Ezra Miller a Bigger Butt
As seen above, the costume and general facial appearance (not to mention dialogue, as below) confirm that this version of Barry Allen is the one we have been used to seeing since Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016). Within the comic, the Flash helps out Aquaman with a “meta bomb” and makes a goofy face in front of Wonder Woman, so yeah, it’s that version of Barry.
No one could have expected the DCEU to end so abruptly and ignominiously, but if you’re a Flash fan, it seems like you’ll get at least one more glimpse at the speedster.
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