Warner Bros. and DC cannot seem to catch a break of late. After shelving its Batgirl film last week a similar fate looks likely for The Flash, as the continued disturbing off-screen behaviour of actor Ezra Miller has significantly jeopardised the project’s release.
The Flash movie is currently scheduled for release on 23rd June 2023, serving as a potential catalyst for the next phase of big budget superhero films for the studio, but reports this week of Miller’s actions has seen Warner Bros. consider three potential scenarios for the project.
According to The Hollywood Reporter (THR), sources close to the project have noted the three scenarios in the following way.
The first is that Miller seeks professional help under the supervision of his mother, who has reportedly been close to them (the actor’s preferred pronoun) in recent days. As Miller gets the help they need, the actor would do limited press for the release of the film as scheduled, as well as giving an interview on the current situation.
The next scenario is that Warner Bros. pushes ahead with the film’s release as scheduled, choosing to essentially ignore the actor controversy and explain that they would not be playing the role of Barry Allen in future projects as it gets recast.
The third scenario is that Warner Bros. decides to can the project altogether despite it already having been filmed and well into the post-production phase. This scenario would depend how on how much worse the Miller situation gets, which is looking like a serious possibility at this stage.
None of the above scenarios are great, either for the studio or indeed the other actors and talent attached to the project. That said, considering how much Warner Bros. has likely sunk into The Flash film to date, not to mention it kicking off a future slate of projects too, the company may choose options one or two in order to recoup some sort of money.
Where The Flash was suppose to “reboot” the DC cinematic universe after the divisive Justice League films, it looks like this project itself may need a reboot.
Precisely when Warner Bros. will come to a decision is unclear, but the fact that trailers for the film are no longer visible on either the WB or DC YouTube channels, is rather telling.
[Source – The Hollywood Reporter]
