But when it got here to The Flash that proved frustratingly inconceivable. Or at the very least implausible contemplating the allegations and authorized entanglements the Flash actor Miller discovered themselves in by 2023. Whether or not normal audiences have been totally conscious of Miller’s troubles or battle with psychological well being is tough to say, however the reality of the matter is WB properly determined The Flash’s greatest lead shouldn’t promote the movie, and its second greatest lead, Michael Keaton, selected to not. Newcomer Sasha Calle gave it a formidable school strive, however she performed a personality audiences have been not sure about—a Supergirl from a distinct universe who might not seem in one other DC movie—and didn’t have the resume of working in earlier DC movies.
In different phrases, Miller’s absence created a black gap within the advertising and marketing marketing campaign round The Flash that no one was in a position to fill. That may be a fairly main drawback proper there, however it’s not the largest…
WB Already Signaled This Was the Finish of the Line
In January 2023, new DC Studios co-head James Gunn boldly introduced the primary slate of what he dubbed the brand new DC Universe. There could be a brand new Superman film with a brand new actor and timeline, then tentatively titled Superman: Legacy; there could be TV reveals in live-action and animation; there would even be a brand new Batman unrelated to both Ben Affleck’s character within the DCEU or the one performed by Robert Pattinson in The Batman; and there could be a brand new Supergirl film known as Supergirl: Lady of Tomorrow.
When requested whether or not Calle would possibly play that Supergirl, Gunn on the time was imprecise and maybe evasive. It left room for fan hypothesis, in addition to intense skepticism. And that was in regard to The Flash’s greatest new addition to the DC Prolonged Universe. In the meantime it was already confirmed by then that Henry Cavill was performed as Superman, Gal Gadot appeared unlikely to play Surprise Lady once more as she seemingly stated goodbye to the character on social media, and Affleck had spent the previous half-decade with one foot out the door.
Your complete lineup of the DCEU’s as soon as glistening Justice League was going, going, gone, and no matter guarantees The Flash made in regards to the subsequent period of the onscreen DC universe appeared illusory at finest. And they also have been. Home of the Dragon’s Milly Alcock is now Supergirl, Gunn and Muschietti are each allegedly creating a brand new Batman for The Courageous and the Daring, and David Corenswet’s Superman presumably hails from a far sunnier Krypton than the awful hellscape Michael Shannon represented in The Flash.
Like Shazam! Fury of the Gods, Aquaman 2, and the remainder of the 2023 DC slate, The Flash arrived two years in the past as a lame duck, a brand new phenomenon in cinema created by the commercial scale at which superhero flicks are actually churned out. Admittedly, a film needs to be gratifying unto itself as an entire expertise. And no matter else you would possibly consider The Flash, we do concede it’s a self-contained story with a starting, center, and finish. Nonetheless, additionally it is a chunk of a studio’s grander advertising and marketing technique, and for the final 20 years Marvel, Disney, and positive sufficient the DCEU have educated media-savvy followers to anticipate every movie as a pseudo-commercial for the following two or three within the pipeline.
