Why Justice League Can’t Switch Gears After Suicide Squad’s Critical Beat Down, According To Ezra Miller

The DC Extended Universe is a pretty divisive place. While the MCU has remained a critical and box office darling for the majority of its eight year run, the DC answer hasn't had quite the same luck. Suicide Squad, the third installment of the DCEU, hit theaters last week and the critical response was less than warm. Much like Batman v Superman and Man of Steel, reviews were mixed to negative despite DC fans generally enjoying the film and it still making a ton of money at the box office. And with Suicide Squad receiving such a rough reaction from critics, many fans are wondering if it will change the way that Zack Snyder's upcoming Justice League is filmed and presented. It turns out, it won't affect it all that much.

Ezra Miller, who plays The Flash in the DCEU, recently opened up to MTV News in the wake of Suicide Squad's reviews. When asked if Justice League would change in any way due to the need for a critical darling, he said the following:

You needn't look any further than the Suicide Squad director and cast response to the negative reviews to feel how negative critiques motivate us. Ultimately, we can't base anything on [the critical response]. As artists, we aim to please absolutely everybody with our work, but we also know that we have to keep expressing ourselves as best as we can express ourselves.

Honestly, this is probably the right approach. Sure, the DCEU has yet to produce a critically successful movie, but changing things last minute due to an entirely separate film doesn't seem like a wise choice.

While three movies have entered the canon, the DC Extended Universe is still very much in its infancy. Rather than slowly amassing characters through solo movies (aka Marvel's plan with the MCU) the DCEU has been rather quickly thrown together. As such, it's still going through some growing pains and figuring out what type of world it wants to create. Will it be full of colorful and somewhat silly characters like Suicide Squad? Will it take a somber and dark tone like Batman v Superman? It doesn't really seem like Warner Bros. knows these answers just yet, which is problematic since it's continuing to produce more big budget blockbusters.

It's also a possibility that Justice League has already learned from the follies of other DCEU installments. There were quite a few adjustments made on an administrative level after Batman v Superman flew into theaters and disappointed people. I think it's safe to say that Zack Snyder will have significantly less power in future movies. Fans clearly want more humor, less villains, and perhaps a less muted color scheme in future installments. But with Ezra Miller bringing his trademark charm and the Flash's quick wit, we may get your wish. If the Justice League Comic-Con trailer is any indication, the DCEU is certainly making positive changes.

Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor

Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.