For a guy nicknamed The Fastest Man Alive, The Flash sure is taking a while to snag the spotlight for himself. Ever since 2014, there's been a Flash standalone movie in development, but it's continued to be pushed back for various reasons. Today brings yet another delay, and Ezra Miller's commitment to the Fantastic Beasts film series is reportedly part of the reason for it.
According to Variety, while The Flash never formally received the green light from Warner Bros or had a set release date, the plan was for the movie to start shooting next March and be ready to screen in 2020. However, apparently there's still some work being done on the script, and this tweaking means cameras won't be ready to roll by next spring. Additionally, Ezra Miller is reprising Credence Barebone for the third Fantastic Beasts movie, which begins shooting next July. As a result, now the plan is for The Flash to begin production in late 2019, which means it likely won't hit theaters until 2021.
While this news is undoubtedly frustrating for Flash fans who have been waiting for Barry Allen to lead his own movie, I can't blame Warner Bros for prioritizing Fantastic Beasts over The Flash. While the DC Extended Universe has been going through a lot behind-the-scenes adjustments of this year, the Fantastic Beasts franchise has been running more smoothly, and the third movie has been dated for November 20, 2020 since 2016. Given the choice between getting Fantastic Beasts 3 or The Flash off the ground first, the former is definitely a more logical call.
The Flash was part of the initial DCEU slate that was announced in late 2014, and was scheduled to come out in March 2018. However, approximately a year and a half later, Seth Grahame-Smith, the movie's first director, dropped out due to creative differences, which kicked off the first of many obstacles for The Flash. Dope's Rick Famuyiwa was later hired to replace Grahame-Smith, but then he dropped out months later, also due to creative differences.
As of last February, Game Night duo John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein are the latest directors attached to The Flash. But now those two will have to wait even longer to bring The Flash to life, and given this movie's troubled history, I wonder if Daley and Goldstein might exit as well due to this delay.
Ezra Miller's Flash first cameoed in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, both as a vision tacked onto the end of Bruce Wayne's Knightmare and through security footage obtained by Lex Luthor. After briefly popping into Suicide Squad to apprehend Captain Boomerang, Barry Allen made his full, proper debut in Justice League, where he teamed up with Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Cyborg and Superman to repel Steppenwolf's invasion. Along with Miller, The Flash is expected to feature Billy Crudup reprising Henry Allen and Kiersey Clemons as Iris West.
Stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more updates regarding The Flash's development, but in the meantime, be sure to look through our DC movies guide to learn what else the DCEU has in development.
