Having been in the headlines for all of the wrong reasons lately, Rolling Stone is reporting that The Flash and Fantastic Beasts star Ezra Miller’s future at Warner Bros. has been thrown into doubt, with the studio said to have “hit pause” on any upcoming projects with the actor.
If you’re not up to speed with the latest happenings, Miller recently spent around a month in Hawaii, and was the subject of 10 police calls before being arrested and charged with disorderly conduct and harassment after becoming aggravated by a couple singing ‘Shallow’ at a karaoke bar. To make matters worse, Miller then had a temporary restraining order filed by a local couple with whom they’d been staying after the Justice League star allegedly burst into their bedroom, threatened to “bury you and your slut wife”, and stole their wallets, credit cards, passports and driver’s licenses.
Given that Warner Bros. currently has $100 million plus invested in a movie headlined by Miller in The Flash, it will of course come as little surprise to hear that the studio convened a meeting of executives from WB and DC, and the outcome of said meeting was a decision to “hit pause on any future projects involving Miller including possible appearances in the DC Cinematic Universe.”
It seems that Miller may have been having issues for some time, as Rolling Stone’s report goes on to state that production on The Flash was “fraught with drama” and that the star appeared to struggle with the pressure of leading the DCEU blockbuster, resulting in “frequent meltdowns” with comments such as “I don’t know what I’m doing”.
It’s unclear whether any of this was behind the recent decision to push The Flash from November of this year to June 2023, nor is it clear how this decision from Warner Bros. could impact the film further. The Flash is expected to play a significant role in retooling the DCEU for future projects (see the introduction of Michael Keaton’s Batman, who will then return in the Batgirl movie) and so it certainly leaves the studio in a quandary. Shelving the film seems impossible from an overarching narrative perspective, and while there’s been some calls on social media to recast and reshoot, that would mean remaking most of the movie (hello Josstice League) and is surely not feasible without massively impacting the rest of the DCEU slate.
So, how should WB handle the situation? Stay calm and prey that Miller keeps their nose clean for the next fourteen months? Quietly release the film to HBO Max and give Batgirl the theatrical slot? Get the Henry Cavill moustache removal VFX house to digitally replace Miller’s face with Grant Gustin? Let us know your thoughts on our social channels @FlickeringMyth…
The Flash stars Ezra Miller as Barry Allen/The Flash alongside his Zack Snyder’s Justice League co-stars Ben Affleck (Batman) and Kiersey Clemons (Iris West) with Andy Muschietti (It) directing. The Flash will see Michael Keaton making his return as Batman along with Ron Livingston (Office Space) as Henry Allen, Maribel Verdu (Pan’s Labyrinth) as Nora Allen and Sasha Calle (The Young and the Restless) as Supergirl. Michael Shannon and Antje Traue are also reprising their Man of Steel roles as General Zod and Faora-Ul.
