After being delayed for years,The Flashis finally on track. Andy Muschietti is directing the movie for a November 2022 release, so it’s only a matter of time before Ezra Miller’s Barry Allen takes the spotlight on the big screen. But he might struggle for the audience’s attention, becauseThe Flashis shaping up to be the cameo-laden epic fans arehopingSpider-Man: No Way Homewill be.
Both Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck are returning to the role of Bruce Wayne across parallel dimensions, while Sasha Calle will beintroduced as the DCEU’s Supergirl. The fact that there’s been a lot more buzz about the other heroes appearing in the film than the Flash himself could pose a problem for the title character. If Barry has to compete with Supergirl, Batman, and another Batman, will the story be able to do him justice?
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The story ofThe Flashwill initially follow up on Barry’s most significant DCEU plot point to date: the murder of his mother. He’ll go back in time to prevent her death, which will have all kinds of unintended ramifications across the spacetime continuum. This will warrant the help of Keaton’s Batman, Affleck’s Batman, and Calle’s Supergirl to set the timelines straight. Based on that premise, it sounds like the movie will start off focused on Barry’s grief over losing his mother and the extreme lengths he’ll go to in order to bring her back, but move on to bigger, bolder storylines as soon as the multiverse is ripped open.
Affleck’s Batman developed a kind of surrogate father-son relationship with Miller’s Flash inJustice League. However, their dynamic in that movie was skin-deep, transparently stolen from Tony Stark and Peter Parker’s relationship in the MCU.The Flashhas the chance to develop this pairing further asBatman becomes a mentor to the Flashand they bond over both having murdered mothers.
It’s unclear exactly how Keaton’s Batman will factor into the story. Affleck’s Batman has an established history with Miller’s Flash, so there’s a precedent for his appearance in the movie, but Keaton’s Batman is from the wrong franchise. Fans are excited to see Keaton back in the cowl after all these years, but it could be a detriment toThe Flashitself if Keaton’s appearance is a distraction.
By bringing back these actors from previous incarnations of the franchise, Warner Bros. is essentially guaranteeing DC fans what Marvel fans hope to see inSpider-Man: No Way Home. But just like a bunch of franchise crossovers inNo Way Homewould take away fromPeter’s current predicament, all the universe-hopping antics inThe Flashcould ruin the movie if it ends up not really being about the Flash. Blowing open the DC multiverse could take the spotlight away from Barry.
Overstuffing scripts with story material that could be fleshed out into four or five different movies is a common problem with DCEU tentpoles, including the one that introduced Ezra Miller’s Flash in the first place:Batman v Superman.BvSwas a Batman reboot, a sequel toMan of Steel, and a precursor toJustice Leaguein addition to telling the story ofBatman and Superman coming to blows. Now, it looks likeThe Flashwill be aJustice Leaguespin-off, a sequel toBatman Returns, and a Supergirl movie reboot in addition to kicking off Barry Allen’s solo franchise.
The Flash’s introduction inBvSis dedicated to setting up a movie that was ultimately never made. He appeared from the future to a napping Bruce Wayne and said, “It’s Lois! Lois Lane! She’s the key!” That set up went nowhere and proved Warner’s proclivity for cramming its superhero blockbusters full of promising material and then depriving fans of any real payoffs.
The Flashis being written by Christina Hodson, who previously wroteBirds of Prey.Birds of Prey’s biggest issue wasits disjointed, unfocused script. It had some stylish action scenes and cool Tarantino-esque dialogue, but it couldn’t choose between being an ensemble team movie and a Harley Quinn solo movie.The Flashcould suffer from the same problem, flitting between a Barry Allen solo adventure and a timeline-crossing team-up.
It’s possible that all these additional heroes are being used to support Barry’s journey.Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Versefeatured two versions of Peter Parker and a superpowered Gwen Stacy, as well as Spider-Ham, Spider-Man Noir, and SP//dr, but their role in the plotserved Miles Morales’ journeyas opposed to detracting from it. IfThe Flashtakes cues from the Spidey-centric animated masterpiece – and the fact that the project was initially developed bySpider-Verseproducers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller suggests that it will – then Supergirl and the Batmen could be used to enhance Barry’s own arc in the movie.
Unfortunately, it seems more likely that the script will get bogged down with the returning Dark Knights and the new Kryptonian and Barry himself will fall by the wayside. In bothBvSandJustice League(every version of it), Barry was lost in the fray as more iconic characters overshadowed him. And now thathe’s finally getting his own movie, it looks like Warner Bros. is about to make the same mistake all over again.
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