It’s been a long journey filled with setbacks and delays, but The Flash finally looks like it’s on its way to beginning production. As we’ve known for several years now, the Scarlet Speedster’s solo movie will be inspired by the 2011 crossover event Flashpoint, and one of the main participants in that story was Flash’s arch-nemesis Eobard Thawne, a.k.a. Reverse-Flash, a.k.a. Professor Zoom. So can we expect Thawne to show up in the cinematic Flashpoint adaptation?
Well, going off a social media post from The Flash producer Barbara Muschietti, it’s possible the Reverse-Flash has indeed been teased for the upcoming DC movie. Take a look at some geeky socks that Muschietti showed off on her Instagram page, specifically the left one:
Anyone remotely familiar with DC Comics will recognize the Flash logo on the right sock, but that left one is distinctly Reverse-Flash with its yellow background and the reversed-lightning bolt on the black circle. Now, it’s possible that Barbara Muschietti simply wanted to show off some Flash apparel. After all, she thanked YouTuber Rudy Mancuso in the caption, so presumably he’s the one who sent her those socks.
Still, with The Flash expected to begin production soon, this picture might have doubled as Barbara Muschietti teasing Reverse-Flash’s DC Extended Universe arrival. Admittedly, The Flash movie isn’t expected to be a faithful adaptation of the original Flashpoint story, but even if it’s simply following the basic premise, it’s hard to imagine Reverse-Flash not being involved. Don’t forget, Justice League set up how Barry Allen’s mother, Nora, was murdered, and Henry Allen, Barry father, convinced of the crime. If the DCEU is following the modern day DC Comics lore, then it was actually Eobard Thawne who killed Nora and framed Henry, having traveled back in time to wreak havoc on Barry’s life years before he was hit by that lightning bolt and became a speedster.
For now though, we’re officially in the dark about whether or not Reverse-Flash will appear in The Flash. In fact, much of what the movie holds in store is being kept close to the chest, though as mentioned earlier, it’s been making much swifter progress compared to when directors like Set Grahame-Smith, Rick Famuyia and duo John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein were attached. Barbara Muschietti and her brother Andy Muschietti were announced for The Flash back in July 2019, with the latter sitting in the director’s chair. Birds of Prey’s Christina Hodson wrote the most recent version of the screenplay.
One thing we do know about The Flash is that there won’t be any lack of Batman in it. Along with Ben Affleck expected to reprise the DCEU’s Bruce Wayne, Michael Keaton will also return as his version of the Caped Crusader, who we haven’t seen since 1992’s Batman Returns. Time travel will still factor into The Flash, but going off those castings, as well as DC Films' enthusiasm for the multiverse, it’s been speculated that rather than the main DCEU timeline being changed, Ezra Miller’s Barry Allen will instead travel to alternate Earths. Still, there’s no reason he couldn’t (pardon the expression) run into Reverse-Flash along the way.
As things stand now, The Flash will race into theaters on November 4, 2022, with principal photography expected to begin this coming April. Keep track of the other DC movies on the way with our detailed guide.
