Warner Bros.’ The Flash movie has had one hell of a time making it to the screen. The project was first announced with the initial slate of Justice League adjacent projects but difficulties in finding the right director delayed The Flash for years before we even got to the global pandemic. Now the movie is still a year away but due to the recent personal life problems of star Ezra Miller there is a question if we’ll ever see the film, and it seems a lot of people might be ok if we never did.
A survey by Morning Consult, that was conducted before Ezra Miller publicly apologized and announced they would seek treatment for what they called “complex mental health issues,” reveals that nearly half of adults would be ok with seeing The Flash completely canceled due to the various accusations that have been levied against Miller
The survey asked people how they thought a studio should handle a film release if its star was accused of various acts of wrongdoing, from running an unlicensed cannabis farm, to disorderly conduct, to assault, and more. They were asked if the film should be released as is, postponed, reshot with a new actor, or canceled entirely. While only around a quarter or less of respondents thought the movie should be canceled if the star was accused of any one crime, 42% believed the movie should be shelved if they were accused of all of them.
It’s been reported that shelving The Flash movie entirely is something that is at least under consideration at Warner Bros. following the variety of legal entanglements that Ezra Miller has been involved in. They were previously arrested in Hawaii for disorderly conduct and Miller was charged with burglary earlier this month.
As of right now The Flash is still set to open in theaters in June of 2023 which, if nothing else does give the studio some time to figure out just how they want to handle the situation. With Ezra Miller’s recent announcement that they are seeking treatment, it’s possible that we could see Miller’s reputation recover over the next few months and people become more comfortable with the film being released.
Certainly The Flash is a major tentpole release for the under new management Warner Bros. studio, which is going to make the powers that be not want to can the movie. Beyond that, the expectation has been that since The Flash is a time-travel/multiverse storyline, the movie might be used as a soft reboot of the DC universe on the big screen, making it all the more important to the studio’s future plans, not just its own box office success.
