After years of setbacks and delays, the long-awaited Flash movie finally shot from April to October of 2021, and is on track to race into theaters this November. While we got a brief look at The Flash at last year’s DC FanDome, and some additional footage came out earlier this month, there’s still a lot we don’t know about this DC movie. For instance, who is the main villain? Well, that may have finally been revealed thanks to a crew gift that was shared online.
Shane Steyn was a stunt performer on The Flash, and he showed off a t-shirt he and other members of the movie’s stunt team received when production wrapped. That original Instagram post has since been deleted, but the internet being what it is, the image lives on. Take a look at what’s on the t-shirt (via The Flash Film News):
Did a Flash stunt performer spoil the film's villain? This stunt team crew shirt went under the radar until recently when it was discovered over the weekend. Do you believe this shirt depicts #TheFlash, Reverse Flash or Black Flash? ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/ZX5SJylkZ5February 22, 2022
Two of those figures are easily identifiable: on the left, we have what’s likely Michael Keaton’s version of Batman, and in the center is Sasha Calle’s Supergirl. On a quick glance, you might assume that the left figure is simply The Flash’s title protagonist, but the weird-looking arm and leg, not to mention the logo being a red lightning bolt over a black circle rather than the tradition yellow over white, indicates this might not be the case. As noted in the above post, maybe this is a tease that The Flash’s main villain could be either Reverse-Flash or the Black Flash.
For readers unfamiliar with Flash comics or don’t watch The Flash TV series on The CW, Reverse-Flash and Black Flash are two of the Scarlet Speedster’s greatest adversaries. The Eobard Thawne incarnation of Reverse-Flash is especially important to Barry Allen’s lore, having first tangled with him back in 1963’s The Flash #139 and, starting with The Flash: Rebirth limited series, being revealed as the man who murdered Barry’s mother when he was a child. The Black Flash made its first full appearance in 1998’s The Flash #141 and is the personification of Death for all speedsters, racing after those whose time has come to bring them into the Speed Force.
Because The Flash is taking inspiration from the 2011 storyline Flashpoint, where Reverse-Flash played an integral role, many have assumed that he would be the movie’s chief antagonist. However, there’s been no official word about Eobard Thawne appearing, and unless Warner Bros. and DC are determined to keep his involvement a secret, we likely would have learned who’s playing the yellow-garbed speedster in a casting report/announcement before production started. As for Black Flash, a character like that can be a purely CGI creation, so it’d be easier to keep its presence under wraps.
It’s also been rumored by The Direct that The Flash’s main villain will be a nefarious version of Ezra Miller’s Barry Allen from another universe, i.e. a “Dark Flash.” Since we know the movie will feature at least two versions of Barry, there’s a strong this could indeed be our true big bad, though doesn’t necessarily exclude the possibility Reverse-Flash and/or Black Flash could also show up. In any case, hopefully whenever the first full Flash trailer drops, we’ll get a better idea of what’s in store for this DCEU installment.
Directed by Andy Muschietti and written by Christina Hodson, The Flash hits the silver screen on November 4, and is one of the many upcoming DC movies to be on the lookout for in the coming years.
