Warner Bros. could scrap The Flash movie completely in a worst-case scenario, according to a new report. The film is set to star Ezra Miller, who has recently been charged with felony burglary amid a slew of other allegations against the actor.
Per The Hollywood Reporter (opens in new tab), Warner Bros. is considering three potential courses of action. The best case scenario would see Miller receive professional help and later give an interview addressing their behavior. Then, they’d still be involved in “limited” press for the movie. The next possibility is what could happen if Miller does not seek help – the film would still be released, but Miller would not be a key figure in the marketing, and they would be recast going forward.
The third potential course is what THR calls the “last resort” – if the Miller situation gets worse, the studio would cancel the film entirely. The report notes that reshooting is simply not an option, as Miller plays more than one character and appears in practically every scene of the film.
Miller has been arrested twice this year and allegations continue to mount against them. Rolling Stone (opens in new tab) published an investigation that said Miller is housing a woman and her three children in an unsafe environment (the mother disputes this). Variety (opens in new tab) spoke to a woman who accuses Miller of harassment and another who was allegedly choked by the actor in Iceland. In June, a mother and child were granted a temporary harassment prevention order against the actor (H/T The Daily Beast (opens in new tab)), and the parents of activist Tokata Iron Eyes have accused the actor of grooming their child (H/T Yahoo Entertainment (opens in new tab)), which the 18-year-old disputes (H/T Business Insider (opens in new tab)). You can read full details of the allegations through the links.
Warner Bros. recently made waves by scrapping Batgirl after it had already been filmed. An official statement put the reason down to a shift in strategy, though reports have indicated a tax opportunity also played a part in the cancelation. The $90 million budget for Batgirl was far lower than The Flash’s, though, which is an eye-watering $200 million.
New Warner Bros. Discovery boss David Zaslav has recently said that a 10-year plan is being put together for the future of the DCEU, inspired by the Kevin Feige-led Marvel Cinematic Universe. THR notes that The Flash is “expected to chart a new course” for the DCEU, so it would seem that scrapping the movie entirely could disrupt this decade-long plan.
Next up on the DC release slate is Black Adam, which will hit theaters this October 21. In the meantime, check out our guide to all the upcoming superhero movies throughout 2022 and beyond.