Yahoo Finance ‘The Flash’ Was Never Going to Be Derailed by Ezra Miller’s Arrests, Says Producer
“The Flash” was always speeding into theaters with Ezra Miller as the lead, regardless of the actor’s problematic behavior, according to the film’s team.
Director Andy Muschietti and his sister, producer Barbara Muschietti, confirmed to Entertainment Weekly that Warner Bros. Discovery “never” hesitated on the theatrical rollout of the DCU superhero installment, despite conflicting reports in August 2022 after abuse allegations against Miller became public.
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“Not at all. No. That was never real,” Barbara Muschietti said of the film possibly being shelved.
Miller, who identifies as non-binary and uses they/them pronouns, was arrested multiple times for assault and trespassing, with additional accusations of grooming multiple underage individuals. Miller issued an apology statement last summer and announced they were seeking mental health treatment.
Director Andy Muschietti addressed Miller’s ongoing treatment, saying, “We have a lot of empathy in general for people who need help, and especially in mental health issues. That’s why they are taking the necessary steps to deal with their recovery, and we support them in that.”
Andy Muschietti recently stated that if a sequel to “The Flash” is greenlit, Miller will continue to play the central superhero.
“If [a sequel] happens, yes,” Muschietti said during “The Discourse” podcast (via The Playlist). “I don’t think there’s anyone that can play that character as well as they did. The other depictions of the character are great, but this particular vision of the character, they just excelled in doing it.”
Warner Bros.’ DC Studios co-head Peter Safran stood by Miller and shared in January 2023 that Miller was “completely committed to their recovery” and that the studio was “fully supportive of that journey” while “The Flash” geared up for its theatrical release.
“When the time is right, when they feel like they’re ready to have the discussion, we’ll all figure out what the best path forward is,” Safran said. “Right now, they are completely focused on their recovery. In our conversations with them over the last couple of months, it feels like they’re making enormous progress.”
Co-studio head James Gunn added at the time during a DC press event that while rumors of “The Flash” being canned circulated, “I also feel like it’s important to point out, thousands of people worked on ‘The Flash,’ and these people dedicated the last few years of their lives to making something really special. Andy Muschietti, the director, Barbara Muschietti, the producer, Christina [Hodson], the writer, Michael Keaton, all of the other people, all of these other people, and to start making it as if a movie is one person that depends on this one person is something that can be frustrating as a filmmaker, especially as a director who knows that often times an actor spends three months of his life on a set and a director spends two years creating it.”
“The Flash” opens in theaters June 16 from Warner Bros.
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