In this days where comic book films are immensely popular and rumors about them fly fast and furious,when real facts come out about them, it’s easy to over look.
Phil Lord spoke with the Hippojuice Podcast and talked about a number of things–23 Jump Street, The Lego Movie, the animated Spider-Man film he’d be making. But he took a fair amount of time talking about his involvement in Warner Brothers’ The Flash film. What he said seemed like scoop, but in reality confirmed rumors that were already circling the project.
Obviously, the first is his and Chris Miller’s involvement in the project. Next he has confirmed that Ezra Miller is cast in the lead role, and the lead role will be that of Barry Allen. Miller’s casting was announced when the film was announced and it was generally assumed that Barry Allen would be the Flash they used.
For those of you holding out hope that the film will still be able to tie in to the very popular CW TV series of the same name, this bit of information might put a stake in that dream. Well, Lord was more than happy to put five more stakes in the body and then set it on fire:
We’re trying to break a story. It’s interesting, because there’s a really popular TV show out there, and we’re trying to carve out space for the movie that’s apart from that. I think we’re doing alright. … I believe [our Flash] is going to be Barry Allen. … It’s going to be it’s own [thing, apart from the TV show] — we’re more trying to stick with the cinematic universe… it really is its own thing, and kind of a stand-alone movie. We’re just trying to think of the best story. I think you guys will like it, it’s kind of a different take on superhero stuff.
All I can say to him is, good luck. CW’s The Flash is the second highest rated show in the history of the network and is one of the best shows on TV now. It seems to have captured the perfect interpretation of Barry Allen and the Flash, meaning Lord and Miller have their work cut out for them in creating something just as good yet substantially different with the character. Listen, I know that the film has been in the works much longer than the TV show and Warners had no idea the response for the show would be as good as it has been. But having both a TV series and a film with different versions of the character might blow up in their faces.
/Film seems to think that the “stand-alone film” comment means that it won’t tie in with any other DC movie, when Lord says it will in the very same sentence. I’d expect Miller’s Barry Allen will appear on the big screen far before it appears in his own movie in 2018.
Here is the podcast, in case you wish to peruse it yourself:
