There were many stressful things about to theaters. It was shot in the middle of a pandemic. There was isolation from friends and family for the 138-day shoot. There were A-list schedules to coordinate for cameos. There was a star in who, after it wrapped, made headlines for legal run-ins amid a mental health crisis. And behind it all, a studio undergoing leadership changes and rethinking the whole DC Comics strategy.
But first, they had to figure out how to transport a two-ton Batmobile from Los Angeles to the U.K. amid a worldwide shortage of shipping containers in 2021.
This was not just any Batmobile, mind you. It was one of the originals from the Tim Burton movies that was needed for the grand return of Michael Keaton鈥檚 caped crusader after 30 years 鈥� a major production that also involved building, from scratch, a life-size replica of the Batcave.
Director Andy Muschietti and his sister, producer Barbara Muschietti, waited nervously for its arrival worried whether it would make it in time or just be stuck in the middle of the ocean. They breathed a sigh of relief when it made it ashore, briefly celebrated and moved on to the next problem: how to get it into the Batcave at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden. Ultimately it involved a loading it onto a modified airport cargo truck that was lifted 20 feet (6 meters) in the air and 鈥済ently rolled鈥� onto set.
鈥淓verything came with a little adventure,鈥� Barbara Muschietti said with a laugh in a recent interview with The Associated Press.
It鈥檚 an apt if intentionally understated description of getting 鈥淭he Flash" into theaters on June 16. Movie versions of the lightning quick comic book character have been in various stages of development since the late 1980s. One scenario had Ryan Reynolds starring and David S. Goyer directing; another had George Miller setting the stage for spinoffs and standalones with Adam Brody.
Then in 2014, things started taking shape as Warner Bros. plotted out a shared universe of DC Comics films, including a standalone Flash starring Miller as Barry Allen, who would first appear in 鈥淏atman v Superman: Dawn of Justice,鈥� 鈥淪uicide Squad鈥� and 鈥淛ustice League."
But even that wasn鈥檛 so straightforward, with disagreements over tone and scheduling conflicts making things complicated. Several writers and directors cycled in and out of developing 鈥淭he Flash,鈥� including Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, Seth Grahame-Smith, Rick Famuyiwa, Robert Zemeckis and John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein, and release dates were pushed back. Ezra Miller even worked on their own treatment of a script.
The Muschiettis were when the studio approached them about 鈥淭he Flash.鈥� They didn鈥檛 concern themselves with the messy, marathon development history 鈥� they just wanted to figure out if this was worth several years of their life. In the story, Andy Muschietti found a compelling emotional core: The relationship between Barry Allen and his mother, who was killed when he was a child and whom he wants to go back in time to save. 鈥淏ack to the Future,鈥� which is referenced quite a bit in 鈥淭he Flash,鈥� was one of their favorite movies, too. They were in.
screenwriter Christina Hobson had taken a crack at the story and come out with something that was both fun and emotional and introduced the multiverse to the DC cannon. In Barry Allen鈥檚 quest to save his mother, he accidentally gets tossed into another timeline and meets a younger, different version of himself who gets swept up in the journey. It allowed for lots of possibilities, including bringing Keaton back in a movie that also had
鈥淲e all got very excited about the prospect of having Michael Keaton come back after 30 years of not knowing what Batman was up to,鈥� Andy Muschietti said. 鈥淭he multiverse allowed this to happen and combine the existing characters, the existing universe, with something that seemed to have been buried in the past.鈥�
They told Keaton, who jogged to their lunch meeting in Brentwood, they wouldn鈥檛 be able to do the film without him. They wanted to find his Bruce Wayne in a place people wouldn鈥檛 expect. By the end of lunch, Keaton had agreed and jogged off.
鈥淚 didn鈥檛 want him to be sitting near the fireplace, like staring out of a glass of whiskey,鈥� Andy Muschietti said. 鈥淚 knew he was going to transform back into Batman so I needed him to be in a place that made that transformation possible in the tradition of a reluctant hero.鈥�
Keaton's Batman was also due to make a return in the
鈥淭he Flash鈥� has other nostalgic nods, including an army of cameos best left unspoiled, that helps set the stage for a 鈥渦niverse reboot.鈥� While making the film, big leadership changes were afoot at Warner Bros. and, specifically, DC Studios, where were tasked with , from Superman to Batman. That new vision won鈥檛 officially begin until , but he鈥檚 also said that 鈥淭he Flash,鈥� though technically from a previous regime, 鈥渞esets the entire DC universe.鈥�
But then during the extensive post-production on 鈥淭he Flash,鈥� star Ezra Miller, also started making headlines for a string of arrests and reports of last year. They were arrested twice last year in Hawaii, including for disorderly conduct and harassment at a karaoke bar. In January, they pleaded guilty to a charge stemming from a break-in and theft of alcohol at in Vermont. They avoided jail time but paid a $500 fine and got a year of probation, agreeing to abide by a number of conditions including continued mental health treatment.
Though some questioned whether 鈥淭he Flash鈥� should be shelved, the studio remained committed to releasing it on June 16 even without their star on the promotional circuit.
鈥淲e鈥檙e in contact with them. They love the movie. They support the movie. And they鈥檙e taking their treatment very seriously,鈥� said Barbara Muschietti of Miller. 鈥淲e want everybody to see this. It鈥檚 great and it鈥檚 special. And it has all our hearts and guts.鈥�
While early hyperbole abounded with people like Gunn calling it one of the best superhero movies he鈥檇 ever seen, reviews have indeed been mostly very positive with lots of praise for Miller鈥檚 dual roles.
鈥淲hat you get is this delicious odd couple,鈥� Barbara Muschietti. 鈥淵ou forget that they鈥檙e the same actor.鈥�
There are even rumors that the Muschiettis鈥� DC relationship will continue with future films. But right now, the focus is 鈥淭he Flash.鈥�
鈥淟et鈥檚 just wait and see,鈥� Andy Muschietti said.
Lindsey Bahr, The Associated Press
