Film Analysis: What went wrong with ‘The Flash’?

It’s officially a Flash fact: DC Studios’ Scarlet Speedster bombed at the box office.

It’s been two weeks since “The Flash” debuted in theaters. In that time the film has yet to even cross the $100 million mark domestically (perhaps that finally changes this weekend) and has only grossed just over $100 million internationally (ouch) for a worldwide box office haul of $216 million as of the Fourth of July holiday, a stretch of summer that should have been another box office burst of speed.

There was a time even just a few months ago when “The Flash” sparked buzz at CinemaCon and a consensus that the film would be a sure bet for a $100 million opening weekend. The film barely made half that. Some were heralding “The Flash” as the best DC film of the “Justice League” era. Not even close (that’s still “Wonder Woman” by a lot, folks). James Gunn declared “The Flash” to be one of the greatest superhero movies he’s ever seen in his first big address as co-head of DC Studios. But Gunn is a company man now: “The Flash” wasn’t made on his watch, but he said exactly what a studio head was supposed to say.

So, what happened? How is a film that was supposed to be an easy billion at the box office – with the much-hyped return of the GOAT Batman, Michael Keaton, a Latina Supergirl (Sasha Calle) who gave an impressive performance and a lot of multiversal surprises (regardless of how you feel about alternate universes at this point) – fail so hard? There are a multitude of reasons, starting with how DC Studios introduced Ezra Miller as their new Flash.

Miller was announced as DC’s new cinematic Flash in 2014, the same year “The Flash” television series starring Grant Gustin in the titular role debuted on the CW. Miller ended up doing a cameo with Gustin during the CW’s “Crisis on Infinite Earths” crossover years later, but his casting gave off a vibe of corporate indifference, as if DC was saying “The Flash” television show didn’t matter in the grand scheme of things – all this despite the goodwill Gustin was building among comic book fans. An awkward approach given “The Flash” series lasted for nine seasons.

Then turmoil came for “Justice League.” When director Zack Snyder was forced to depart production on the film because of a family tragedy, reshoots under Joss Whedon tanked Miller’s superhero standing. Snyder had envisioned the Flash as the Justice League MVP, giving the character a defining end-of-the-movie moment of saving the Justice League and the entire universe single-handedly. Whedon’s version left that on the cutting room floor, using Miller’s Flash as comic relief in an effort to lighten up “Justice League’s” dark tone. The results were disastrous. “Justice League” was a box office failure, not even making $700 million worldwide. By the time Miller’s defining superhero moment resurfaced years later on Max, with its incredible symphonic score and dazzling special effects in the four-hour long Snyder Cut version of “Justice League,” the damage had already been done to the Flash movie brand.

It’s now clear that as “The Flash’s” debut neared, DC wasn’t satisfied with the prerelease buzz. Almost a month before “The Flash” hit theaters, director Andy Muschietti confirmed that Nicolas Cage’s version of Superman, which almost made it to theaters in the ‘90s, makes an appearance in the film. That’s the type of surprise that shouldn’t be ruined a month before a movie’s release date. The announcement came off as a gimmick to drive up hype. Perhaps the early box office tracking was beginning to come in and Warner Bros. and DC Studios realized they were falling short of a $100 million weekend, but the apparent scramble was an odd play that deflated the moment of Cage’s longhair Superman appearing in “The Flash.” Most people who walked into the theater already knew it was coming.

Meanwhile, numerous free fan screenings meant to ignite the fan base meant a lot of the fans who wanted to see the movie already did. The fan that sees a superhero movie four or five times in a theater is a dying breed, not because they don’t want to but because these movies hit streaming platforms so quickly. The one secret that seemingly didn’t get spoiled was George Clooney’s surprise cameo as Bruce Wayne at the end of “The Flash.” Why did that scene actually work? Because nobody knew it was coming. No spoilers please.

Could multiverse fatigue have played a factor in “The Flash’s” box office returns? Absolutely not. Multiverse fatigue is just something your favorite movie critic likes to say. If that were really a thing, would “Across the Spider-Verse” have jumped back to the No. 1 spot at the box office?

Perhaps some in the superhero movie fandom just decided they were going to sit this one out. The combination of Miller’s personal controversies and DC’s lackluster promotion of the film can’t be taken lightly. DC’s recent casting announcement of David Corenswet and Rachel Brosnahan as Clark Kent and Lois Lane in Gunn’s “Superman: Legacy” feels like an attempt to muster up some good will in the wake of a disaster. In a world where “The Flash” is a box office hit, that decision probably wouldn’t be announced for several more months.

The heralding of a new Man of Steel feels like a future is now moment for DC. Don’t expect a speedy answer as to whether this particular corner of the Flash universe is still a part of those plans.