With Andy Muschietti’s “IT” prequel series “Welcome To Derry” creeping closer to release — premiering October 26 on HBO and Max — the filmmaker joined our Bingeworthy podcast to discuss expanding Stephen King’s horror mythology for television. But during the conversation, Muschietti also looked back on his foray into the superhero genre with “The Flash” — a film that became one of DC’s most public misfires, arriving at the tail end of the Snyderverse just as the studio was preparing its big reset, and shadowed by the off-screen controversies surrounding star Ezra Miller.
Muschietti also briefly reflected on how anger-based online bandwagons can harm a film’s reception — especially when outrage is misdirected by people who haven’t even seen the work itself, a dynamic he suggested played out when Ezra Miller’s off-screen controversies became unfairly imprinted on the movie and the studio behind it.
Asked how he processed that experience and whether it shook his confidence, Muschietti admitted to feeling disappointed but emphasized his resilience.
“No, we just moved on and understood that sometimes there’s a headwind and a project that you dedicated a lot of work to,” he said. “And we’re very proud of it. I think it’s a good movie.”
He continued, acknowledging the reality of the film’s poor box office performance. “A lot of people did not see it. But you know how things are these days — people don’t see things, but they like to talk s*** about it, and they like to jump on bandwagons. They don’t really know. People are angry for reasons that are unrelated to these things.”
Muschietti alluded to how Ezra Miller’s off-screen controversies impacted the film’s reception. “Of course, we had a publicity crisis with Ezra that is undeniable. And I’m not questioning that. But yeah, we love the movie. And actually, we really recommend it.”
Despite the turmoil, Muschietti expressed gratitude toward the studio for standing behind the project. “This may seem immaterial now, but we also had so much support from the studio, really, at a point where they could have been like, you know, backing out because of all the issues we were having with publicity. And they went all in, and we all went all in.”
He added, “And again, we love the movie. We, you know, we gave it our blood, sweat, and tears all the way to the end. And I watched it, like a week ago, and loved it again.”
READ MORE: James Gunn Boasts Many “Big Actors” Want To Play DCU Batman For ‘The Brave & The Bold’
Released back in 2023, “The Flash” ended up with mixed reviews from critics, but ultimately, audiences mostly seemed to embrace the film (despite the $271.4 million box office earnings on a reported budget of $200 million) that attempted to dabble in the Multiverse of DC Comics, adding Sasha Calle‘s Supergirl to the fray and having Michael Keaton reprising the Batman part (he’d also return for “Batgirl” to mentor Leslie Grace‘s Barbara Gordon in the solo movie but was controversially scrapped by the studio).
Muschietti is expected to return to help out on the next two seasons of “IT: Welcome To Derry,” which is said to be set in 1935 and 1908. The new series focuses on Pennywise the Dancing Clown terrorizing the small-town community in different time periods; the first season tackles 1962. He’s also attached to helm the DCU’s Batman in “The Brave & The Bold” (we’re still waiting for updates from James Gunn/Warner Bros.) as fans are desperate to figure out who will end up donning the cape and cowl after Robert Pattinson‘s Bruce Wayne was ruled out for the pic.
“Welcome To Derry” is set to debut on HBO/HBO Max on October 26, and keep an eye out for the full version of the podcast episode, as Muschietti also discussed the new series.
-Additional contributions by Mike DeAngelo.
