‘The Flash’ Filmmaker Blames Superhero Fatigue & Ezra Miller’s “Mental Health Situation” For Film’s Failure

For months ahead of its release, there were all sorts of people involved in Warner Bros. and DC talking about how great “The Flash” film is. You even had some people, like James Gunn, talking about how it’s one of the best superhero films ever made. But when it was released, the general public had other opinions, as the film turned into one of the biggest bombs of 2023. Now, after plenty of time of reflection, filmmaker Andy Muschietti thinks he has figured out what happened. 

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Speaking in an interview with Radio TU (translated by Reel Anarchy), Andy Muschietti talked about the failure of “The Flash.” According to the filmmaker, he feels like there was a variety of things that went wrong with the making of the film, including the mental health situation surrounding the star, Ezra Miller.

“It’s the result of a mental health situation, you know,” said Muschietti. “It turned out the way it turned out, let’s say. I mean, he was dealing with a mental health situation, and well, when you make a movie, there are things you just can’t control. One of them is when actors have a public relations crisis. You know, he got into trouble, was arrested in Hawaii, etc…”

He added, “I had, in general, a very good experience with him. He’s a great actor, a great comedian. I was very surprised by him. But then, towards the end, I came across all of this. I’d say this happened months before the release, just before the premiere, and well, it was a setback.”

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Even though Muschietti said that Miller’s public relations “crisis” off screen was one of the reasons he believes the film failed, the filmmaker also chalked it up to a couple of other issues as well—superhero fatigue and the fact that your grandmother has no interest in the Flash. 

“Later, other factors piled up, like, you know, the fatigue with the superhero genre,” the filmmaker said. “Years later, I started learning about other things, like how when a movie like this is made, there’s an expectation to appeal to all four quadrants of the audience. And this is a movie that, apart from everything else I mentioned, I think failed in the sense that it didn’t appeal to all four quadrants of the audience.”

He continued, “When a $200 million movie is made, the studio expects to bring everyone, even your grandmother, to the theater. And in private conversations later on, I learned things like how a lot of people weren’t interested in Flash as a character. Half of those four quadrants — the two female quadrants — many women didn’t care about Flash as a character.”

Now, you can argue that he’s wrong with that last statement about the Flash as a character. There were plenty of women in the audience who enjoyed multiple years of “The Flash” on CW. So, it’s not like the character has no chance of capturing the female audience. However, he’s probably not wrong about the superhero fatigue issue, particularly when it comes to the DCEU. 

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By the time “The Flash” was released, we already knew that James Gunn was going to reboot the superhero universe. Basically, “The Flash” was a lame-duck movie. You have to assume that also didn’t help the release of the film.

Regardless, it’s interesting to see any filmmaker speak so openly and honestly about a film that bombs. It would be easy for Muschietti to just put it all behind him, but he’s not shying away from answering the tough questions. 

The filmmaker is also not done with DC filmmaking. He’s already been announced as the director of “The Brave and the Bold,” even though that film has been delayed. We’ll have to wait and see if the filmmaker sticks around to see that film made or not.

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