Erza Miller, Michael Keaton and Ezra Miller in The Flash. Photo: Warner Bros. Pictures
On Monday, June 12th, something that many in the film industry would consider unlikely, and at times even impossible, happened: The Flash, a new superhero film, premiered in Los Angeles. At the center of the ceremony at Grauman's legendary Chinese Theater was none other than beleaguered film star Ezra Miller, tastefully dressed in a cream-colored jacket with long hair pulled back into a bun. A cynic might point out that they—since Miller prefers to be seen as non-binary—resembled the widely maligned Adam Barlow of Coronation Street and his own masculine bun.
It was made clear to the assembled press that Miller, making his first public appearance since 2021, would not be doing any interviews tonight or actually participating in any promotion for the film other than the red carpet. But journalists still turned to the actor praising The Flash director Andy Muschietti. “I just want to say that I love you maestro,” Miller said. «I think you are amazing and I think your work is monumental.» Miller then praised DC's co-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran for their «grace, insight, and concern for the context of my life, and for really bringing this moment to a close.»
One would have guessed that Miller, who declared himself the «Magician of Raging Goose» last year before making death threats against members of the Ku Klux Klan, was as surprised as many others that The Flash premiered. took place, and that they were present at all. Its inception, production, and subsequent travail were among the most torturous of all Hollywood films in recent memory. That one of Miller's colleagues, Michael Shannon, had to casually announce on the eve of the film's release that participation in the film «was not entirely satisfactory» and that the remark went almost unnoticed is a testament to the chaos it caused. caused by its consequence.
Attempts to make a film about DC comic book superhero Barry Allen, also known as the Flash, have been made since the 1980s. Allen was not a major DC superhero like Batman or Superman, being an intelligent young man with the ability to move at superhuman speeds, control lightning and, on occasion, travel through time. However, DC wanted to monetize all of its existing characters, so in the early 2000s, the first attempt was made to make a movie written and directed by Blade and the Dark Knight writer David Goyer and starring Ryan Reynolds.
It was canceled and the project didn't pick up steam until 2014, when Warner Bros, desperate to replicate the success of the Marvel superhero films, announced that a standalone flash movie would be released in 2018 and that Ezra would star in it. Miller, then best known for his chilling and charismatic performance as a teenage killer in Lionel Shriver's adaptation of We Need to Talk About Kevin.
Ezra Miller at The Flash World Premiere in Los Angeles, June 12, 2023. Photo: Reuters
Miller duly appeared as Allen in brief cameos in Zack Snyder's 2016 Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and David Ayer's The Suicide Squad, but neither film was as successful as expected. Meanwhile, development of The Flash's own main machine stalled due to repeated unsuccessful attempts to recruit suitable directors. The original choice was the Lego Movie and Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse duo of Phil Lord and Chris Miller, who left to take on the Star Wars film Solo (from which they were subsequently fired).
An eclectic selection of directors was then offered, including everyone from Robert Zemeckis and Sam Raimi to Matthew Vaughn and once-Mandalorian director Rick Famuiva. The latter accepted the job in June 2016 — shortly after his relative disappointment with Batman v Superman — but left the project in October of that year. “I presented a version of the film that suited my voice, humor and heart,” he said. «While it's disappointing that we weren't able to come together creatively on the project, I remain grateful for this opportunity.»
By now, it was clear that the DC Extended Universe as it was known was no match for Marvel. With both of their major films underperforming that year, the studio was now pinning all its hopes on its response to Marvel's Avengers, a Justice League movie in 2017. After another disastrous production schedule when Snyder, the original director, was fired and replaced by The Avengers' Joss Whedon, Miller's Barry Allen was seen as one of the few bright spots in a confusing and tiring mess. However, now that the actor had taken on the Fantastic Beasts series, which itself was obsessed with trouble, there was no way the Flash could get started any time soon.
To date, two horror films, It, an adaptation of Stephen King's novel, have been released to great commercial success, and their director Andy Muschietti has been approached to direct what was increasingly seen as a poisoned cup. (The script will eventually feature 45 writers who will claim some form of involvement with the Writers Guild of America for their part in it.) Muschietti accepted the challenge, announcing in the summer of 2019 that he would make a «beautiful human story» and that — That would be fun too. It was unclear whether he was referring to the tone he was aiming for or the production process; if the latter, he would soon be disappointed.
Up until the start of 2020, Miller's personal life was the usual for a young contemporary actor. They announced they were gay back in 2012 and clarified that in 2018 by saying, “Queer just means no, I don’t do that. I do not identify myself as a man. I do not identify myself as a woman. I barely identify as a person.» They announced their support for the #MeToo movement, alluding darkly to sexual harassment by a Hollywood producer and director they called «monsters» and also stated that they were in a polyamorous relationship with members of their Sons of an Illustrious Father. .
A video then surfaced showing Miller seemingly strangling a young woman outside a bar in Iceland in April 2020. Suddenly, the actor turned out to be more than a harmless charismatic eccentric. Although no criminal charges were filed, it was very embarrassing for DC and Warner Bros that their new lead man ended up in this position.
Ezra Miller, Sasha Calle and Ezra Miller in The Flash
Filming for The Flash finally began in April 2021, seven years after the project was first announced and Miller was still on location. Thanks to the multiverse-based storyline, the film was supposed to feature two Barry Allens, two Bruce Waynes, and a new version of Supergirl (but not Superman). Despite an incident in which the cameraman was injured while filming in Glasgow in July and some minor controversy over Miller's co-star Michael Keaton was initially reluctant to reprise his role as Batman on the grounds that filming in the UK could expose him to risk of Covid-19. On October 19, the production of the film was completed without much difficulty. Its release date was set for June 2023 to accommodate the film's significant post-production visuals. But then, in classic Hollywood style, the Flash's curse reasserted itself.
While Miller was behaving on set, after being freed from the rigors of the job, they began to act almost unprecedented by today's blockbuster standards. The first half of 2022 saw a series of incidents in which Miller variously abused customers at a karaoke bar in Hawaii and then reacted violently because the police officer who arrested them «misrepresented the gender», brandished a gun at his mother. and her 12 year old child. summer daughter in Massachusetts dressed as a cowboy.
Most problematic of all, the restraining order was obtained against Miller by the parents of 18-year-old activist Tokata Iron Eyes, who had known Miller since they were 12 and were 23 but now claimed she was in a miasma of «violence, intimidation, threats violence, fear, paranoia, delusions and drugs.»
Photo: Ezra Miller after the actor was arrested for disorderly conduct and harassment in Hawaii, March 2023. Photo: AP
By this point, it wasn't hard to figure out that Miller was either mentally ill and in need of urgent help, or he was a dangerous and violent person who should be kept away from other people, not to mention that he was trusted to be the frontman for being DC and Warners hoped the film would be a big box office hit. A lengthy and damning reveal in Vanity Fair in September 2022 detailed many of Miller's most outrageous claims, including their belief that they were the Messiah, Jesus, and Satan at the same time, that they were sent by demons by the Freemasons in an attempt to bring about their end, and that their relationship with the Iron Eyes could potentially lead to the destruction of the world.
That there was an element of performative narcissism in all of this could be discerned from the mouth of a weary Native American who spoke of Miller's as yet unsubstantiated claims that they were the Messiah the Native Americans so longed for. : «He claims to be going through it.» peace with root humility and spiritual consciousness. But, in fact, it does not exist at all. Because he doesn't care.»
Around the time the Vanity Fair article was published, DC and Warner were faced with an unattractive choice. Should they cancel the movie entirely — like they did with Batgirl, which was turned into a tax write-off — or keep going and hope for the best? It was creatively and financially unprofitable to recast the lead role as Miller plays two different versions of Barry that appear on screen at the same time. So, in true Hollywood style, it was decided that the show should go on.
Miller was forcibly removed from their global escapades and sent to rehab with a statement stating, “Having recently gone through a period of major crisis, I now realize that I am suffering from complex mental health issues and have begun permanent treatment. I want to apologize to everyone I have disturbed and upset with my past behavior. I am determined to do the necessary work to return to a healthy, safe and productive phase of my life.»
After the lead actor is safely out of harm's way, the hype can begin. Subsequently, Warner Discovery CEO David Zaslav announced that The Flash was «the best superhero movie I've ever seen» and that he had watched it three times.
The appointment of Gunn and Safran as CEO of DC Studios in November 2022 led to further costly post-production confusion: Superman actor Henry Cavill was paid $250,000 for a brief cameo that was then cut from the film when Gunn and Safran announced that his the role was recast in future DC Superman pictures.
To dispel the sense of chaos, it became vital that the $220 million film be presented not just as an entertaining summer blockbuster, but as a seismically important picture. Those who attended the previews were thrilled with the «amazing» surprise cameos from past DC heroes and the secret ending, which was reportedly still being tweaked a few days after release. Even Muschietti's former colleague Stephen King tweeted: «Today I had a preview of The Flash. I usually don't really like superhero movies, but this one is special.»
This line was held until reviews of the film began to emerge, lukewarm but not laudatory; it currently holds a 71 percent positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes, lower than most recent Marvel releases. Likewise, the endless debate about Miller's off-screen antics did not seem to generate public curiosity to make the film a must-see on its first weekend of release, with a projected gross of around $70 million. (Warner Bros. Discovery, which is currently examining the wreckage of CNN, is desperate for success.)
The filmmakers courageously defend both the film and their star. “Meeting Ezra was an incredible artistic and creative experience,” Muschietti said of Miller. “I think this is one of my best experiences with an actor,” Gunn and Safran are already planning future DC movies, including a new version of Superman. However, anyone involved with The Flash can look at his tense, troubled conception and wonder, in the end, if it was worth the truly superhero effort it took to put Barry Allen on the cinematic map.
The Flash is already in theaters
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