The Flash’s director, Andy Muschietti, gave an honest answer when confronted with the critical and commercial failure of his film. Per Box Office Mojo, The Flash only grossed $108 million domestically and $271 million globally. Against a budget of $200 million and a substantial marketing campaign, this secured the film the тιтle of box office flop. Sidestepping the controversy surrounding star Ezra Miller, he explained that the film suffered from a general lack of audience interest.

Per CinemaBlend (in a quote translated from Portuguese), Muschietti stated: “The Flash failed, among all the other reasons (Ezra Miller, superhero fatigue) because it wasn’t a movie that appealed to all four quadrants.” He then explained that the film’s substantial budget contributed to its perception as a failure. Muschietti clarified: “When you spend $200 million making a movie, Warner wants to bring even your grandmother to the theaters.“

Continuing, Muschietti also attributed the failure of his film to Barry Allen/the Flash’s lack of popularity among audiences. He explained: “I’ve found in private conversations that a lot of people just don’t care about The Flash as a character.” In particular, Muschietti said that the character struggled to draw in “the two female quadrants.”

What Andy Muschietti’s The Flash Comments Mean

Though Muschietti is correct in his ᴀssertion that the Flash doesn’t have the name recognition of Batman, his analysis of the situation ignores a significant part of the character’s history. While it’s true that the Flash had never helmed a film before, the DC hero led a long-running series on The CW. Starring Grant Gustin, The Flash ran for 9 seasons, as part of the successful Arrowverse franchise. Though the series dipped in quality and viewership over the years, it was hugely influential in making Barry a fan-favorite character among younger audiences, including women.

As such, it seems shortsighted to only attribute the movie’s failure to the Flash’s popularity. Rather, the film’s lack of success can be attributed to a variety of factors, including the Flash’s B-tier status, Miller’s problematic history, the decline in the DCEU’s quality and reputation, and the overall quality of the film. In fact, The Flash suffered from terrible word of mouth, with a key reason being the film’s awful visual effects. Additionally, even the inclusion of Michael Keaton reprising his role from Tim Burton’s Batman films did not bring in audiences, despite his iteration of the character remaining popular with fans.

Our Take On Andy Muschietti’s The Flash Comments

Muschietti’s comments, while not inaccurate, fail to truly consider why The Flash bombed. Miller’s reputation was in shambles, between their criminal offenses and starring in the poorly received Fantastic Beasts films. The DCEU had just released two back-to-back failures, with Black Adam and Shazam! Fury of the Gods, and a franchise reboot was on the way. Combining those factors with the film’s poor effects, strange writing choices, and bizarre ending, it is hard to blame its box office returns on The Flash’s lead character not having enough name recognition.

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