The Flash star Ezra Miller expresses gratitude towards Warner Bros. at the premiere

Last Updated on June 14, 2023

Last night marked the premiere of DC’s The Flash as well as a rare public appearance of the movie’s star, Ezra Miller. The publicity of The Flash had a delicate line to walk as the studio decided to push forward with the release of the movie in the wake of the shocking revelations of legal trouble Miller has been involved with. When news broke and continued to develop, many thought the film was marred by the controversy so badly that Warner Bros. might cancel the release as they had previously done to their Batgirl film, or at the very least, a quiet release on their streaming platform, Max (HBO Max at the time).

Instead, Warners pushed through and used a word-of-mouth campaign as the main focus of their marketing for the movie, with claims like it is the “greatest superhero movie ever.” The studio’s stipulation for the Barry Allen actor was to either make an apology and seek help or never play The Flash again. Last August saw Miller make a public statement citing “complex mental health issues,” and Miller has kept out of headlines since. According to The Hollywood Reporter, during the one strategically permitted appearance at The Flash premiere, Miller thanked the studio for their “grace and discernment and care.”

“I love you, maestro. I think you are amazing, and I think your work is monumental,” Miller told Andy Muschietti, the director of The Flash. Additionally, the star would also express gratitude to Warner bosses Pamela Abdy and Michael De Luca, as well as Zack and Deborah Snyder, who had initially cast Miller as Barry Allen in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and the Justice League movie. Ezra would also thank the CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, David Zaslav “and the dynamic duo — Peter Safran and James Gunn — for your grace and discernment and care in the context of my life and in bringing this moment actually to fruition.”

The premiere of The Flash would be the only official industry screening Warner Bros. would have. Rather than having additional global premieres, the studio opted to throw “fan event” advance screenings in order to have the buzz and hype building. Additionally, the director and producer, Andy and Barbara Muschietti, would handle promotion in the press along with Michael Keaton for his hyped return as Batman. The premiere did not feature interviews from any of the cast and crew on the red carpet, including Ben Affleck, Sasha Calle, Michael Shannon, David Zaslav, James Gunn and Peter Safran.

Andy Muschietti eventually spoke about the movie being a three-and-a-half-year journey, “We thought this would never happen because it was a real marathon. We hope it was worth the wait.”