The Flash has tanked at the box office. The film’s marketing process avoided Ezra Miller’s controversies and focused more on Sasha Calle’s Supergirl, Michael Shannon’s General Zod, and Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck’s versions of Batman in the film’s trailers and other clips. It was kind of pathetic to witness a major film studio like Warner Bros trying desperately to save its big-budget movie by pushing the movie’s supporting characters and ignoring the protagonist. WB did everything it could to save The Flash but failed. And this scenario may make things difficult for Jason Momoa’s Aquaman 2.
The Flash collected only $55 million domestically in its opening weekend, making it one of the lowest openings in the DCEU’s history. Apart from Miller’s controversies, the film’s middling reviews and strong competition from Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and Transformers: Rise of the Beasts are responsible for the film’s failure at the global box office.
DC is going through some major changes under the new leadership of James Gunn and Peter Safran. It is good that the duo is focusing on developing a shared superhero universe, DCU, which will be completely different from the DCEU. And Gunn’s Superman: Legacy will officially mark the arrival of DCU in 2025.
SPOILER WARNING
The Flash’s post-credits scene features Ezra Miller and Jason Momoa together. The former’s character explains his multiversal adventures to Momoa’s Arthur Curry (Aquaman). Some viewers might have had fun with that scene. But if we think about it closely, that scene does not make any sense at all. Arthur was drunk in that scene. He must have forgotten what Barry told him about his adventures after waking up the next morning. That scene also put Momoa’s Aquaman in a weird spot.
Barry’s actions have changed the timeline of the DC Universe. As a result, we see George Clooney’s version of The Caped Crusader instead of Ben Affleck’s version in the original timeline. Gunn has confirmed that Clooney’s version of The Dark Knight will not be DCU’s main Batman. But this situation raises some questions: Will we see Barry’s actions affecting Aquaman 2’s events? Will we see another multiversal conflict in the upcoming Jason Momoa starrer?
Suppose the concept of multiverse becomes the primary focus of Aquaman 2. In that case, the forthcoming James Wan directional may also get bombed at the box office. The multiverse is undoubtedly an interesting concept to explore. But it can make projects messy if not handled properly. The Flash’s final act is the best example of this scenario.
Amber Heard’s controversy with Johnny Depp could also strangulate Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom at the box office. Ezra Miller’s controversies plagued The Flash. The same could also happen to Aquaman 2 due to Heard’s controversies.
Jason Momoa’s Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom will come out in theatres worldwide on December 20. Stay tuned for more updates.