In today’s episode of The Discourse, host Mike DeAngelo speeds his way through the DC Universe with director Andy Muschietti & producer Barbara Muschietti (“IT,” “Mama”). The talented duo is promoting their latest film, “The Flash,” which follows Barry Allen (Ezra Miller) discovering that his speed unlocks the ability to change the past that has haunted him and, in turn, plunges him into another timeline where many of the heroes he knows do not exist. The film is in theaters now and also stars Michael Keaton, Sasha Calle, Ben Affleck, Michael Shannon, Ron Livingston, and more.
During the chat, Andy Muschietti discussed coming onto the project after several iterations, what they inherited along the way, and who made the script ultimately come into focus.
“There were some elements that came from previous scripts, but it wasn’t until we started talking with Christina Hodson that the movie as we know it really, really came to life,” the director said. “It was a long process. The first draft was excellent, but then the production happened, and Ezra Miller came in, and that added another layer of brilliance to the equation. And that started a new journey of exploration. The movie changed during the shoot. And it’s crazy to think that we’re shooting a movie in a not very chronological way, and we managed to track every emotional beat upside down. But Ezra is very committed to story and character, and we had a lot of fun exploring things that were in the script and things that were not in the script.”
Seemingly, the biggest challenge the Muschietti siblings had prior to production was assembling the cast they needed, which included getting two former Batman actors who had previously sworn off playing the character to reprise their respective roles – Ben Affleck and Michael Keaton. And, for Keaton, it turns out they weren’t too proud to beg.
“I’m going to be brutally candid, we told him, ‘We can’t make this movie without you,” Barbara Muschietti shared. “We can’t because he was such an integral part of the story. He thought about it a little bit, and then he said yes. He loved the script, and now, I’m going to talk for him, which is something people shouldn’t do, but I’m sure that he had a lot of thoughts. You know, it had been 30 years, and I think every actor that’s played Batman, which is such a complicated character, has a conflict with Batman. So, I’m sure for Michael, and for Ben [Affleck] too, it wasn’t an easy decision, but I think they loved the script. They understood what Andy wanted to do and the tone we wanted for the movie, and they jumped in, and they turned out to be freakin’ great, man. It was just a pleasure working with them. Incredible!”
As you may already know, this very interview set the internet ablaze with a quote from Andy Muschietti that confirmed that, if a sequel was greenlit, he would bring back the controversial Ezra Miller to reprise the role (you can read that excerpt, and Muschietti’s full thoughts in the aforementioned link). But what would that sequel look like? Who would be the villain that the Muschiettis want to bring in next?
“Well, Reverse Flash is the elephant in the room, right?” Muschietti said definitively. “It feels like you can’t make another movie without addressing the one that, in all accounts, is the murderer of Barry’s mom. So, it feels like the big villain. I have my own favorites, but that’s another story – I’d like to see The Turtle at some point. The slowest man on Earth. Gorilla Grodd, of course. And many more.”
“The Flash” is in theaters nationwide this weekend, starting tonight and Friday, June 16. You can listen to the entire conversation with Andy and Barbara Muschietti below, and please be forewarned: if you listen to the entire thing, you’ll hear big spoilers eventually, so maybe bookmark it for after you’ve seen it if you’d like to go in 100% cold.
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