1. It’s well worth the wait
In the works for at least 20 years now, The Flash is finally getting his own blockbuster after sharing the spotlight with everyone else in the likes of Justice League and Suicide Squad. One of the oldest and best-loved superheroes in the world, The Flash has been outrunning Batman and Superman since WWII – using his powers to fight crime at 2,532mph.
With great speed, comes a load of great extra perks too: The Flash having the extra-dimensional heft to move backwards and forwards through time. Starting the film travelling back to the moment his mum was murdered, DC’s Scarlet Speedster tries to change the past and ends up creating a dimensional rift that strands him in an alternate reality where he faces off against his biggest threat yet. Directed by Andy Muschietti, the man behind It and It: Chapter Two, and starring Ezra Miller, from the Fantastic Beasts series, this is the Flash movie we’ve been waiting decades for.
2. Batman’s in it. Twice
It’s the Flash’s movie, but there’s one guy in it who just might steal his thunder. Two actually… Stuck in an alternate reality where DC movies past and present collide, The Flash meets two different versions of Batman, played by ex-Bats Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck.
The film will mark Keaton’s first time back in the rubber suit since 1992’s Batman Returns, and Affleck’s first since 2017’s Justice League – with both actors now returning to a role they’d previously retired from. Throw in Keaton’s old-school Batmobile (and new-school bleach blonde haircut) as well as a comeback from Michael Shannon’s General Zod, and The Flash has enough retro star-power to flatten another Metropolis skyline.
3. Don’t miss Supergirl
Batman isn’t the only classic character getting a rebrand in The Flash. The next stand-alone Superman film is set for July 2025, but we’ve now got something much better in the meantime: Supergirl, played by Sasha Calle, who will be making her big-screen debut as the iconic alien superhero. Calle, of Colombian descent, will be the first Latina actor to play Supergirl. If you want a good cry, just watch the video of Andy Muschietti telling her that she’s got the part…
4. The future starts here
Hired last year to shake things up at DC, head-honcho James Gunn has big plans for the studio, and most of them start with The Flash. Hinting that the film will mark a bit of a reset, The Flash is set to break the Multiverse into pieces and put it all back together again in a different shape, with the events of the film coming before the huge new phase of the DC universe. Films now being lined-up include a new Superman movie, a new Batman, Blue Beetle, Aquaman 2 and a whole raft of other massive super-projects. But first, make sure you see The Flash.
5. The hype is real
When The Flash had its first screening for press and industry insiders at CinemaCon in April, the buzz started to feel like a roar. “This is truly one of the best superhero movies ever,” said one critic. “Incredibly satisfying, heartwarming & fun” said another, describing it as “Back To The Future meets Spider-Man: No Way Home” – with the heart and humour of the ‘80s classic and the action of the Multiverse blockbuster that became the sixth highest grossing film of all time. Even Tom Cruise loved it so much that he called Muschietti and told him so.
‘The Flash’ arrives in cinemas on June 14