Today we’re presenting yet another installment of our superhero movie fantasy casting feature, this time for the still-in-development big screen adaptation of The Flash. This film has been stop-and-go (pun intended) for awhile now, with previous versions of the script having been turned in by big name writers (David S. Goyer), and some big name actors having been eyed for the role (or so rumor would have it).

As of last week we have word that The Flash is coming along at a good pace, so as the story of the ‘The World’s Fastest Man’ steps closer and closer to becoming a cinematic reality, we stop to ask ourselves:

Who should play The Flash?

[Update: Dan Mazeau, the current screenwriter behind The Flash has sent a message to IGN clarifying that there are no delays/development issues - that everything is going according to plan and looking great for the fans - Read it here]

With the Green Lantern film moving full steam head, scheduled to start production next year, what about the other DC comic book character films? There will undoubtedly be a third Batman sooner or later, but what about The Flash?

At San Diego Comic-Con this summer, comic book and screen writer Geoff Johns was tight-lipped and held back on revealing any details on his script treatment for the flick so we didn’t have too much to go on with the status of the project until now.

IGN recently spoke with Charles Roven, a producer on The Dark Knight, and apparently the future of The Flash is a little unclear at the moment – as is, Roven’s involvement…

Yesterday we found out that Warner Bros. has created DC Entertainment Inc. (DCE) to better expand the DC Comics into a multimedia brand of steel . Now comes the inevitable question of “What’s the game plan?”

MTV Splash Page posted a nice piece declaring which DC properties should be put on fast-track under the DCE banner, and this being Friday and all, I thought I’d once again do a little call-and-response on the topic (I now consider Splash Page’s Josh Wigler to be something of a pen-pal).

So in response to the call, here’s my take on the DC Entertainment venture and what paths it should be considering…

We recently reported that DC comics writer Geoff Johns (The Flash, Green Lantern) had turned in a treatment for The Flash movie to studio DC/Warner Bros. Well, it so happens that Johns was a featured (read: very popular) panelist at the 2009 San Diego Comic-Con International and, after a last minute quick-switch I as there to cover the event.

Now, Hollywood legalities are a tricky thing, so Johns couldn’t say TOO much about his work on The Flash script, or his opinion of The Green Lantern feature film – but thanks to some good old-fashioned Screen Rant investigative reporting, we do have a gem or two to share with you.

The Hollywood Reporter recently did an extensive report on some of the new projects that DC Comics and partner Warner Bros. have in the works. There was mention of an Adam Strange movie, a Teen Titans project and even talk of two Green Arrow films – but the two biggest nuggets of news had to do with progress that is (sort of) being made on the big-screen adaptations of Aquaman and The Flash.

Ready for a wild rumor? How about Neil Patrick Harris being pursued to play DC comic book superhero The Flash? The last we had heard, Ryan Reynolds was in the running (get it?) for the role, but with the upcoming Wolverine movie it seems like his superhero destiny may be tied up as Deadpool.

But this, if true, is pretty much out of left field.

With the major boom in the movie industry being superheroes and the films about them, studios have been going down the line making films about the most popular in the genre.  As this has been going on, it’s left a lot of people wondering when certain films will be made.

If The Flash has been high on your list of films that need to be made, then your worries are over.  IESB is reporting that screenwriter, Dan Mazeau, has become attached to the film.  Dan has most currently penned the screen version of the unreleased Johnny Quest film.

Is this ironic or what: the fastest guy in the whole comic book universe is the slowest one getting to the box office.

Screen Rant has been keeping careful tabs on the (lack of) progress concerning The Flash movie. For those with long memories, the blink-and-you-miss-it exploits of Wally West (aka The Flash) were supposedly going to be freeze-framed on the big screen following the release of the fabled Justice League movie. This would’ve served as the well from which spin-off films like The Flash, Green Lantern and Wonder Woman would be drawn.

It has been a long time in coming, but it now appears that Warner Bros. has finally decided to make use of their stable of DC Comics characters.

Following the financial and critical success of The Dark Knight Warner Bros. has realized that they are sitting on a gold mine – not only from box office receipts, but also from DVD, television, video games and other sources of revenue.

Last month the company held a strategy meeting in an attempt to figure out what was needed in order for them to match Marvel Comics in the comic book movie stakes, and it would appear that they have finally come up with a plan.

The guys over at Slash Film were at a a recent press junket for The Dark Knight when they caught up with producer Charles Roven, a.k.a. the guy responsible for bringing both the Batman Begins trilogy and the upcoming Flash movie to theaters near you. And he had news to tell.

Warner Bros. seems to be hot under the collar to get a batch of superhero movies out the door. Although the Justice League movie seems to be mired in casting hell and surrounded by rumors of being more like a Teen Titans movie, the studio has apparently locked in directors for movie versions of both The Flash and Green Lantern.

The word is that these are supposed to be spin-offs The Flash is supposed to be a spin-off of the Justice League film, so I can only assume that once they finally get that one cast that they’ll have their leads for one of these two movies.

A couple of days after the announcement that David Goyer is no longer involved in the movie about DC Comics character The Flash comes the news that Shawn Levy is stepping in to direct. The news comes to me from the Hollywood Reporter via Comic Book Resources.

Now on the one hand, that means the movie is far from dead… great news, right? Sorry… no. On the other hand I don’t think it exactly spills rays of sunshine on the project.

Why do I say that? Let’s have a look at the collective resumes of David Goyer (who is out) and Shawn Levy (who is in)…

Talk about a one-two punch.

On the same day come separate announcements stating that David Goyer is no longer writing and directing The Flash and that Joss Whedon is no longer involved with Wonder Woman.

Sucks to be a fan of either one of those now, I’m afraid. I predict development limbo for both of them, if they ever get made. I say that because I really don’t think that the superhero movie genre will be “hot” indefinitely. As a matter of fact this year may be the peak, with three superhero movies being released (Spiderman III, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer and Ghost Rider).

Sometimes nostalgia is best left in the past.

Have you ever had fond memories of something you watched on TV when you were younger… maybe a live action or cartoon series that you remember being the coolest thing ever? Here’s a little advice: Often it’s better to leave those episodes as sweet memories. The first time I ran into this phenomenon was when channel surfing I came across an episode of Speed Racer, one of the precursors to Anime from back in the 1960’s. When I was a kid I thought that cartoon was simply awesome, but watching it recently just killed it for me since I had no idea at the time how poorly animated and how ridiculous the plots were.

Unfortunately The Flash (just released on DVD) doesn’t even start with memories of having been an awesome show. It suffers from having been produced hot on the heels of the first Tim Burton Batman film, and the producers made the terrible decision to use the ambience of that film for this TV series as well.

For those of you unfamiliar with the character (and there have been multiple incarnations of The Flash), we start with Barry Allen, a forensic scientist for the police force. While in his lab there is a freak bolt of lightning striking him and a rack of various chemicals, the result of which imbues him with super-speed. I haven’t picked up the comic book in a while, but from what I remember the character was never “dark” like Batman. It was more of a take-place-during-the-day kind of comic book.

From a number of unrelated news items last week I had already assumed Goyer was going to helm a movie about DC character “The Flash”, and it’s been confirmed that he’s going to write, produce, and direct. I hope the man isn’t biting off more than he can chew.

I read “The Flash” as a kid, and although his main claim to fame is that he can run really, REALLY fast, it was always a fun comic, and of course great at getting me to run down the street as fast as I could.

Goyer has stated in prior interviews that he would probably use the Wally West version of Flash as opposed to Barry Allen. This does however conflict with the following comment by Goyer:

“I think the character of the Flash, who moves faster than the speed of light, opens itself up to rich cinematic and story ideas.” [emphasis added]