'Batman Story' a Big Part of Flashpoint Movie

Screen Rant

Flashpoint: Geoff Johns Says 'Batman Story' Will Be a Big Part

By Dusty Stowe

Published Nov 16, 2017

DC's chief creative officer Geoff Johns suggests a version of Batman will play a crucial role in the upcoming Flashpoint movie.

DC Films co-chairman Geoff Johns promises that Batman will figure significantly into Flashpoint, the upcoming film starring Ezra Miller's iteration of the Flash that will adapt the alternate reality comic book run of the same name that Johns himself wrote.

Miller's version of the scarlet speedster had brief cameos in Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad, and is making his proper debut in Justice League. While DC has gotten solo films for Wonder Woman and Aquaman up and running in relatively short order, a Flash film has proved more problematic, with directors coming and going and the film's release date an open question. While there's still no attached director or official release date, we know the film will be based on Flashpoint, which suggests something much broader in scope than a simple origin film.

Johns is confirming that one of the comic's most crucial aspects will play into the film as well. In an interview with EW, Johns confirms Batman will play a crucial role:

“There’s elements in it that we’re going to be playing into that we couldn’t do anywhere else. The scale of it, the Batman story of it all.”

The Flashpoint comic tells the story of an alternate reality created when Barry Allen goes back in time to save his murdered mother from the Reverse Flash, which inadvertently leads to a dark, grim present day. The most notable change is that Batman is now Thomas Wayne, who became the dark vigilante when his son, Bruce Wayne, was murdered. Watchmen and The Walking Dead star Jeffrey Dean Morgan briefly portrayed Thomas Wayne in Batman V Superman, and has hinted that he would be interested in playing a Flashpoint Batman.

Johns mentioning the proper scale of the film and Batman's involvement is likely a very subtle criticism of the Flashpoint adaptation that featured in the third season of The CW's The Flash. That version of Flashpoint featured the same essential setup - Barry traveling back in time to save his mother - but the inability to use most of DC's iconic characters and the limited budget of a CW show meant the alternate reality was decidedly less epic than the source material.

While reviews for Justice League have been mixed at best, most seem to agree Miller's Flash is the film's breakout star, and making him the centerpiece of what might end up being a sneakily important entry into DC's cinematic universe makes a lot of sense. The fact that Johns is promising the story's most important elements will be on full display is an encouraging sign.