Why Isn’t The Flash a Bigger Part of the DC Extended Universe?

Barry Allen, otherwise known as The Flash, is one of the most famous characters created by DC Comics. Fans expected him to play a much bigger part in the DC Extended Universe, but up to now, the speedy superhero has been limited to cameo and minor roles in various other titles in the franchise. This could represent a mistake by Warner Bros. Pictures, if the studio wants to replicate the success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Characters like The Flash should be used as major building blocks in creating a fully-realised cinematic world. 

The DC Extended Universe has been going since 2013, and has so far spanned seven movies. These included standalone titles for Superman in Man of Steel in 2013, Wonder Woman in 2017, Aquaman in 2018, and Shazam! in 2019. The other offerings were all ensembles, with 2016’s Suicide Squad and 2017’s Justice League each focusing on a wide range of different characters. 

The whole franchise has seemed totally rushed so far, and in a desperate attempt to catch up with Marvel, the quality has suffered. The MCU spent much more time introducing the main characters first before bringing them together in The Avengers in 2012. There were five standalone films prior to this. The DCEU has allowed much less time for character development. This is perhaps the strongest reason why the critical response to the franchise so far has been dismal. 

DC fans are crying out to have more time to spend with the individual characters that they have followed in comic books for many years. In fact, The Flash has existed much longer than a number of other well-known comic book heroes, and first appeared in Showcase in 1956. For this reason, The Flash should be a key player in the DC Extended Universe, but his self-titled film isn’t due to be released until 2021. 

There will be a massive audience for the film featuring the fast-moving crime fighter. The Flash is already in a hugely popular series on The CW television network, and the character has also been represented in various games. Players can play The Flash online slot from Playtech, which has electrifying animation and sensational graphics. Alternatively, the character has appeared in numerous other games on various platforms such as the arcade game Justice League Heroes. With the recent success of Spider-Man PS4, some gamers are speculating that there could soon be an open world console offering about The Flash as well. 

The Flash will get his own film in the DC Extended Universe, but fans still have to wait two more years to see him. Before this, there will be another Wonder Woman movie. If Warner Bros. wanted to create characters that were as rich and detailed as those in the MCU, the studio should have introduced The Flash in his own film earlier on and provided him with a decent backstory. It seems as though this great character has been let down. 

4 thoughts on “Why Isn’t The Flash a Bigger Part of the DC Extended Universe?”

  1. Great article, Tony. I found it insightful and liked it so much I included it in my latest article I just posted on my site. It is one my of posts where I gather-up interesting news and links, with your writing here being one of those interesting things I wanted to share! Here’s hoping that, “Flash,” movie actually comes out in 2021, and it is good!

  2. I actually think the booming success of the TV series impacted their use of The Flash in the films. I didn’t expect much from the TV series, but at least for the first few seasons, the storytelling was great & Barry Allen was very well received. So much so that fans of the TV series talking online implied they would boycott a Flash film because it was taking something away from the version they were spending time with on TV. Whether or not they actually would have, I do think that was a factor. Plus, with profit expectations not being met, they started getting cold feet early on about what would come next. Instead of “Phase 2”, for the DCEU it’s going to be “Version 2.0”, since it sounds like they are at least quasi-rebooting everything… the films will mirror the comics in that regard, lol… I just hope they have some better stories to tell, whatever the future may hold. Even some of the DC movies that I liked could have been better with more depth to the characters & better central plots.

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