Warner Bros. (WB) hopes to have great success in 2022 with one particular DC Universe (DCU) film before the franchise goes through major changes.
DC Studios co-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran have a big year of movies in 2023 before the DCU is rebooted. Three of these titles tie back to the original franchise's extensive history with March's Shazam!: Fury of the Gods, June's The Flash, and December's Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, ending this current era of DC storytelling.
While the future after these movies' release is unclear, fans are still hoping to see a good product from WB, especially considering the controversy that's surrounded a couple of these projects.
And now, reports have indicated that one of them in particular has WB hoping for some incredible success as the DCU moves forward.
WB's Hopes for Big DC Success
Variety unveiled a new profile for Warner Bros.' upcoming DC movie, The Flash, which is set to debut in theaters in Summer 2023.
Celebrating Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck's returns as Batman, the profile teases "time travel and Multiverses" as two of the biggest plot points from the film as they become more utilized in the superhero genre as a whole. But on top of that, insiders reportedly are more excited for this movie than anything since Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy:
"Director Andy Muschietti is hot off of the “It” movies, Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck are returning as Batman, and the plot hinges on time travel and Multiverses, two of the hottest things going in superhero storytelling. Studio insiders haven’t been this excited for Warner Bros. superhero movie since 'The Dark Knight' movies. In fact, almost everything about 'The Flash' points to a massive summer sensation. Almost."
Will The Flash Live Up to Hype for DC?
Even with all the controversy surrounding The Flash, it's still rumored to be the heavy hitter for the DC Universe in 2023. According to test screenings for the solo movie, it's said to have gotten the best screening score for any DC movie since Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy, setting high expectations for the Scarlet Speedster's DCU blockbuster.
This report only adds to that hype for The Flash as it prepares for its upcoming promotional tour, with WB planning to do everything in its power to make sure that it does as well as possible amongst heavy competition this summer.
Even though this movie will almost certainly be the only one for Ezra Miller's hero before the upcoming full reboot, the stakes are still high for this adventure as the Multiverse breaks open similarly to how it has in the MCU over the past couple of years. Only time will tell what happens to Barry Allen and his story following this solo movie's debut, especially with the entire franchise's future still up in the air.
The Flash will debut in theaters on June 16.
