A timeline of Ezra Miller’s behavior and how Warner Bros plans on proceeding forward with Miller starring as Flash.
As The Flash approaches, and marketing begins to ramp up, many are beginning to question what Warner Bros.’s approach will be towards Ezra Miller as their recent scandals have begun to mount.
According to Variety‘s sources, Warner Bros is barreling ahead with the intention to give The Flash the full blockbuster treatment.
The movie will simply cost too much money to scrap the project entirely and it likely will not generate the revenue needed to turn a profit without playing in theaters. For option three to happen without triggering a major backlash, Miller would need to be on their best behavior. And that’s a big question, because so far Miller has been dogged by one controversy after another, leaving collaborators concerned about the actor’s welfare.
“There are a myriad of directions that Warner Bros. could go,” says Jeff Bock, a box office analyst with Exhibitor Relations. “Choosing the right one is paramount for the future of DC.”
Bock continued, talking about the nature of a character larger than the actor who plays them, and how that can lead to actor switch-ups in dire situations.
“The thing about superheroes is… it doesn’t really matter who is under the mask,” Bock says. “You can plug and play different actors in those roles.” Though Miller’s take on the character has appeared in several DC-mashups, like “Justice League,” Bock argues they’re not “the face of The Flash yet.” In other words, “Ezra is not Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man.”
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After Miller’s last controversy, there were reports that WB called an emergency meeting to discuss the actor’s fate, but conflicting reports ensued.
A source with the studio has rebuked the original report from Rolling Stone, telling IGN that no such emergency meeting took place and dismissing the claims as an exaggeration.
According to Rolling Stone, Warner Bros. and DC executives held an emergency meeting on March 30 to discuss Miller’s future with the studio and all future projects. A decision doesn’t appear to have been formalized but one source says the consensus is to “hit pause on any future projects involving Miller including possible appearances in the DC Cinematic Universe.”
Miller’s timeline of public conflicts
In early 2020, Miller was caught choking a woman at a bar in Reykjavik, Iceland. In the short clip, they could be heard asking, “Oh, you wanna fight? That’s what you wanna do?” to a young woman. The woman, in a joking manner, prepared to fight. Miller then choked the fan into a dumpster before shifting them down towards the ground. The person filming the video could then be heard saying, “Woah, bro. Bro,” before the video cuts off abruptly.
According to a witness at the bar, Prikið Kaffihús, the clash took place after Miller was approached by a group of eager fans, who were supposedly “quite pushy.” The interaction escalated and Miller lost their temper at the woman shown in the video. Miller was then escorted off the premises.
Miller was arrested for disorderly conduct and harassment after an alleged incident at a popular Hawaiian nightspot. In a public tweet, the “Vermont Visitor” was confirmed to be arrested after South Hilo officers responded to reports of a disorderly bar patron.
Police alleged that Miller had become “agitated” while other patrons sang karaoke and began “yelling obscenities.” Miller then “grabbed the microphone from a 23-year-old woman singing karaoke and later lunged at a 32-year-old man playing darts.”
The bar owner allegedly asked Miller to calm down several times “to no avail”. After being arrested and charged with disorderly conduct and harassment, Miller paid a $500 bond and was released from custody.
Ezra Miller’s second arrest came for second-degree assault after an incident at a residence in Pāhoa. Officials say Miller “became irate” after being asked to leave a gathering and threw a chair, which struck a 26-year-old woman on the head, leaving a half-inch cut.
Miller was arrested at 1:30 a.m. during a traffic stop, and was released from custody at about 4:05 a.m.
3-28-22 Vermont Visitor Arrested for Disorderly Conduct and Harassment in Hilo https://t.co/12RMQ3eckH
— Hawaii Police Department (Official Site) (@Hawaii_Police) March 29, 2022