The Flash: How will Flashpoint play into the DCEU movie?

Andy Muschietti’s The Flash movie is on the horizon. Flashpoint is expected to play into the plot of the DCEU film, but how?

The live-action DCEU film The Flash may not have begun shooting yet but the film is closer to happening than it ever was before. Ezra Miller will star as Barry Allen aka The Flash, with Andy Muschietti at the helm.

For some time now, it’s been common knowledge that the film is drawing elements from the Flashpoint storyline in DC Comics by Geoff Johns and Andy Kubert, but how will that translate into the story and what villains can make it happen?

The story so far on The Flash movie

A while back, it was announced that Michael Keaton was in talks to reprise his role as Bruce Wayne aka Batman within The Flash, and soon afterwards, it was revealed that Ben Affleck just signed on as his own iteration of The Dark Knight – so if you count them two and Robert Pattinson’s younger and edgier depiction of the Caped Crusader, we have a lot of Batmen in the DC Extended Universe at once – or rather DC’s greater cinematic multiverse.

More from DCEU

• New Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom trailer pushes Arthur to his limits
• 7 actors who could replace Ezra Miller as The Flash in the DC Universe
• James Gunn gives interesting update of Superman and Supergirl movies at DC Studios
• All 7 Wonder Woman actresses ranked from worst to best
• All 8 Black Canary actresses ranked from worst to best

Reverse-Flash was expected to be the film’s antagonist, but recent speculation suggested that he will not be the main villain in The Flash after all – even though he seems like the obvious choice. While it hasn’t been confirmed as to which villain will appear in the live-action film, it’s also unclear if these rumors were ruling out this particular incarnation (Eobard Thawne) of Reverse-Flash or every other iteration including Zoom (Hunter Zolomon).

So, there is potentially no Thawne and definitely no Atlantean and Amazonian conflict. That leaves the two Batmen, time-travel (and perhaps alternate realities). But where does that leave Flashpoint itself? By the looks of things, this is a more personal story and perhaps a more grounded one.

Andy Muschietti’s Flashpoint

As revealed on DC FanDome, the focus of The Flash will be on Barry’s mother like in the comics and it will also be a time-travel and multiverse tale. Barry will receive a new suit designed by what is presumed to be Keaton’s Wayne/Batman. It is more sleek, organic and fitted with lights that may allow Barry better control over the Speed Force.

We are not sure if Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman or Ray Fisher’s Cyborg are still attached to The Flash. If they are, then the threat may be grander than cosmic proportions. Barry most likely will change his mother’s fate, stopping her death – which like the comics, and The CW version on the small screen, was blamed on his father Dr Henry Allen. This will be the route in which Barry will take in order to travel through time and space in the first place.

Whatever mistake Barry makes, likely it may have been orchestrated by someone behind-the-scenes that pushed him to set a chain of events in motion that messes up his timeline and ultimately alter reality. He may then have to team up with both Batmen to repair the timeline.

Bring on the Bad Guys

While Reverse-Flash may not appear in the movie that does not mean The Flash won’t allude to the Man in Yellow and set up his role in a potential second film – if they do get round to making one.

The villain of this movie, however, has to be someone cunning and formidable enough to face Barry and Bruce. There were previous rumors that a female version of the Mirror Master could be involved (with Jessica Chastain rumored to be in the running) as a potential secondary antagonist. That, however, is yet to be confirmed.

As for the primary antagonist, the potential villains who come to mind – other than Thawne, Zoom or any other rival speedster – are Clifford DeVoe aka The Thinker, Gorilla Grodd and Captain Cold of the Rogues. These are some of Barry’s better-known villains of the Silver Age but perhaps antagonists more worthy of The Flash and Batman would be Doctor Light, Abra Kadabra or Vandal Savage.

Doctor Light is a grunt (not unlike Mirror Master), who is a persistent foe for the likes of the Justice League and Teen Titans, whereas the 64th-century stage musician Abra Kedabra is a formidable enemy of The Flash more than capable of orchestrating either a situation where the time-space continuum is fractured or one that spawns a parallel universe (or multiple).

Kadabra – before he made a deal with the demon Neron and became a true sorcerer capable of casting spells and releasing bolts of enchanted fiery energy – had access and knowledge to many historical and future events as well as technology from the 64th century that is indistinguishable from actual magic. He can also use his Hypno-Ray to paralyze and compel victims to do actions beyond their control.

At one point, Kadabra was the main culprit in a classic storyline by Cary Bates and Carmine Infantino called The Trial of the Flash in which the villain impersonated Professor Zoom and removed criminal records of the entire Rogues, eliminating the competition by imprisoning the likes of Mirror Master, Weather Wizard, Trickster and Captain Boomerang. The magician from the distant future thus influenced a series of events that led The Flash to be on trial for supposedly murdering the Reverse-Flash.

So, can I be a Contender?

That brings us to the last major bad guy, Vandal Savage. This is a villain that many feel wasn’t done justice by his CW portrayal in DC’s Legends of Tomorrow and thus deserves another chance   – this time on the big screen.

Although most often an enemy associated with Wally West’s Flash, Alan Scott’s Green Lantern and the Justice League, the story of Muschietti’s Flash could be pivoted in such a way where Vandal Savage is a threat against Barry and the other League members, especially Batman.

This former caveman was forever changed in the comics after coming into contact with a strange meteor. Its radiation bathed the man once known as Vandar Adg, which made him the eternal warrior he is today.

Vandal Savage, if his character is written in the right way, could be a real threat to not only Barry but the Justice League – and indeed the whole DC Extended Universe.

With Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam on the horizon, the introduction of the Justice Society of America on the big screen is nearly upon us. Fans will know that Savage is a notorious JSA enemy and the fact that one of its members in the comics is the original Flash, Jay Garrick, having Savage against Barry Allen could provide the setup for a recurring villain within the franchise – maybe even paving the way for Savage’s return in Black Adam.

It seems that the DCEU’s future starts with Flashpoint – and what an intriguing future it is. The only question is: Who will be the villain responsible for making it happen?

Are you looking forward to seeing Ezra Miller’s hero take on Flashpoint in The Flash film? Who do you think will be the movie’s main villain? Let us know in the comments below!