Ezra Miller Didn't Know They'd Actually Have To Run When First Cast As The Flash
Has anyone commented on the irony of "The Flash" taking so long to release? There's been enough time, so probably. The Scarlet Speedster's solo outing has been gestating since as far back as 2004 (earlier if you count Jeff Loeb's script from the '80s). But even after the 2013 launch of the DCEU and the subsequent green-lighting of a newly reimagined Flash movie, things just kept going wrong.
Now, the blast through the past that is "The Flash" is finally here, promising to give DC fans a movie that isn't completely forgettable dross, with a storyline that mixes heartfelt emotionality with all-out action and heavy nostalgia hits. Unfortunately, this cursed film continues to cause problems for Warner Bros. even after being completed and finally making it to theaters. Aside from the fact the studio appears to have shown everyone under the sun this film prior to release in an attempt to generate some word-of-mouth hype, there's the big issue of star Ezra Miller.
Miller's wrongdoings have been well documented, but just in case you weren't up to date Rolling Stone has a comprehensive timeline of their "reign of terror," which includes everything from arrests for disorderly conduct and harassment to concerning allegations that the actor groomed a teen and lured them away from family. With that said, "The Flash" director Andy Muschietti has hopes for Miller's mental health issues, and depending on how their treatment goes and whether there are enough people left who'll actually pay to see the movie after Warner's extensive pre-release screening campaign, we might well see more of the actor in the future.
And whether that excites or upsets you, we can at least all marvel at the fact Miller apparently had no idea they'd actually have to run while shooting "The Flash."
'You can't see him running'
The Flash runs. That's his thing. But with all the CGI stuff they can pull off these days, and the fact that the character runs so fast you're supposed to not be able to see him, you could argue there's every reason for Ezra Miller to think there was any actual running involved in the gig. In a 2016 interview, the actor spoke about being "outraged" after finding out running was required, adding:
"I thought playing The Flash, 'this will be great, you can't see him running so this is gonna be easy.' No, they were like 'no no no, Ezra we need you to run, we have this enormous treadmill I think that's called a tumblator, 25 feet long goes up to 45 miles per hour and it's bouncy like a trampoline.' Pretty much a dream come true. And then they strap me into a harness, we do all sorts of stuff."
Prior to Miller's debut as the Flash in 2016's "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice," we'd already seen Evan Peters as Quicksilver in "X-Men: Days of Future Past," so we all knew how this running really fast on-film stuff goes. Specifically, there are plenty of ultra-slow-mo shots where the main character stays at regular speed while the world around them essentially freezes. The "Sonic" movies do it, too. And believe it or not, some running is still required for these scenes, which Miller almost certainly knew, which suggests they're likely just playing up their surprise in this interview. But what's really important here is that something called "the tumblator" exists and needs to be made available to the public immediately.
Miller's in-depth prep work
Performing as The Flash wasn't all just bouncing around on a giant treadmill. Ezra Miller has spoken previously about their prep for playing The Flash, which sounds a lot more intense and in-depth than you might think. Specifically, the actor revealed they'd studied "modern dance" in order to work with "people who just understand movement in an interesting way to think about this bizarre quantum reality that this character lives in."
Alongside that Miller practiced yoga, and most impressively Wudang quan kung fu, which saw the actor studying for two years before traveling to China's Wudang mountains and, "training at a traditional Taoist school with a very, very skilled blessed master." Miller added that it was "very useful for The Flash," and that there are "certain moments where you might see certain influences from those practices involved in the way [The Flash] lands or takes off or in the moments that you see him running."
All of which suggests Miller of course knew there'd be a lot of running involved in shooting "The Flash," and was just joking in their later interview. Now "The Flash" is actually coming out and as the trailers for the film revealed, there's plenty of running shots in this movie, especially since Barry Allen uses the speed force to travel to alternate timelines, which means you'll be seeing plenty of Miller on the tumblator running in slow-mo. And that's about as perfect a metaphor for this film's journey to the big screen as you'll get. It'll be interesting to see if it was all worth it.
"The Flash" is in theaters June 16, 2023.