If there is a future for The Flash following the upcoming Ezra Miller-led superhero movie, the film’s director wants the controversial actor to keep their job.
The Flash director Andy Muschietti was recently asked by The Playlist whether Miller, 30, would reprise their role as Barry Allen in any potential sequel he would return to direct.
“If [a sequel] happens, yes,” Muschietti, 49, responded.
The actor has attracted considerable controversy in recent years, including a series of arrests for disorderly conduct and assault charges in 2022.
“I don’t think there’s anyone that can play that character as well as they did,” the filmmaker added of Miller’s performance as Barry Allen. “The other depictions of the character are great, but this particular vision of the character, they just excelled in doing it. And, as you said, the two Barrys – it feels like a character that was made for them.”
During the podcast appearance, Barbara Muschietti — Andy’s sister who works with him as a producer on his films — shared her opinion that Miller “was brilliant and the most committed and the most professional [actor]” while on set of the upcoming DC Studios film.
“Ezra gave everything for this role – physically, creatively, emotionally,” Barbara, 51, added. “They were absolutely supreme.”
The Flash was mostly completed before Miller, who uses they/them pronouns, made months of headlines for a string of alarming behavior that included erratic social-media rants, arrests and court appearances. Back in August, the actor apologized for their troubling behavior and said in a statement obtained by PEOPLE that they were seeking treatment for “complex mental health issues.”
“I want to apologize to everyone that I have alarmed and upset with my past behavior. I am committed to doing the necessary work to get back to a healthy, safe and productive stage in my life,” the actor added at the time.
In January, Miller pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor unlawful trespass charge at Vermont’s Bennington County Superior Court in an agreement with prosecutors to drop two charges, including felony burglary and petit larceny — so long as the actor does not violate a yearlong probation order.
When director Muschietti appeared at CinemaCon 2023 in Las Vegas, the filmmaker praised Miller’s performance in The Flash and called them as “one of the best actors I’ve ever worked with” while debuting a trailer for the movie.
Regarding Miller’s future with the franchise, DC Studios co-CEO Peter Safran said in the same April press conference, per The Hollywood Reporter, “Ezra is completely committed to their recovery. We are fully supportive of that journey they are on right now. When the time is right, when they are ready to have that discussion, we will all figure out what the best path forward.”
“But right now,” he continued, “they are completely focused on their recovery. And in our conversation with them, in the last couple of months, it feels like they are making enormous progress.”
The Flash is in theaters June 16.
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