Andy Muschietti praises the problematic actor, who doesn't show up for the presentation, while joking about how he convinced Michael Keaton to reprise his Batman role.

• Apr 26, 2023

AceShowbiz - Warner Bros. made a flashy presentation as it promoted "The Flash" at CinemaCon in Las Vegas on Tuesday, April 25. The studio unleashed a new trailer for the upcoming movie, which stars Ezra Miller as Barry Allen a.k.a. the titular superhero and features the return of Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck's Batmans.

The trailer opens with Keaton's Bruce Wayne telling Barry, "I lost my parents. That pain made me who I am. I spent a lifetime trying to right wrongs of the past as if fighting crime would bring my parents back." He continues, "You actually did it."

The video offers a flashback to Barry's tragic past as he admits his mistake, "I went back in time to save my parents. But instead, I completely broke the universe." Barry cracks open the multiverse as the consequence of his action, bringing back General Zod (Michael Shannon) who creates mayhem.

Barry enlists the help of Supergirl (Sasha Calle), another The Flash and both Batmans to save the world, but at one points he loses all hopes. "No matter what we do, we're not going to be able to fix this," he says. The video features a nod to Tim Burton's "The Batman" movie as Keaton says his catchphrase, "You wanna get nuts, let's get nuts."

Miller didn't show up at the presentation and nor did their co-stars Keaton, Affleck, Calle or Shannon. But director Andy Muschietti and his producing partner Barbara Muschietti were present to introduce the film, which was described as "a four-year process."

Muschietti also gushed over Miller, who last summer apologized for his off-screen behavior that has plagued the movie. The "It" director called him "one of the best actors I've ever worked with. Every tool in the toolkit..." He added, "[Miller] is an incredible comedian, and [has] all the action required for a big spectacle like this."

Asked how he got Keaton to reprise his role as Batman, the filmmaker joked, "We offered him lunch."

Earlier on Tuesday, during the studio's hours-long CinemaCon presentation, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav told the crowd that he's already seen "The Flash" three times. "It's a very emotional movie. You're going to go through all the emotions," he teased. "It's the best superhero movie I've ever seen."

According to the official synopsis, "Worlds collide in 'The Flash' when Barry uses his superpowers to travel back in time in order to change the events of the past. But when his attempt to save his family inadvertently alters the future, Barry becomes trapped in a reality in which General Zod has returned, threatening annihilation, and there are no Super Heroes to turn to. That is, unless Barry can coax a very different Batman out of retirement and rescue an imprisoned Kryptonian... albeit not the one he's looking for. Ultimately, to save the world that he is in and return to the future that he knows, Barry's only hope is to race for his life. But will making the ultimate sacrifice be enough to reset the universe?"

"The Flash" will be released in U.S. theaters on June 16.