Buried in The Hollywood Reporter’s extensive post-mortem on Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s shocking departure from the Han Solo anthology pic was a tantalizing tidbit linking the directors with The Flash solo movie.
First spotted by ComicBook, THR asserts that, following Lucasfilm’s decision to part ways with the directing duo amid profound “philosophical differences,” Lord and Miller now have first dibs on the Barry Allen spinoff, potentially beating out the likes of Matthew Vaughn (Kingsman: The Golden Circle) Sam Raimi, and VFX whizkid Robert Zemeckis in the process.
Warner Bros. declined to comment on the allegations, so treat this unconfirmed piece of speculation as just that. That being said, when you consider that Phil Lord and Chris Miller initially helped develop The Flash for WB more than two years ago, them deciding to go full circle would certainly make a lot of sense. It’s no secret that the Scarlet Speedster’s solo effort has been beset with production woes from the off, losing both Seth Grahame-Smith came and Dope helmer Rick Famuyiwa. Perhaps Phil Lord and Chris Miller can give the DC tentpole the shot in the arm it so needs?
As the Han Solo fallout continues, we’ve learned that Lord and Miller’s improvisational style and ad lib filmmaking was at odds with that of Lucasfilm and Lawrence Kasdan in particular, who was originally supposed to adopt a more hands-on approach – not unlike the decision to hire Tony Gilroy to help dot the I’s and cross the T’s of Rogue One – before the Powers That Be ultimately cut ties with Lord and Miller.
But as one door closes, another opens. And for Phil Lord and Chris Miller, that door may just lead to The Flash standalone movie. Here’s what THR had to share on the matter:
What will happen next for Lord and Miller isn’t clear but they are in demand and have an open berth waiting for them to direct The Flash for Warner Bros., if they chose to take it. They had left that film for the Han Solo movie but could return.
The Flash is, at the time of writing, without a release date, but DC fans can at least look forward to seeing Ezra Miller’s Scarlett Speedster in action when Justice League opens in November. Han Solo, meanwhile, now has Ron Howard behind the lens, and is expected to light up theaters on May 25th, 2018.