Superman's absence in The Flash has been explained in a new clip from the upcoming DC Universe movie.
Per The Direct, in the clip -- which has since been removed by Warner Bros. on copyright grounds -- Barry Allen (Ezra Miller) is in line at a sandwich shop when he gets an urgent call from Alfred Pennyworth (Jeremy Irons) requesting The Flash's assistance in Gotham. After Barry asks if Superman can come to the rescue instead, Alfred replies, "That was my first thought. Sadly, he’s otherwise engaged." The clip then cuts to a news report on TV showing Superman using his heat vision to seal off an erupting volcano in Guatemala.
Henry Cavill was originally set to appear in The Flash, having shot a cameo for the movie in September 2022. However, after James Gunn and Peter Safran took over as co-heads of DC Studios, the cameo was removed since Gunn and Safran will not be using Cavill's version of Superman in their forthcoming DCU. Prior to Gunn and Safran's appointment, Warner Bros. was in early talks with Cavill to return as the Big Blue Boy Scout for a proper Man of Steel sequel. However, the iconic DC superhero will now be rebooted for the new DCU, with Gunn and Safran overseeing screen tests for Clark Kent (and Lois Lane) over Father's Day weekend.
Who Is in The Flash?
While Superman will only appear from a distance in The Flash, several other superheroes will play a more prominent role in the movie. Gal Gadot and Ben Affleck, as well as Irons, will reprise their DC Extended Universe roles as Wonder Woman, Batman and Alfred, respectively, in The Flash, with Jason Momoa also rumored to appear as Aquaman. The Scarlet Speedster will also cross paths with alternate versions of his Justice League colleagues such as Michael Keaton's Batman and Sasha Calle's Supergirl.
In The Flash, Barry Allen travels back in time to prevent the death of his mother only to create an alternate timeline in which General Zod (Michael Shannon) has returned and there is no Justice League to turn to for help. "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," reads the film's official synopsis. "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?"
Directed by Andy Muschietti, The Flash opens in theaters on June 16.
Source: The Direct