Andy Muschietti, the director of The Flash, is opening up about why he thinks the DC film flopped at the box office.
In a new interview, the filmmaker says that many factors contributed to the underperforming superhero film and not bringing moviegoers to theaters.
“I think [The Flash] failed because it didn’t appeal to all four quadrants,” Muschietti said on La Baulera del Coso. “When you make a 200 million dollar film, the studio expects you even to bring your grandmother to the theaters.”
Muschietti said that “in private conversations,” he was told that “many people are not interested in The Flash as a character. Half of the quadrants, two are female [and] many women are not interested in The Flash as a character.”
According to Comscore PostTrak exit polling, the audience for The Flash’s Thursday night showing pulled in 47% guys over 25 (78% grade), 29% guys under 25 (73% grade), 17% women over 25 (76%) and 7% women under 25 (78%).
The director said he was happy with the film and called it his best so far. Muschietti also touched on the PR crisis the film had due to Ezra Miller’s legal problems amid his mental health struggles.
“When you make a film, there are things that are out of your control, and one of those is when an actor has a PR crisis,” Muschietti said.
Muschietti adds that he had no issues with Miller, saying, “I had a great experience with him as an actor. He is a great comedian, and he surprised me a lot.”
With James Gunn and Peter Safran building a new DC Universe, Muschietti will have another opportunity to make another superhero film as he is set to direct the Batman movie The Brave and the Bold. The film features Batman and his son, Damien Wayne as Robin, an assassin, and murderer who takes on the Dark Knight.
