The Flash Directors on How Flashpoint Was an Influence

In comic books, few things are guaranteed. Amongst those guarantees is the fact that Uncle Ben will stay dead, and that Barry Allen will race through the Speed Force to mess with reality. One of the most popular stories featuring The Flash’s time-traveling antics is Flashpoint, a massive event used by DC to reset its comics universe in 2011. Some might even consider it one of the Scarlet Speedster’s most popular stories ever, so it was only a matter of time before it was transformed into a film given the popularity of superhero cinema.

Andy Muschietti’s The Flash is based upon the comic story, though it doesn’t mirror it exactly. In fact, Muschietti said at a recent screening that the studio was adamant about telling the story in some form, even if it was at a macro level and creative liberties had to be taken.

“The studio wanted to tell the story and, of course, I agreed that it was a great story,” the filmmaker said Monday. “It’s basically time travel that includes the origin story, which is basically the mother and the father, and their accident. All of those elements were sort of attached to this thing. That’s why in my opinion, it was like you’re killing several birds with the same stone in a way. And of course time travel is always a good idea. Batman is always a good idea.”

What sets the two apart, though? Muschietti says his version of the story is much more suspenseful than the source material.

“This is more like a suspense. It is a buildup to that moment, which makes probably a more emotional experience, because you understand everything that’s happening,” the director added. “In Flashpoint, it’s more like Jacob’s Ladder, ‘What is happening? Mom, I don’t have powers. My mom is alive.’”

What is The Flash about?

Warner Bros. describes the film as follows: “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 hits theaters on June 16th!