Summary
- The Flash underperformed at the box office, making even less than Superman in 1978, costing Warner Bros. an estimated $155 million.
- Despite mixed reception, The Flash aimed to reboot the DC Extended Universe with the introduction of Michael Keaton's Batman and Sasha Calle's Supergirl.
- Superman's success was due to its originality and positive audience reception, contrasting with The Flash's failure and controversial legacy sequences.
reboot the DC Extended Universe with the introduction of Michael Keaton's Batman and Sasha Calle's Supergirl.
While the film was a failure, The Flash could have been fixed without too much effort. More audiences liked the movie than disliked it, although The Flash was undoubtedly a flop at the box office. This was for a number of reasons, including real-life legal troubles for its star, or the impending reboot of the entire universe. Audiences have been trained to consume movies with the expectation of things to follow, but it seemed no additional films would follow The Flash. Compared to the release of 1978's Superman, the film's failure becomes even more shocking.
The Flash’s Controversial Multiverse DC Characters Explained
The Flash tells a complex, multiversal story in the DCEU, bringing many cameos from alternate dimensions of DC’s history into the film’s third act.
Superman's Box Office In 1978 Was $29.2m Higher Than The Flash Movie
In 1978, Superman was an enormous hit at the box office. Costing $55 million, the film was the most expensive movie ever made to that point. With inflation, this figure is nearly $265 million. Fortunately for the studio, Superman was a massive hit that charmed audiences for months and earned a total of $300.5 million, which is $1.1 billion if adjusted for inflation in 2024. Clearly, audiences believed that a man could fly, and came out in droves to see groundbreaking special effects and comic book action taken seriously.
Andy Muschietti signed on to direct the DCU's Batman reboot, The Brave and the Bold, shortly before his film The Flash was released. Despite the negative response to The Flash, he is still attached to the DCU film.
Conversely, The Flash went through extended production delays and issues but was eventually made for a price tag of $200-220 million before marketing costs. Upon release, the film was a massive disappointment, earning only $271.3 million during its entire theatrical run. Making even less money unadjusted than Superman made in 1978 is a baffling contrast that clearly shows audiences were not interested in the film. The Flash was the second-biggest bomb of 2023, behind only The Marvels, and is estimated to have lost Warner Bros. approximately $155 million.
Superman
- Release Date
- December 15, 1978
- Runtime
- 143 Minutes
- Director
- Richard Donner
Cast
Gene Hackman
WHERE TO WATCH
Superman, directed by Richard Donner, stars Christopher Reeve as Clark Kent, an alien from the planet Krypton living on Earth who adopts the persona of Superman to protect humanity. Released in 1978, the film features Gene Hackman as the villain Lex Luthor, who creates a plan that threatens millions of lives. Margot Kidder co-stars as Lois Lane, a journalist at the Daily Planet and Clark Kent's colleague.
- Studio(s)
- Warner Bros. Pictures
Why Superman Performed Better At The Box Office Than The Flash
There are many reasons Superman performed so much better than The Flash. Understanding what an original and unusual project Superman was in 1978 compared to the ubiquity of superhero films can attest to its enormous success in part. However, the simplest explanation is that audiences and critics simply did not like The Flash nearly as much. The Flash scored a barely-fresh 63% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes, compared to Superman's 94% score. While audience scores were higher, not enough people saw The Flash for this to make an impact.
Arguably, The Flash was a clumsier film that caused some controversy about how it dealt with legacy. Christopher Reeve's family commented on the strange inclusion of a CGI Reeve cameo as Superman in the film, noting that they had not signed off on it. Other animated appearances, including Nicolas Cage as Superman, were also shoehorned in during a sequence that looked cheap, giving mixed reactions to audiences and leaving a bad taste. In contrast, Superman was warmly received with almost no reservations and went on to have three sequels made with Reeve in the titular role.
Nicolas Cage its He Was Perplexed By His Superman's CGI Appearance In The Flash: "To Me It Didn't Look Right"
Nicolas Cage shares his perplexed thoughts on the CGI used for his Superman appearance in The Flash and his thoughts on a potential return.
The Flash was a massive failure, and it is unlikely that the threads of that film will be picked up in any meaningful way soon. In some ways, this is too bad because certain components, including Michael Keaton's reappearance as Batman and Sasha Calle's debut as Supergirl, were promising and effective. Still, with a new DCU just ahead, the right move appears to be to draw legacy and influence from 1978's Superman rather than The Flash. The studio certainly hopes to reach wider audiences when their new universe begins in 2025.
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The Flash
- Release Date
- June 16, 2023
- Runtime
- 144 minutes
- Director
- Andres Muschietti
Cast
Barry Allen / The Flash
Sasha CalleKara Zor-El / Supergirl
WHERE TO WATCH
- Writers
- Christina Hodson, Joby Harold, John Francis Daley, Jonathan Goldstein
- Franchise(s)
- DC Extended Universe
- Studio(s)
- Warner Bros. Pictures, DC
- Distributor(s)
- Warner Bros. Pictures
- Budget
- $220 million
DC Movies |
Release Date |
|---|---|
October 4, 2024 |
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July 11, 2025 |
|
June 26, 2026 |
|
October 2, 2026 |
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