Just when you think the DCEU has managed to right itself, the franchise has been dragged back down into endless controversy in recent months. Not only are Amber Heard’s legal battles casting a shadow over her role as Mera in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, but Ezra Miller’s numerous run-ins with the law are leaving the fate of The Flash movie in question. As it turns out, maybe we should’ve listened to Peacemaker all along.
Twitter user @CapedJoel has gone viral by sharing an overlooked joke from Peacemaker that eerily predicts the backlash against Miller in the months since the HBO Max hit aired. Taken from a scene in which John Cena’s anti-hero speaks to a class of elementary school kids, one Flash fan asks Chris Smith if he’s ever met the speedster. “Yeah, I’ve met the Flash,” Smith responds. “Like everyone who’s ever met him, I thought he was an unbearable d-bag.”
Peacemaker’s Flash diss was part of a running joke in which he shared a slanderous rumor about any superhero who was namedropped. But in the light of the Miller scenario, some are getting scared that Smith’s outlandish claims about Aquaman are similarly on the money.
We look forward to Peacemaker discovering he has psychic powers in season two.
Although maybe it’s John Cena who can actually see into the future, given that he’s believed to have improvised this line.
Fans may have judged Peacemaker too harshly.
In the wise words of J. Jonah Jameson…
Of course, Miller later cameod in the Peacemaker finale, so obviously there was no serious ill-will intended from Cena or writer/director James Gunn in this joke at the Flash’s expense. It’s unlikely Miller could be invited back for its incoming sophomore run, however, as Warner Bros. reportedly doesn’t want the Fantastic Beasts star back in the DCEU. But, as things stand, The Flash film looks to be staying as it is and is currently on course for release in summer 2023.
Peacemaker‘s 10-part first season is available to stream on HBO Max.