The Flash was years in the making, long before the release of the film featuring Ezra Miller. Jeph Loeb, who was a writer for Arnold Schwarzenegger’s hit 1985 movie, Commando also served as the executive vice president of Marvel TV, pitched the concept of a superhero movie starring the superhero to Warner Bros in 1991. However, for reasons that remain undisclosed to this day, the project never came to fruition.
Why Jeph Loeb’s Flash Never Came to Life?
Long before others in the industry, as documented in the book MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios, Jeph Loeb was the first to pitch a Flash movie to Warner Brothers. Surprisingly, the movie featuring Ezra Miller, which was released recently, turned out to be one of the studio’s most significant financial disappointments. This outcome raises a question, why did it take Warner Brothers so long to bring the superhero to the big screen?
The character undeniably had a dedicated fan base. Jeph Loeb first pitched the idea to Warner Bros. in 1991, but the movie never materialized, and the reason behind its cancellation remains undisclosed.
Some speculate that the superhero might not have been considered a prominent enough superhero back in the day in comparison to Batman or Superman. There are also beliefs that DC had intentions of creating a solo Scarlet Speedster movie in the late 1980s, which is where Loeb’s pitch came into play, but unfortunately, those plans were shelved. After that, Warner Bros. made several attempts to bring the character to life on the big screen, but various factors always seemed to push the project back.
Also Read: Why We Need a Sequel to the Flash
Jeph Loeb Moved on to Write Comics After That
Even though the superhero movie didn’t materialize due to undisclosed reasons, the writer, who was known for his work on Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Commando and Teen Wolf, although unsuccessful in selling his idea to Warner Bros., was approached by DC publisher Jenette Kahn to try his hand at writing comics. And so, he accepted the opportunity.
After his unsuccessful attempt at the superhero movie, Jeph Loeb had a long career in comics at both DC and Marvel. He created popular comics like Batman: The Long Halloween and Spider-Man: Blue. Surprisingly, he only wrote one Flash story so far and that is the 2004 one-shot DC Comics Presents: The Flash, which is likely very different from his original movie idea.
