An incident involving actor Ezra Miller has sent fans of DC's superhero movies into a
frenzy.
On April 6, a video started circulating in the media that appears to show Miller choking
a female fan before dragging her to the ground. While many initially thought the footage might
be a joke, the clip has since been confirmed as being genuine, according to Variety.
The altercation took place in a bar in Reykjavik, Iceland, which Miller, who uses they/them
pronouns, reportedly frequents when visiting the Icelandic capital. The establishment's
owner added that the actor had to be escorted out of the bar afterwards. The incident took
place on April 1.
The short clip of the incident was filmed by a bystander in the bar, and shows a young
woman approaching Miller while waving her arms around as though she's dancing or mock-fighting
with the actor. Miller can be heard saying "Oh, you wanna fight? That's what you wanna
do?" to the young woman before grabbing her by the throat. The video is only seven seconds
long, and cuts out as the woman is thrown to the ground; bystanders can be heard trying
to defuse the situation.
Miller, who has a featured role as Credence Barebone in the Fantastic Beasts franchise,
has played the Flash in the DCEU films. They were first cast in the role as the Scarlet
Speedster for a cameo appearance in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice before appearing
in Justice League; Miller made another cameo as the DCEU version of Barry Allen in the
CW's Arrowverse crossover event Crisis on Infinite Earths.
"What the hell is this?"
Miller is currently slated to reprise the role once again in a Flash solo feature, which
is due in 2022 following multiple delays. But some fans have sounded a very vocal call
for the actor's immediate removal from the solo film, which is set to be directed by
It helmer Andy Muschietti.
Most feel that Grant Gustin, who has played Barry for six years on the Arrowverse series
The Flash, is a better representative for the iconic character, and fans have taken
to Twitter in droves to call for Miller's removal. One user suggested that fans should
set up a petition to get rid of Miller from the DCEU.
Others opted to put a positive spin on the situation by looking at the actor playing
the Flash on television rather than having a go at Miller. One fan tweeted,
"After hearing all this Ezra Miller business, it got me thinking: It would be so dope if
Grant Gustin played Flash in the DCEU. Just give him a movie-budget costume and a complete
rewrite of his character, he's perfect."
Another added a similar suggestion, tweeting,
"Grant Gustin is talented, a dork, has the biggest heart, is the best Barry Allen and
most importantly never attacked anyone, what are you all waiting to stan?"
Twitter account DR Movie News took that logic one step further, tweeting,
"If there's one positive to come out of that insane Ezra Miller video, it's that Warner
Brothers may finally have the chance to re-cast [them] & find someone GOOD to play Barry Allen/Flash
for Muschietti's solo-movie & have it be separate from the DCEU like The Batman."
"Yeah, I'm sorry. It's just, y'know, it's been a rough few weeks, Murray."
There are some who aren't yet convinced of what they're actually seeing in the video.
Because of when the person behind the camera starts filming, no one seems to know what
caused Miller's apparently extreme reaction, and because of when the video cuts, it's unclear
what happened afterwards. Eyewitnesses told Variety that the group of fans who approached
Miller in the bar were, quote, "quite pushy," and that things escalated from there.
Some fans believe that the call for Miller's dismissal from their upcoming projects is
too rash a response to a seven-second clip with not a lot of context surrounding it.
One individual tweeted,
"People are too quick to jump and cancel #EzraMiller over a video about which no one has any context
yet. Wait and see what really happened. But I'm also NOT defending [them]."
According to ScreenRant, the person who posted the video was a friend of the woman in the
clip, and she claimed that her friend was "jokingly" challenging Miller to a fight,
which Miller then took too seriously. The friend has since deleted not only her Reddit
post but also her entire Twitter profile, but not before people were able to get screenshots
of her explanation of the incident.
Neither Miller, their representatives, or Warner Bros. immediately released a statement
regarding the video.
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