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A new trailer for The Flash has revealed the return of another beloved Snyderverse character -- Jeremy Irons' Alfred Pennyworth.
Warner Bros. and DC Studios recently released a new The Flash trailer for China, which features a ton of new footage including a brief shot of Alfred telling Barry he's going to patch him through to Bruce Wayne. The Flash will mark Irons' third time playing the role of Bruce Wayne's trusted butler after 2016's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and 2017's Justice League. He also appeared in Zack Snyder's 2021 director's cut of Justice League.
The End of Batfleck
With The Flash set to reboot the DCU timeline, the upcoming superhero blockbuster will mark the final time fans see Irons as Alfred Pennyworth. It will also be the last time Ben Affleck dons the cape and cowl as Batman, a role he has also played since 2016's Batman v Superman. Both characters will be recast in The Brave and the Bold, an upcoming superhero movie set in the new DCU that will focus on Batman learning that he has fathered a son, Damian Wayne. However, until then, fans can enjoy one last reprisal from Affleck, who previously stated that The Flash features his best performance as the fan-favorite Caped Crusader.
It seems fitting that The Flash would feature the return of Snyderverse characters like Batfleck and Irons' Alfred given that the upcoming movie looks to reimagine the events of General Zod's attack on Earth, which took place in Zack Snyder's Man of Steel (2013). In The Flash, Barry Allen (a returning Ezra Miller) travels back in time to prevent his mother's death only to shatter the timeline and create an alternate 2013 where there are no metahumans, Michael Keaton is still Batman and General Zod has arrived to conquer Earth. Michael Shannon, who reprises his role as Zod from the 2013 film, recently revealed that he asked for Snyder's blessing before agreeing to do The Flash. "Zack, to his credit, was very understanding," the actor revealed. "He gave me his blessing, and I went to do it."
Stephen King Joins Tom Cruise in Praising The Flash
While the public still has to wait until mid-June to see The Flash, Stephen King -- the best-selling author behind Carrie, The Shining, Misery and more -- was previously treated to an advance screening of the film. Afterward, King shared his thoughts on Twitter, writing, "As a rule, I don't care a lot for superhero movies, but this one is special. It's heartfelt, funny, and eye-popping. I loved it." King's surprising review of The Flash comes a couple of months after Mission: Impossible star Tom Cruise gave similar praise. At the time, the actor reportedly described The Flash as "everything you want in a movie," adding that it's the "kind of movie we need now." With The Flash's review embargo not yet lifted, it remains to be seen if critics will respond as favorably as King and Cruise have to The Flash.
Directed by Andy Muschietti, The Flash opens in theaters on June 16.