HBO Max has officially unveiled The Flash‘s newest costume in a new series for the streaming service. The Flash has had quite a few appearances in both the DCEU and the Arrowverse in the past decade. Ezra Miller famously played Barry Allen in Zack Snyder’s film franchise and even got a standalone movie in 2023, while Grant Gustin played him for nine seasons of The Flash and dozens of crossover appearances in shows like Arrow.
Despite all The Flash’s recent live-action appearances, he hasn’t made it to James Gunn’s DCU yet. While the franchise is still just getting started, Superman is already set to get his second movie in 2027, while the next DCU movie, Clayface, focuses on a Batman villain. Aside from Superman, the DCU hasn’t even introduced the other two thirds of DC’s Trinity so far, Batman and Wonder Woman.
As the DCU continues to establish itself, many DC fans have been speculating about when major heroes like The Flash could appear and how they’ll look. After all, The Flash’s costume is one of the most difficult to pull off in live-action due to its mainly red color scheme. While the DCU still hasn’t given fans an official look at The Flash’s costume yet, HBO Max has debuted a new version of the speedster complete with a new suit, albeit in a completely unconnected show.
Stuart Fails To Save The Universe Episode 9 Introduced Jay Garrick As The Flash In A New Costume
Surprisingly, the most recent episode of the Big Bang spinoff show Stuart Fails to Save the Universe introduced a new version of The Flash with a new costume. In Stuart Fails to Save the Universe episode 9, as the core group is being attacked by Batman villain Mister Freeze, The Flash comes to their rescue and defends them from Mister Freeze’s freeze gun. Notably, the show chose to include Jay Garrick, the original character to use the mantle of The Flash, rather than more modern characters like Barry Allen or Wally West.
Because Stuart Fails to Save the Universe chose to include Jay Garrick, The Flash’s costume is inspired by his Golden Age appearances. The show’s suit includes Garrick’s tin helmet with lightning bolts, a red shirt with a yellow lightning bolt, blue pants, and winged shoes. He’s played by Andy Ridings, who is best known for small roles on comedy shows like Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt and The Other Two.
Interestingly, Stuart Fails to Save the Universe episode 9’s title, “Spoiler Alert: We Couldn’t Get Green Lantern,” is actually directly tied to The Flash’s appearance. The show’s co-creator Zak Penn said in an interview that they asked Warner Bros. for permission to use Green Lantern as their first choice, but that the company wouldn’t allow the character to appear due to the ongoing series Lanterns starring Aaron Pierre and Kyle Chandler (via CBR). With Green Lantern out of the picture, Stuart Fails to Save the Universe instead opted for The Flash.
Where The Flash Could Appear First In James Gunn’s DCU
While The Flash’s cameo in Stuart Fails to Save the Universe is a fun moment, many of the speedster’s fans are likely more curious about when he’ll make his actual debut in James Gunn’s DCU. While there hasn’t been an official confirmation of when The Flash could appear or even which version of the character will be focused on, there are a few likely areas where the DCU could bring him into the fold.
The first, and most likely, place The Flash could make his DCU debut is in the upcoming Superman spinoff show The People v. Gorilla Grodd. Starring Jimmy Olsen, Clark Kent’s friend and fellow journalist played by Skyler Gisondo, The People v. Gorilla Grodd is set to be a mockumentary about Grodd being put on trial for his crimes. While the focus will be on Grodd and Olsen, there’s plenty of opportunity for The Flash to appear.
The most likely way The Flash could appear in The People v. Gorilla Grodd is thanks to Barry Allen’s regular identity. Barry works as a forensic scientist in most of the character’s iterations, which means he could easily be called to testify during Grodd’s trial. Alternatively, some of Jimmy Olsen’s archive footage of Grodd’s crimes could include scenes of him being thwarted by The Flash, or The Flash could appear as a superhero to testify against Grodd. In short, it would be very easy to work Barry Allen or Wally West into The People v. Gorilla Grodd.
Even if that series doesn’t include an appearance from The Flash, the DCU still has plenty of opportunities to bring him on screen for the first time. The next most likely option is Man of Tomorrow, the Superman 2025 sequel. Man of Tomorrow is already shaping up to be a major team-up event, as Supergirl, Superman, Lex Luthor, Green Lantern, and more are joining forces to combat Brainiac. It’s already speculated that Wonder Woman could be making her debut in Man of Tomorrow, and The Flash could join her.
- Created By
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Gardner Fox, Harry Lampert, Carmine Infantino
- First Appearance
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Flash Comics
- Alias
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Jay Garrick, Barry Allen, Wally West, Bart Allen, Avery Ho
- Alliance
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Justice Society of America, Justice League, Teen Titans
- Race
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Human
- Franchise
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D.C.
