A new report reveals that some at Warner Bros. Pictures were left “bemused” by the marketing for The Flash, and particularly the claims that it will stand as one of the greatest superhero movies ever made. According to The Hollywood Reporter, The Flash being unable to use controversial lead star Ezra Miller for marketing purposes, the studio instead “put the focus on the film itself.”

“They are spending huge, huge. This is a massive campaign,” said an executive familiar with such marketing strategies.

“They are not promoting Flash as a character because they can’t,” says a “rival studio executive” regarding The Flash not being able to put Miller front and center of the campaign. They go on to reveal that the ongoing Writers Guild of America strike may have helped in this regard, with talk shows being shut down and thus making it less obvious that Miller is nowhere to be seen when it comes to promotion. “It has hurt everyone equally” they added, “but in their case, it hurts them less.”

With Miller being kept at arms length, this led to the likes of James Gunn, horror author Stephen King, and Hollywood icon Tom Cruise to give their hugely favorable opinions of the project. “It can’t be the studio telling you it’s good; your friends have to tell you it’s good,” says one insider.

“As a rule I don’t care a lot for superhero movies, but this one is special. It’s heartfelt, funny, and eye-popping,” Stephen King tweeted about The Flash, with James Gunn calling the movie “probably one of the greatest superhero movies ever made.” Creating such hype for The Flash reportedly “sparked bemused head-shaking from some at Warners who question the wisdom of setting such high expectations.”

RELATED: The Flash Was Never in Danger of Getting Shelved Due to Ezra Miller Controversy, Producer Says

The Flash Now Stands at 72% On Rotten Tomatoes
Warner Bros.

While the response to The Flash has been solid so far, with the DC outing reaching a ‘fresh’ rating of 72% on the review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes, reviews have hardly been praising The Flash as one of the best superhero movies of all time.

“Fortunately, director Andy Muschietti’s (of It fame) long-awaited DC film isn’t a mess itself, even though the result is an ambitious if not super-stuffed spectacle,” says MovieWeb’s own Greg Archer in his review, before adding that it is at least one of the best installments in the DCU. “That doesn’t mean The Flash isn’t an enjoyable thrill ride. It is. In fact, not since Wonder Woman — and perhaps Zack Snyder’s director’s cut of Justice League — has going to a DC film felt this fun in the last decade. There may be hope for DC Studios yet.”

Worlds will collide in The Flash when the superhero uses his powers to travel back in time to change the events of the past. However, when his attempt to save his family inadvertently alters the future, he becomes trapped in an alternate reality. With no other superheroes to turn to, the Flash looks to coax a very different Batman out of retirement.

Starring Ezra Miller as Barry Allen aka The Flash alongside Sasha Calle as Kara Zor-El aka Supergirl, Michael Shannon as General Zod, Ron Livingston as Henry Allen, Maribel Verdú as Nora Allen, Kiersey Clemons as Iris West, Antje Traue as Faora-Ul, and Ben Affleck and Michael Keaton as alternate versions of Batman, The Flash is now scheduled be released in the United States on June 16.