Whatever the future holds for the DC Extended Universe, it is unlikely to feature Ray Fisher’s version of Cyborg.
The Wrap reports that despite Cyborg once having a cameo set for the upcoming Andy Muschietti Flash film starring Ezra Miller, the role has now been written out and will not be recast. Gizmodo independently confirmed this with a source close to the project.
The news comes after months of public disputes between Fisher and Warner Bros. regarding allegations of misconduct on the set of Joss Whedon’s Justice League reshoots. On December 11, WarnerMedia put out a statement saying its investigation (which began in August of 2020) into the events had concluded and “remedial action has been taken.” That culminated on December 30 with Fisher posing an ultimatum, or seemingly giving up his superhero role, when he tweeted in part, “I will not participate in any production associated with” DC Films President Walter Hamada.
[referenced id=”1661261″ url=”https://gizmodo.com.au/2020/12/ray-fisher-vows-to-never-work-on-another-warner-bros-movie-so-long-as-walter-hamada-is-in-charge/” thumb=”https://gizmodo.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/31/wajb3b7kbsm9eeqgdenl-300×169.png” title=”Ray Fisher Vows to Never Work On Another Warner Bros. Movie So Long as Walter Hamada Is in Charge” excerpt=”At the same time that Zack Snyder has been finalising a new cut of his Justice League film for HBO Max, actor Ray Fisher — who originally portrayed Cyborg in the film — has been using his platform to call out director Joss Whedon for his on-set behaviour that took…”]
While Hamada wasn’t working on Justice League during the initial alleged events, Fisher has claimed he was complicit after the fact. At the time, Warner Bros. released a statement saying in part: “The two had previously spoken when Mr. Hamada asked him to reprise his role as Cyborg in Warner Bros.’ upcoming Flash movie, together with other members of the Justice League. In their July conversation, Mr. Fisher recounted disagreements he’d had with the film’s creative team regarding his portrayal of Cyborg, and complained that his suggested script revisions were not adopted. Mr. Hamada explained that creative differences are a normal part of the production process, and that a film’s writer/director ultimately has to be in charge of these matters. Notably, Mr. Hamada also told Mr. Fisher that he would elevate his concerns to WarnerMedia so they could conduct an investigation.”
Just this week, Warner Bros. renewed Hamada’s contract to continue his role at DC Films. In response to the news that same day, Fisher tweeted, “It’s weird how these reactionary announcements from [Warner Bros.] always forget to mention that Walter Hamada was working directly with Geoff Johns and Toby Emmerich (on Shazam) DURING Justice League reshoots…”
However, with Hamada running DC Films for the foreseeable future and Fisher saying he wouldn’t work with DC under Hamada, the team behind The Flash decided to take the Cyborg cameo out. Cameos from Batman actors Ben Affleck and Michael Keaton as their respective Bruce Wayne’s remain and deals have been closed. This means, unless some big moves happen on the Warner Bros’ side, Fisher’s Cyborg will last been seen in the upcoming Snyder Cut of Justice League, which will feature an expanded role for the character. It’ll be out later this year.
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