Rick Famuyiwa Directing ‘The Flash’ For Warner Bros.

Filmmaker Rick Famuyiwa will be entering the DC Extended Universe. Deadline reports that the Dope director has officially signed on to helm The Flash for Warner Bros., taking over the project following the departure of Seth Grahame-Smith.

The Flash Movie Just Took A Big Step Forward https://t.co/94Skpd17zO | https://t.co/S3GNjZZbJW pic.twitter.com/r5j0Yz1IHn

— CinemaBlend (@CinemaBlend) June 2, 2016

Rick Famuyima directing The Flash is something that started to look like a possibility when rumors first started surfacing just a few days ago. Batman News pointed out that while on Twitter, Famuyima began following certain actors, filmmakers, and pages that are currently associated with DC film projects. Apparently, Rick followed DC Comics, Geoff Johns, Wonder Woman, Gal Gadot, Suicide Squad, Zack Snyder, Ben Affleck, Ray Fisher, and Jason Momoa on Twitter in that exact order. That certainly is enough to cause anyone to suspect whether or not Famuyiwa just got out of a meeting with Warner Bros. over an upcoming DC Comics project. Deadline also reports that a deal between Famuyiwa and the studio is going to be worked out very quickly.

The Flash looked like it may have been in a bit of trouble after Seth Grahame-Smith walked away from the project, who has authored such fiction novels as Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. The Flash would have been his directorial debut, and after the polarizing reviews for Batman v Superman came in, it’s very possible that the studio was not looking to take any chances with the property. Rather than give it to a first time director, Warner Bros. chose Rick Famuyiwa to helm The Flash – a director who has four feature films under his belt, as well as the recent HBO television film Confirmation. His others include 2015’s Dope, Our Family Wedding, Brown Sugar, and The Wood.

With his resume, Rick Famuyiwa displays a solid grasp on not only comedy, but drama as well, and that certainly makes sense for a character like The Flash. During an interview with /Film, the director was asked about whether or not he had been approached to possibly take on a film with a budget of $200+ million – especially since his film Dope was such a big hit at Sundance. This has happened with a lot of filmmakers and it was something Famuyiwa was very aware of, while also admitting that it’s something he would have an interest in.

“I mean, there’s been a couple of things that have come my way that would be really interesting to do. So I’m kind of weighing and figuring it out. But yeah, I mean, look. I grew up on Spielberg and Lucas. That was sort of what inspired me to make movies. And so Back to the Future is like my one of my favorite films of all times and it’s why [the character] Dom calls Malcolm ‘McFly.’ And so doing that, taking sort of what I think I do well and then sort of putting it on that stage, I think is something that I’d really be interested in doing.”

#TheFlash Movie Brings On Rick Famuyiwa As Director https://t.co/eZs4P4n0CL pic.twitter.com/h9gV0Y7IFQ

— The Mary Sue (@TheMarySue) June 2, 2016

Despite Grahame-Smith no longer directing The Flash, he apparently will still be involved in some capacity, having already written the screenplay. Whether or not Famuyiwa, who is also a screenwriter, will rewrite the script is unknown at this point. Ezra Miller will be playing Barry Allen/The Flash, who also had a cameo as the character in Batman v Superman and is currently off with director Zack Snyder, actors Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Jason Momoa, and Ray Fisher filming The Justice League Part One.

Apparently, Rick Famuyiwa impressed Warner Bros. with his take on The Flash, having a vision for the film that could resonate with a younger audience. His previous film Dope is a story that accomplishes that same task, while also balancing comedy with drama and heart.

WB’s The Flash is set to race into theaters March 16, 2018.

[Photo by Clayton Chase/Getty Images for Sundance]