DCU Boss James Gunn Acknowledges Reverse-Flash Actor’s ‘Hilarious’ Return Request

The Flash star Tom Cavanagh has addressed a potential return as the Reverse-Flash in James Gunn’s DC Universe, which, in turn, has prompted a response from the DC Studios head.

The actor, who played Eobard Thawne/Reverse-Flash as well as multiple versions of Harrison Wells across all nine seasons of The CW’s The Flash, recently attended the Toronto Comicon. During the Q&A portion of the panel, Cavanagh was asked if he’d be interested in returning as the Reverse-Flash in the DCU.

“Yes, James Gunn, James, where are you? James, I’m right here, pretty solidly built . . . still athletic,” he replied. “You know, not the youngest cat, but pretty good, pretty fast on their feet . . . can move pretty good. I would love to work for you, Gunn. I hear all this stuff on social media about Grant Gustin, c’mon, he’s got a job.” He ended his answer by briefly stepping back into character to say, “Reverse-Flash.”

Check out Cavanagh’s answer in the below X (formerly Twitter) post:

James Gunn responds to Tom Cavanagh’s request

After the video was shared online, a DC fan asked Gunn on the social media platform Threads if he had seen Cavanagh’s request yet. The DC Studios boss initially responded with the “crying laughing emoji” before offering additional thoughts on the request after his emoji reply was misinterpreted by parts of the fandom.

“Anyone responding to this thinking I’m laughing AT Tom obviously hasn’t watched the clip,” Gunn clarified on Threads (via Twitter). “He’s being hilarious. I’m acknowledging that.”

While it is possible that Gunn could cast Cavanagh as the DCU’s Reverse-Flash, the forthcoming shared universe has so far only brought back actors from the DC Extended Universe, such as Viola Davis as Amanda Waller and John Cena as Peacemaker. Gunn has also indicated several times that the majority of roles in the DCU will be recast, with none of the DCEU’s Justice League actors expected to return. However, while it probably won’t be as The Flash, Gunn recently shared that he would like to work with Arrowverse alum Grant Gustin on a future project.

What’s next for the Scarlet Speedster?

While The Flash was a major player in the DCEU, the Scarlet Speedster was noticeably absent from the DCU’s initial lineup of movies and television series, which was unveiled in January 2023. Since the Ezra Miller-led The Flash had not yet hit theaters, it is believed that Gunn held off on revealing DCU plans for the superhero until the movie had opened. Unfortunately, The Flash flopped at the box office, losing Warner Bros. an estimated $200 million. At the time of writing, Gunn has still not announced what he intends to do with The Flash or which version of the speedster he plans on using in the DCU.

All nine seasons of The Flash are available to stream on Netflix.