Ezra Miller Made a Rare Public Appearance at 'The Flash' Premiere

If you haven't seen the stream of Ezra Miller news over the past two years, first of all, how? And second, you'll be able to catch up on the incredibly dark allegations below. But first: amidst all of the trouble surrounding Miller—which, again, we're about to break down in full, but includes accusations of grooming, violence, and manipulation of minors—DC Studios is planning to release The Flash later this week. As new DC head James Gunn said in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Andy Muschietti's The Flash is “probably one of the greatest superhero movies ever made.”

After dozens of quotes from DC studios executives praising the film, the massive superhero blockbuster is finally here. At the film's premiere in Los Angeles on Monday night, Miller made their first public appearance in over two years—speaking openly about their legal woes. They thanked DC heads James Gunn and Peter Safran for, "your grace and discernment and care in the context of my life," as well as, "bringing this moment to fruition.” Miller also called director Andy Muschietti the "maestro," according to Variety. "I think you’re amazing, and I think your work is monumental," Miller said.

The comments marked some of the first news regarding Miller that we've seen since September's bombshell story from Vanity Fair. That report offered multiple new details about Miller's supposed spiral but mainly, something for the question on all of our minds: why the hell is Warner Bros. still releasing The Flash?! Well, apparently, because Miller apologized! Miller allegedly "made a trip to the studio’s Burbank, California, headquarters to apologize for the negative PR in person and express renewed commitment." The rest of the Vanity Fair story leveled new strange Miller-isms, which included a source alleging that Miller saw themself as "the next Messiah," who believed, "the Freemasons were sending demons out to kill" them.

VF's report followed an update from Rolling Stone, which detailed how Vermont State police were unable to find a mother and her three children who were allegedly living in unsafe conditions at Miller's farm in the state. Reportedly, police attempted to serve the mother with an emergency care order that would take away the children from Miller’s property. The repeated attempt to contact the mother, apparently, is what resulted in police charging Miller with felony burglary, Vermont State Police also report. (This occurred after police found out that several bottles of alcohol were taken from a residence. After looking at surveillance footage, they found probable cause to charge Miller, who was issued a citation to show up in Vermont Superior Court for arraignment in late September.)

According to DC Studios, Miller's appearance at The Flash's premiere will mark their only publicity commitment for the film. Of course, there has still been many more accusations belied against the actor, including several arrests. Miller has also responded to the general public, offering an apology and a promise to seek help. Here's what you need to know.

What Allegations Have Been Made Against Ezra Miller?

On June 23, Rolling Stone reported that Miller had been hosting a mother and her three young children at their Vermont farm, with multiple sources telling the outlet that the living conditions are unsafe. The mother, 25, told Rolling Stone that the ranch "has been a healing haven for us,” after leaving what she described as an abusive relationship with an ex. Yet the children's father, who opposes the living arrangement, said, “I got a bad feeling in my stomach. I do want to go get my kids, they mean the fucking world to me.”

Two sources told Rolling Stone that at Miller's 96-acre farm property "there are unattended guns strewn around the home." A source also alleged that one child picked up a stray bullet and put it in her mouth. Reportedly, a social worker visited the home and told the children's father that they "looked good," yet there was "more work to do."

The report from Miller's farm followed a story from June 8, when TMZ was the first outlet to report that Miller had been accused of grooming Tokata Iron Eyes since the latter was 12 years old. In court documents obtained by People, Iron Eyes's parents, Chase Iron Eyes and Sara Jumping Eagle, claimed that Miller has been manipulating their daughter for years, saying that Miller "took an immediate and apparently innocent liking" to Tokata. Even more, Case and Sara alleged that Miller gave Tokata marijuana, LSD, and alcohol as a teenager. In the court documents, they went on to claim that Miller, through the Quiet organization, offered to pay Tokata's college tuition. This past December, Tokata allegedly dropped out of school and later traveled to Vermont, New York City, Los Angeles, and Hawaii with Miller. Chase and Sara, in the complaint, added that Miller "uses violence, intimidation, threat of violence, fear, paranoia, delusions and drugs to hold sway over a young adolescent Tokata,"

In a statement posted to Instagram amidst the allegations, Tokata Iron Eyes defended Miller. Tokata's parents told People that Tokata doesn't have a phone and that they "doubt whether they wrote the statement."

Then, on the morning of August 4, Business Insider published a frightening report that tackles almost all of the allegations made against the star. The story, written by Melkorka Licea and Katie Warren, demands to be read in full. With highly specific claims of abuse, grooming, and emotional manipulation, it’s impossible to detail the findings without diluting its reporting, but this is as close to a summary as the story offers:

“Insider has spoken with 14 people who had recent interactions with Miller in which the actor exhibited frightening emotional outbursts, carried firearms, or left them feeling unsafe. Some people said Miller sought out impressionable young women and nonbinary people whom they could isolate from their families and control. In some cases, Miller had sexual relations with these people. In 2020, during a roughly two-month stint in Iceland where Miller walked the streets barefoot, rumors spread that the movie star was running a cult out of an Airbnb.”

The beginning of the story detailed an alleged incident where Miller had slammed the door of an Uber so hard on Sara Jumping Eagle—who was trying to retrieve her daughter, 18-year-old Tokata Iron Eyes, whom Miller has previously been accused of grooming—that she needed medical treatment. From there, Business Insider details Miller’s behavior in Iceland, where their “makeshift commune, their monologues on spirituality, and their emotional outbursts, rumors began to circulate in Reykjavík that the star was running a cult.”

Later on in the report, which also included allegations around the nature of the relationship between Tokata and Miller, we also learned about a concerning series of incidents involving an 11-year-old child, now 12, who identifies as nonbinary. The mother of the child told the outlet that the actor “showed an inappropriate interest in her 11-year-old,” compleminting “the child's style and maturity level and asked whether they were interested in starting a clothing line together.” (The 12-year-old now says to Insider, "I did want it to happen. It sounded perfect.”) The mother was successful in obtaining a harassment-protection order against Miller.

What's Going on Between Ezra Miller and Warner Bros.?

Murmurs of studio anxieties first emerged in spring of 2022 as Miller was arrested twice while living in Hawaii. On April 20, 2022, according to the Hawaii Police Department, Miller was taken into temporary custody for second-degree assault in the early morning, at a private residence in the district of Puna. A news release said, "During the course of their investigation, police determined that the individual, later identified as Ezra Miller, became irate after being asked to leave and reportedly threw a chair, striking a 26-year-old female on the forehead, resulting in an approximate half-inch cut."

That was the second arrest. As for the first, according to the Associated Press, Miller was also arrested at a Hawaii karaoke bar at the end of March. Hawaii Police Assistant Chief Kenneth Quiocho told the AP that Miller took issue with patrons singing "Shallow," from The Star is Born. As the AP report detailed, Miller "grabbed a mic from a singing woman and lunged at a man playing darts," before authorities charged them with disorderly conduct and harassment. There were more incidents, too. Miller was reportedly the subject of multiple police calls in March. Here's how the AP classified the incidents, via info from Quiocho:

The same AP story detailing Miller's arrest revealed a court complaint against Miller, filed by two Hawaii residents. The complaint alleged that Miller “burst into the bedroom of the petitioner(s) and threatened” the alleged male victim by “saying ‘I will bury you and your slut wife.’” The residents filed a restraining order against them, as well as alleged that Miller stole some of their belongings, which included a passport and wallet. Two weeks later, however, the AP followed up with the news that the two individuals dropped the restraining order against Miller. The lawyer for the two residents, William Dean, declined to comment on why they dropped the restraining order.

Even before the second arrest, this was all enough, according to an earlier story from Rolling Stone, for Warner Bros. executives to hold a meeting about Miller's future with the franchise. The Rolling Stone story alleges that Miller had "meltdowns" while filming The Flash. An insider told the outlet that while"there was no yelling or violent outbursts," they described Miller as "losing it." "Ezra would get a thought in [their] head and say, 'I don’t know what I’m doing.'" The meeting reportedly happened on March 30, with the executives deciding to pause Miller's future projects with the studio. (Miller also stars in the Fantastic Beasts franchise.)

Since, though—as Vanity Fair writes and as we cited above—Miller has made an in-person apology to the execs, which was apparently enough to quell any desires to cancel The Flash's theatrical release. And, as ensuing reporting noted, they are now doing reshoots with the approval of the studio.

What Has Ezra Miller Said About the Allegations Against Them?

In mid-August, Variety obtained a long-overdue statement from Miller, via a representative of the actor. “Having recently gone through a time of intense crisis, I now understand that I am suffering complex mental health issues and have begun ongoing treatment,” Miller said. “I want to apologize to everyone that I have alarmed and upset with my past behavior. I am committed to doing the necessary work to get back to a healthy, safe and productive stage in my life.”

What Do Allegations Against Ezra Miller Mean For the Future of the DCEU?

With the caveat that this ran in advance of Miller's apology to Warner Bros., a report from Deadline, alleges that Miller will not remain as the DCEU's big-screen Flash following the 2023 film release. Still, James Gunn and Peter Safran's recent interview in The Hollywood Reporter made it sound like Miller's future in the DCEU was more uncertain. "Ezra is completely committed to their recovery," Safran said. "We are fully supportive of that journey they are on right now. When the time is right, when they are ready to have that discussion, we will all figure out what’s the best path forward. But right now, they are completely focused on their recovery. And in our conversation with them, in the last couple of months, it feels like they are making enormous progress.”

James Gunn added, “Actors, filmmakers that I work with are going to say things that I agree with, and things that I don’t agree with," but "I can’t be changing my plans all the time because an actor says something that I don’t agree with." Gunn was previously fired and rehired by Marvel for offensive tweets in his past. "At the same token, if someone is doing something that is morally reprehensible, that’s a different story. And we have to take that into account."

Since The Flash exists outside the new, upcoming Gunn DC universe, it remains unknown whether Warner Bros. will keep or replace Miller. According to Muschietti, Miller will not replaced if they're all brought back for another The Flash film. The superhero flick premieres in theaters on June 16, 2023. Until then, we'll keep this story updated if further details emerge.

You Might Also Like

• Kid Cudi Is All Right

• 16 Best Shoe Organizers For Storing and Displaying Your Kicks