7 'Unadaptable' Comic Book Storylines (That Are Already Becoming Movies)

7. Flashpoint

Flashpoint DC
DC Comics

When it was announced that the upcoming Flash solo film would be titled Flashpoint, DC fans were sent into a flurry of speculation. While it could be the case that the title behind Barry Allen's solo movie debut could be just that, a title, the likelihood is that it's a hint towards the film's narrative direction, which - if indeed a Flashpoint adaptation - will no doubt involve time travel, dimension-hopping, and all the rest of it.

Intrinsic to the story of Flashpoint is the concept of a 'multiverse', contained within the wider DC Universe itself. There are fifty-two worlds in the multiverse, complete with their own unique versions of DC's iconic cast of characters. That's a pretty wild concept to introduce into the DCEU, especially since at the end of Flashpoint the entire universe rebooted into the New 52; could it be the case that DC are rebooting their universe already?

It's unlikely, but still, Flashpoint is a very ambitious story to adapt to the big screen. And what WB have seemingly forgotten is that, while the world of Flashpoint was critically well-received (particularly the stuff involving Batman), the actual storyline wasn't. So what you're left with, in essence, is a story that's unpopular, with a premise that's convoluted, situated within the context of a burgeoning (and maligned) cinematic universe.

It's an odd choice, to say the least. Especially when there are so many Flash stories out there that would make cracking solo films in their own right.

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Content Producer/Presenter

WhatCulture's very own resident movie guy, Ewan has been working in the content creation biz for over 10 years now, having started as a freelance contributor to WhatCulture Gaming all the way back in 2015. After graduating with a First-Class Honours in History from Northumbria University in 2017 (where he won a prize for a totally killer dissertation on the Watergate years), Ewan took on the role of Comics Editor at WhatCulture and quickly developed WhatCulture Comics into one of the biggest superhero-focused channels on YouTube. He followed this with a brief hiatus at Screen Rant in 2021, where he worked across the Gaming and Film sections as a writer and editor, before returning to WhatCulture as a Senior Content Producer / Presenter in 2023. He started his own podcast, We Love Dad Movies, in 2022, and has contributed several written pieces to the Eisner-nominated comics website Shelfdust as well. In his current role, Ewan incorporates his love of cinema, comic books, and history into written pieces and video essays for WhatCulture's Film & TV channel, as well as WhatCulture Gaming and WhatCulture Horror, with a particular focus on nineties-era Dad Movies, old school Westerns, and Golden Age Hollywood Noir. John Carpenter is his fave, and he thinks Batman Beyond should never have been cancelled. If that's your vibe, you'll probably like his stuff.