James Gunn Gets Roasted After Fans Catch Rick Flag Sr. Comic Book Mistake Amid SUPERGIRL Backlash
It's been a rough stretch for James Gunn on social media. As conversations continue surrounding the release of Supergirl, the DC Studios co-CEO found himself trending for an entirely different reason after comic book fans spotted a mistake in one of his recent posts about Rick Flag Sr.
The error didn't take long to spread, and fans were quick to pile on while the latest DC movie continues to generate mixed reactions.
Gunn took to X to celebrate Rick Flag Sr., who is played by Frank Grillo in the live-action DC Universe and the animated series Creature Commandos. Along with praising the character, Gunn attempted to highlight the comic book history behind him.
He wrote: “Rick Flag Sr. is proof that in a world full of metahumans, a determined human can be one of the toughest people in the room. Especially when he’s played by the one and only Frank Grillo.
“His first comic appearance was in THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD #25, written by Robert Kanigher, with pencils by Ross Andru and inks by Mike Esposito.”
Comic book readers quickly noticed the issue. The Brave and the Bold #25 from 1959 actually marked the first appearance of Rick Flag Jr., not Rick Flag Sr.
The elder Flag made his comic debut decades later in Secret Origins #14, which was published in 1987. The mistake was eventually flagged with a Community Note, giving Gunn another unexpected social media headache.
The timing didn't help either. The discussion arrived just as Supergirl continues to divide audiences. While some fans have embraced the movie, others have been far less enthusiastic.
That frustration spilled over into Gunn's comment section. One user wrote: “Dawg Supergirl is getting nuked and your still talking about Frank Grillo?”
Another fan criticized the direction of DC Studios, posting: “James your blatant inability to evaluate scripts is becoming a problem, we need more eyes on these scripts before they’re greenlit. The days where generic superhero films could survive is over, stop living in 2010!”
A third commenter piled on with: “CEO of dc studios got community noted lmao gunn is on fraud watch until Man of Tomorrow.”
Despite the criticism circulating online, audience reactions haven't been nearly as harsh as some of the social media discourse would suggest. At the time of writing, Supergirl holds a 58% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes, while audiences have been considerably more positive, giving the film a 77%.
Whether this latest social media mishap fades away quickly or becomes another talking point for Gunn's critics remains to be seen. One thing is certain, though. When you're running DC Studios, even a small comic book continuity slip is enough to get the internet talking.