The Flash’s huge Batwoman twist was set up in season 8 of The CW series. It’s been confirmed that Batwoman star Javicia Leslie will return to the Arrowverse in some capacity in The Flash season 9. Details on her role haven’t been officially confirmed, but set photos make it clear she’ll be playing the Arrowverse’s take on Red Death. Thanks to a namedrop in a season 5 episode, it’s no secret that Red Death exists in Barry Allen’s future.
Not only did the Arrowverse already set up Red Death’s debut in a previous story, but it also laid the groundwork for it to use Batwoman as its version of the character. In the comic books, it’s an alternate universe version of Batman who merges with Barry Allen and becomes the evil speedster villain, so while there was originally an assumption that the Arrowverse’s Red Death would be Batman as well, The Flash season 8 secretly suggested otherwise. During a scene set in 2031 in The Flash’s “Armageddon” crossover, Leslie’s Batwoman talked about a device used to deal with a speedster called “The Lady in Red”. In hindsight, it appears this line was a Red Death tease all along, but The Flash cleverly masked it by revealing that the speedster in question is female.
Why The Flash’s Red Death Is Batwoman (Not Batman)
While it may come as a surprise that The Flash has opted to go in this direction with Red Death, it’s not entirely surprising that the series isn’t using Batman. Via Kevin Conroy’s evil Bruce Wayne, the Arrowverse technically did use the Caped Crusader in “Crisis on Infinite Earths”, but this one-off character never suited up nor was he called Batman. It’s long been apparent that there’s only so much that The CW’s shows can do with Batman, which is why the Dark Knight serving as a major villain in The Flash has always felt like a long shot for the show. The show rewriting the Red Death story with Batwoman – who is already a major Arrowverse hero – is a much more feasible scenario, even if it’s less exciting than a proper Batman appearance.
How Will Batwoman Become Red Death In The Flash?
In the comic books, Batman’s path toward becoming Red Death began with the deaths of his allies in Gotham City. Feeling that he needed the Speed Force to become the hero he needed to be, Bruce Wayne sought out Barry and triggered the incident that transformed him into the Red Death. The Arrowverse could easily lean in a similar direction. In the future, tragedies in Batwoman’s life could drive her to attack Barry and steal the Speed Force, believing that she’s the best candidate for its power. If that were to happen, Batwoman could become Red Death and somehow kick off her battle with Team Flash.
The extent of Javicia Leslie’s role in The Flash season 9 remains to be seen, but it’s not outside the realm of possibility that her character is one of season 9’s main villains. It’s expected that Barry will fight Cobalt Blue, but there could certainly be room for more than one major threat in Barry’s final adventures. And if Leslie also reprises her role as Earth-Prime’s Batwoman, The Flash could wind up with a double dose of the character. One could be an ally, whereas the other could be the focus of Team Flash’s next big challenge.
