James Gunn is living the good life right now.
The co-CEO of DC Studios is ecstatic about the release of his two passion projects, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3and The Flash. The former was directed by him, while the latter falls under his purview as the DCCU's new commander-in-chief. Nothing anybody says — not even snarky fans with funny comebacks — can thwart his enthusiasm. Just say he has no problem dishing out those one-two punches so convincingly.
When a fan attempted to ridicule the similarities between Ezra Miller's upward gaze in the The Flash teaser and Dwayne Johnson's "Flying Black Adam" meme from Black Adam, it did so.
“Did they do Black Adam as well?” asked one fan, referring to the cinematographer Henry Braham, who Gunn praised for his work on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 and The Flash.
When Gunn replied, "I know it's hard to believe he's not the only person to shoot a person's face bent toward the camera." The fan's clear attempt to shade Gunn (and Braham) for a lack of inventiveness immediately backfired.
Gunn's sucker punch comes following similar references to Johnson's "Flying Black Adam" meme in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Like Ezra Miller's upward gaze, Poulter gazes intently past the camera while in mid-flight, enlarging his forehead in the same manner as Johnson's.
There is no real joke here since Gunn had no involvement whatsoever with the production of Black Adam, and Ezra Miller's upward gaze is different from Johnson's meme (can't say the same for Will Poulter, though)
It's best to make sure that the joke or two is funny, in a world where fans can connect directly with influential artists like Gunn via social media. Otherwise, Gunn will roast you faster than you can say "Barry Allen."