The Flash

RELEASED 4 Nov 19901h 34m★ 6.5 TMDB

A laboratory accident endows a police scientist with the ability to move at superhuman speed which he uses to battle a menacing gang as a superhero.

WATCH NOTE

Video release of the feature-length pilot of The Flash (1990–1991), starring John Wesley Shipp. The same story opens the television series; choose either presentation of the pilot to avoid repeating it, then continue with the remaining series episodes. No earlier DC adaptation is required. VideoHound and Rotten Tomatoes list 94 minutes; Apple's current episode presentation lists 89 minutes. The pilot first aired September 20, 1990; the original VHS release date remains unverified.

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1 title to watch before The Flash — 17h 58m in total.

The FlashOptional background17h 58m★ 7.4
A separate adaptation of The Flash and Iris West; useful for comparison, but unrelated to The Flash’s story continuity.

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How this title is selected

Story prerequisites are curated. Likely prerequisites are inferred from sequel numbering or explicit synopsis references. Recommendations are earlier stories in the same continuity; background picks are separate adaptations. Series lists cover whole shows, not an episode-by-episode watch order.

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Where it fits in the DC universe

The Flash is title 34 of 63 in our Live-action Elseworlds viewing sequence. Independent films and television adaptations, each with their own starting point. This is a collection of separate adaptations, rather than a single continuous story.

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