- Ezra Miller has been exhibiting troubling behavior since 2019, according to an Insider report.
- The actor has reportedly jeopardized their future as the Marvel superhero The Flash.
- Miller said they are seeking help for “complex mental health issues.”
In August, “The Flash” star Ezra Miller announced they were seeking treatment for “complex mental health issues,” as reported by Variety.
It was the latest in a series of concerning headlines about the star, who has helmed major blockbusters including “The Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them” films in addition to acting as superhero The Flash in the Justice League franchise.
The actor has been arrested and separately accused of grooming a minor. It has caused Hollywood to speculate about their future in DC’s cinematic universe.
Below is a complete timeline of the controversy surrounding Miller.
Fall 2019: Miller started exhibiting ‘disturbing’ behavior on a movie set
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In an investigative report into Miller’s behavior by Insider reporters Melkorka Licea and Katie Warren published in early August, crew members on the feminist thriller “Asking For It” (who preferred to remain anonymous) said they noticed Miller behaving erratically on set in fall 2019.
The sources said the actor would often wear “long robes, a cape, and a unicorn head despite scorching temperatures” that were not part of the actor’s wardrobe. A production member also said their mental state on set seemed “scattered.”
More worrying on-set behavior continued a few months later on the limited series “The Stand.”
An extra named Kevin Armstrong told Insider that Miller “incessantly screeched, spit, and interrupted the director by screaming during filming.” Armstrong said that when he complained, he was told Miller was method acting, but a former associate of Miller’s told Insider that their behavior escalated to the point where “people on set were not feeling safe.”
February and March 2020: Miller invited guests to an Airbnb in Iceland that one person described as a ‘commune’
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When production on their movie “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore” shut down in London because of COVID-19, Miller went to Iceland.
They rented an Airbnb in the Reykjavík suburb of Kópavogur and invited artists, spiritual advisers, and friends to stay there. A woman who visited told Insider the residence resembled a “commune.”
“I felt like everyone was hypnotized,” she added, noting that guests seemed “enamored” by Miller and were “hanging on their every word.”
Other guests of the Airbnb told Insider that Miller would often give long speeches about spirituality to their guests and claimed that they had supernatural powers. Their spiritual adviser and personal assistant Jasper Young Bear told some Icelandic residents that he cut off at least one of his fingers during a ritual ceremony, according to Insider’s report.
Several people told Insider that Miller often exhibited mood swings and would get angry with guests who wanted to leave the Airbnb.
April 2020: A video of Miller appearing to choke a woman outside of a bar in Iceland went viral
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In April 2020, a video of Miller appearing to choke a woman outside of a bar in Iceland called Prikið Kaffihús went viral. No charges were ever filed by authorities after the incident and neither Miller nor their representatives have ever given a statement about the encounter. (Representatives for Miller didn’t immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment in July.)
The woman who Miller appeared to choke later told Variety in July that she thought their interaction was “just fun and games” at first.
She told Variety that after joking with the actor that she could take Miller in a fight, the situation escalated. Miller took the jokes about a fight seriously, according to the woman, and she said Miller suddenly got “on top of me, choking me, still screaming in my face if I want to fight.”
The woman who accused Miller of placing her in the chokehold reported the incident to police at the time, as confirmed by Variety, but she did not press charges.
April 2020: Reports of troubling behavior continued at Iceland’s Hótel Laugarbakki
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Later in April, as Insider reported, Miller went to Iceland’s Hótel Laugarbakki to record music. They invited local musicians to spend time with them. A young woman, who was 18 at the time, told Insider that she became involved with Miller on the first night.
The woman said she spent six days with Miller and experienced their unpredictable mood swings. She said they would say they loved her one minute and the next call her “fucking disgusting.”
“There was a lot of psychological abuse,” the young woman said.
She said Miller eventually became preoccupied with her ability to breed. The woman went back to Reykjavík with Miller and when she got home, her concerned roommate gave her literature on cults and said that what she was reading was “the exact same thing that I was in with Ezra.”
March and April 2022: They got into legal trouble in Hawai’i
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Miller made headlines in March and April of 2022 because they were arrested several times while staying in Hawai’i. In mid-March, they were cited for obstructing a highway, per The Hollywood Reporter. Police said they were “uncooperative and refused to leave the area and continued to obstruct a sidewalk,” the site reported.
Later that month, Miller was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct for their behavior at a karaoke bar in Hawai’i. According to a post from the Hawai’i Police department on Facebook, Miller became “agitated” when patrons began singing.
“Miller began yelling obscenities and at one point grabbed the microphone from a 23-year-old woman singing karaoke (disorderly conduct offense) and later lunged at a 32-year-old man playing darts (harassment offense),” the statement read in part.
Miller’s bail was set at $500, which was paid, and they were later released, police said.
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The day after the incident at the bar, on March 29, a couple filed (and eventually dropped) a restraining order against Miller, alleging the actor had broken into their home, threatened to kill them, and stolen a passport and wallet from them, per a KITV 4 ABC report.
In April, Miller was again arrested in Hawai’i on charges of second-degree assault when they allegedly refused to leave a residence. Police told THR that Miller “became irate after being asked to leave and reportedly threw a chair, striking a 26-year-old female on the forehead, resulting in an approximate half-inch cut.”
May and June 2022: Protective orders against Miller are granted
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For Insider’s report published in August, reporters spoke to Sara Jumping Eagle and Chase Iron Eyes, parents of Tokata Iron Eyes, who met Miller at the age of 12 and stayed in touch with the “Fantastic Beasts” actor. Tokata enrolled in Bard College at Simon’s Rock, which is less than two hours from Miller’s Vermont farm.
Tokata dropped out of college in December 2021 and began to travel with Miller. In May 2022, Chase and Jumping Eagle learned the pair were in Los Angeles and traveled to bring Tokata, then 18, home. The couple told Insider that when they “begged” Tokata to come home, Miller called an Uber and demanded Tokata leave with them.
Jumping Eagle said that when she tried to reach into the car to talk to Tokata, Miller “slammed the door on Jumping Eagle’s arms so hard she had to be treated at an urgent-care clinic,” per Insider’s report. Insider viewed medical records that confirm Jumping Eagle’s account of her injuries. Miller and Tokata left the scene in the Uber and Chase and Jumping Eagle were unsure they’d see Tokata again.
In a text message to Insider, Tokata said they asked Miller to call the Uber.
Warner Bros.
After the incident, in early June, Tokata’s parents filed and were granted a restraining order by the Standing Rock Sioux tribal court in North Dakota, their tribal court that operates outside of the US court system. Per a Los Angeles Times report, authorities couldn’t “locate or serve” Miller.
According to the Los Angeles Times, the order required Miller to stay away from Iron Eyes and Jumping Eagle for 30 days, and keep “100 yards away from the family’s residence.”
“Ezra uses violence, intimidation, threat of violence, fear, paranoia, delusions, and drugs to hold sway over a young adolescent,” the protection order said, per the Los Angeles Times. Tokata, though an adult in the eyes of US Law, was considered a minor in tribal courts.
Around this time, Tokata appeared in a video on social media and said “My choices are my own.”
Separately in June, a judge in Massachusetts granted the mother of a 12-year-old an order of protection on behalf of her child. According to THR, the decision stated that the protection was granted because there was evidence to support a “substantial likelihood of immediate danger of harassment.”
Early August 2022: Miller’s legal troubles continued in Vermont
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In early August 2022, Miller was charged with felony burglary in Vermont and accused of taking “several bottles of alcohol” from an unoccupied residence in May.
Also in August, police attempted to serve a 25-year-old mother with three young children with an emergency order “demanding” that the children be removed from Miller’s home and her care, THR reported. According to the report, Miller said that they hadn’t lived with the woman “for months” but authorities believed she was evading service. Neighbors said the mother and children were in danger because of unsecured guns Miller kept on their Vermont property.
August 2022: Miller releases a statement saying they are seeking help and reportedly hopes to move forward with Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
In mid-August 2022, Miller released a statement saying they’re seeking help for “complex mental health issues,” Variety first reported.
“Having recently gone through a time of intense crisis, I now understand that I am suffering complex mental health issues and have begun ongoing treatment,” the statement read.
“I want to apologize to everyone that I have alarmed and upset with my past behavior,” added Miller, per the outlet. “I am committed to doing the necessary work to get back to a healthy, safe, and productive stage in my life.”
As Miller’s behavior was becoming increasingly erratic, his future as the DC superhero The Flash was questioned by the media. On August 26, THR reported that Miller and their agent Scott Metzger met with Warner Bros. film chairs Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy on August 24 to discuss how Miller could “stay on course for ‘The Flash’s’ June 23, 2023, release date” and “reaffirm their commitment to the movie as well as apologize for bringing negative attention to the production and the company.”
Sources told the site that Miller agreed to seek help after learning that there was a possibility the film’s release would be canceled. A source told THR that Miller cared about the franchise and the Flash is “one of their favorite characters to play.”
