Future of DC Films (DCEU)

[JediJones]

Any chance Zaslav calls up Christopher McQuarrie to revive his ideas for Man of Steel 2 and Green Lantern films? It's baffling that WB found a way to reject working with him in the first place 3 years ago. But since then, Mission Impossible Fallout came out, even more successful than McQuarrie's MI Rogue Nation, and now Top Gun: Maverick is getting stellar reviews and Oscar buzz, with McQuarrie not directing, but co-writing and producing. McQuarrie has done little but work for Tom Cruise for 10 years, but his efforts are clearly tied to this huge late career boom for Cruise.

One of these rumors was that Hal Jordan would be played by Tom Cruise, and he would die and pass the 'ring' to John Stewart in the first film. Which would align perfectly with what Snyder's intentions were for Green Lantern in his universe. And from a marketing perspective, is just a slam dunk to get people to give a GL movie another chance. And while it's unknown if McQuarrie's Man of Steel 2 would align with JL 2 and 3, WB definitely needs a standalone Superman movie series. So with a potential splitting of the timelines, and Dr. Strange 2 finally bringing the idea of 'evil' or 'dark' alternate timeline versions of heroes to comic book movies, it's easy to see how the Knightmare corrupted Superman could still exist along side a standalone Superman film series.

https://cosmicbook.news/superman-christopher-mcquarrie-never-again
https://www.cbr.com/mcquarrie-superman-film-henry-cavill/
https://screenrant.com/superman-green-lantern-movie-christopher-mcquarrie/

 

[Alatar]

Certainly looks like Ezra Miller is a not a well person in the released video of one of those recent arrests. "NFT crypto art?"

 

[Alatar]

"TheWarp" has deleted it's article by Umberto "the Snyder cut is a pipe dream" Gonzalez alleging that fan-made bots may have been responsible for "rigging" the fan favorite and cheer moment academy award wins. Makes me wonder if WBD reached out to them. The Academy already had filters in places to limit no more than 20 tweets per Twitter account, and bot detection software. They're reportedly standing by the results. In a Yahoo News article I read it states a university professor looking at the data suspected possible bots but he also added it was also within the range for what could occur from actual person held accounts.

This hit piece by Gonzalez is the sort of article that one would think WBD would not want only about a week before it's "Upfront" event on May 18th--certainly if they intend to continue the Snyderverse! But also even if not, it's just not good press regardless. I really have to wonder how this all came about. Did someone from the prior WB regime leak essentially fake news to El Maybe? And did WBD's lawyers reach out and threaten litigation? Etc. Inquiring minds want to know!

Edit: It’s back up at the site. But whatever.

 

[Alatar]

Any chance Zaslav calls up Christopher McQuarrie to revive his ideas for Man of Steel 2 and Green Lantern films? It's baffling that WB found a way to reject working with him in the first place 3 years ago. But since then, Mission Impossible Fallout came out, even more successful than McQuarrie's MI Rogue Nation, and now Top Gun: Maverick is getting stellar reviews and Oscar buzz, with McQuarrie not directing, but co-writing and producing. McQuarrie has done little but work for Tom Cruise for 10 years, but his efforts are clearly tied to this huge late career boom for Cruise.

One of these rumors was that Hal Jordan would be played by Tom Cruise, and he would die and pass the 'ring' to John Stewart in the first film. Which would align perfectly with what Snyder's intentions were for Green Lantern in his universe. And from a marketing perspective, is just a slam dunk to get people to give a GL movie another chance. And while it's unknown if McQuarrie's Man of Steel 2 would align with JL 2 and 3, WB definitely needs a standalone Superman movie series. So with a potential splitting of the timelines, and Dr. Strange 2 finally bringing the idea of 'evil' or 'dark' alternate timeline versions of heroes to comic book movies, it's easy to see how the Knightmare corrupted Superman could still exist along side a standalone Superman film series.

https://cosmicbook.news/superman-christopher-mcquarrie-never-again
https://www.cbr.com/mcquarrie-superman-film-henry-cavill/
https://screenrant.com/superman-green-lantern-movie-christopher-mcquarrie/

Yeah, man, this seemed such a no-brainer at the time for WB to proceed with. But to use a play on words, WB evidently ain't got no brains, so it fits! McQuarrie sounds like a superb choice to write and direct a Cavil solo Superman flick.

And hey, while he's at it if he can convince Tom Cruise to play Hal who dies and passes the mantle to John, that would of course be huge. Or who knows? Maybe Tom sticks around as Hal if he wants that gig! Interesting that the rumored cameo of Cruise as Superior Iron man in MOM did not materialize... Who knows, maybe there have been talks... But anyway, I'd enjoy seeing Tom Cruise as Hal.

 

[JediJones]

Yeah, it's a challenge to make a new GL movie that looks different enough and separates itself enough from the Ryan Reynolds one to generate interest. Having a DCEU in a state of popularity again would help, and that requires a new Superman and/or Batman movie to be out there with clear DCEU connections. But having Cruise as Jordan passing the torch to Stewart are two elements that would go a long way to hyping it up. If Top Gun: Maverick is the hit it's shaping up to be, then Cruise as a pilot character becomes even more of a draw.

I saw another article where McQuarrie says WB never turned him down, they just never called him back. I feel like the Abrams deal was what stopped it from happening. WB was probably trying to court Abrams at that time, so they were holding off on telling McQuarrie no, in case Abrams turned them down. Abrams signed up in fall 2019, and articles immediately started talking about if he would do something with Superman. WB may have wanted to hold Superman out there in limbo as an enticement to bring Abrams on board. Of course, Rise of Skywalker came out shortly after WB signed Abrams on. And MI: Fallout came out after WB had talked to McQuarrie. So the results of those two movies basically proved WB backed the wrong horse. There was a reversal of fortune there in terms of which director was more of a Hollywood golden boy.

Then, Abrams clearly decided to pursue this 'black Superman' idea, which was somehow bizarrely leaked to The Hollywood Reporter long before it was ever approved by WB. Which almost makes it seem like the creators of the idea tried to do that to create outside pressure on WB to approve it. Because the mainstream Hollywood press was an extremely favorable outlet to leak such an idea to. But so far, that tactic doesn't seem to have worked to get the idea approved. And with Zaslav now in charge, that idea is as up in the air as it ever was.

The logical move for Zaslav would be to see if he can get McQuarrie back now. McQuarrie's schedule is kind of tied up until MI 8 gets done, but MI 8 could be done well ahead of the summer 2024 release date. It should be done shooting at least a year before the release date. The date was chosen more to space parts 7 and 8 out. McQuarrie might be able to get a Superman script done by early 2024, and then Top Gun director Joseph Kosinski could take the directing reins, aiming for a Christmas 2025 release date (a year without an Avatar sequel scheduled). Also, the way McQuarrie works, he would probably continue working on the script while the movie is in production.

Kosinski has now done movies about flight, heroic rescues and sci-fi including sequels to 1980s films. It's almost a tailor-made resume for a traditional take on Superman. And if Abrams still has to be involved, let him take a producer credit on the movie. Abrams remains a producer on all of McQuarrie's MI movies, but I'm not sure how active a role he has in them. The Superman movie could revive interest in the DCEU and also put in a tease for the Green Lantern movie (post-credit scene with Cruise as Jordan should do it...no reason to hold back his reveal as it will be known through the Hollywood press long before the first GL trailer hits). Then McQuarrie and Cruise could dive into working on the GL movie in late 2024 for a 2026 release.

 

[ironwez20]

Certainly looks like Ezra Miller is a not a well person in the released video of one of those recent arrests. "NFT crypto art?"

Yea what’s up with that guy? He’s acting absolutely bat ****. No pun intended

 

[Alatar]

If he does need professional help I just hope he is getting it!

 

[Alatar]

Yeah, it's a challenge to make a new GL movie that looks different enough and separates itself enough from the Ryan Reynolds one to generate interest. Having a DCEU in a state of popularity again would help, and that requires a new Superman and/or Batman movie to be out there with clear DCEU connections. But having Cruise as Jordan passing the torch to Stewart are two elements that would go a long way to hyping it up. If Top Gun: Maverick is the hit it's shaping up to be, then Cruise as a pilot character becomes even more of a draw.

I saw another article where McQuarrie says WB never turned him down, they just never called him back. I feel like the Abrams deal was what stopped it from happening. WB was probably trying to court Abrams at that time, so they were holding off on telling McQuarrie no, in case Abrams turned them down. Abrams signed up in fall 2019, and articles immediately started talking about if he would do something with Superman. WB may have wanted to hold Superman out there in limbo as an enticement to bring Abrams on board. Of course, Rise of Skywalker came out shortly after WB signed Abrams on. And MI: Fallout came out after WB had talked to McQuarrie. So the results of those two movies basically proved WB backed the wrong horse. There was a reversal of fortune there in terms of which director was more of a Hollywood golden boy.

Then, Abrams clearly decided to pursue this 'black Superman' idea, which was somehow bizarrely leaked to The Hollywood Reporter long before it was ever approved by WB. Which almost makes it seem like the creators of the idea tried to do that to create outside pressure on WB to approve it. Because the mainstream Hollywood press was an extremely favorable outlet to leak such an idea to. But so far, that tactic doesn't seem to have worked to get the idea approved. And with Zaslav now in charge, that idea is as up in the air as it ever was.

The logical move for Zaslav would be to see if he can get McQuarrie back now. McQuarrie's schedule is kind of tied up until MI 8 gets done, but MI 8 could be done well ahead of the summer 2024 release date. It should be done shooting at least a year before the release date. The date was chosen more to space parts 7 and 8 out. McQuarrie might be able to get a Superman script done by early 2024, and then Top Gun director Joseph Kosinski could take the directing reins, aiming for a Christmas 2025 release date (a year without an Avatar sequel scheduled). Also, the way McQuarrie works, he would probably continue working on the script while the movie is in production.

Kosinski has now done movies about flight, heroic rescues and sci-fi including sequels to 1980s films. It's almost a tailor-made resume for a traditional take on Superman. And if Abrams still has to be involved, let him take a producer credit on the movie. Abrams remains a producer on all of McQuarrie's MI movies, but I'm not sure how active a role he has in them. The Superman movie could revive interest in the DCEU and also put in a tease for the Green Lantern movie (post-credit scene with Cruise as Jordan should do it...no reason to hold back his reveal as it will be known through the Hollywood press long before the first GL trailer hits). Then McQuarrie and Cruise could dive into working on the GL movie in late 2024 for a 2026 release.

I’d forgotten about the whole Abrams deal, lol. WB paid him half a billion to provide new content, including films, TV shows, and games. I found it interesting that it was recently reported that when WBD looked at the books they found that WB is currently about $500M in the red!

Do they just write off the investment in Abrams at this point? My thought about Zaslav’s comment praising the success of Joker was that he’s not looking for Abrams to be any sort of creative architect of the core central themes to the DC brand. Rather whatever Abrams comes up with will be ”black label-lite“ or something like that? For example the Coates Superman movie. Like I’m wondering if Abrams’ projects are now just a way to try to recoup some of that loss for the deal WB made with him. But anyway, they paid him a ton of money so they’re going to have to figure out how to use him. The problem is that Zaslav wants a unified vision, and Abrams may not fit well into that.

 

[JediJones]

I kind of doubt they paid him upfront. I think these things usually hinge on if the creator delivers. Probably got some money upfront to 'develop' projects, but when they say the deal is 'worth' such-and-such amount, that could hinge on delivery of product later. There's a site out there showing all the people who've signed a development deal with Netflix, and some of them haven't delivered anything after years, including Patty Jenkins. Also, Abrams' deal wasn't just for DC. Last month they said he's making a Hot Wheels movie for WB. His Wiki says he's doing an HBO series called Demimonde. And there are some other obscure TV shows he did that were produced by WB and came out since the deal was struck. Final reports put the price of his deal at $250m. The deal supposedly expires in or after 2024. Sounds like they won't be getting much for their money though, so Zaslav may have to write a lot of that cash off as a sunk cost.

 

[abake]

So I'm guessing there was no earth-shattering announcement of the return of the Snyderverse?

 

[JediJones]

Abrams is getting scrutinized by the new owners of WB for a "lack of output." It's funny how Zaslav can see everything we as neutral observers can see, while the previous WB leadership seemed utterly clueless and incompetent about the most obvious things.

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/t...overy-puts-pressure-on-j-j-abrams-1235153965/

 

[Victοr]

God, I hope they can all of his projects. Just bring back Del Toro and let him do his damn JL Dark flick with Dan Stevens as JonCon.

 

[JediJones]

Sources say the DC Comics properties have also come under the spotlight. Sources suggest there is some frustration within the halls of Warner Bros. Discovery that Abrams has laid claim to a number of DC characters but has yet to get anything on the air. Sources note Warners has seen scripts for Constantine and the pilot of Madame X.

 

[JediJones]

Walter Hamada's pre-recorded testimony from March in the Depp/Heard trial was played today. He said there were a lot of discussions about Amber and Jason having a lack of chemistry in Aquaman 1. He said 'it took a lot of editing,' picking the right takes, and a 'great score' to make the relationship between Aquaman and Mera work in Aquaman 1, and he thinks it looks like they have 'great chemistry' in the final cut. They considered recasting Mera for part 2 because of the lack of chemistry. He also said Aquaman 2 was written to be a 'buddy comedy' between Aquaman and Orn. The first draft was written in late 2018 and there were a half dozen drafts by 2021. When asked if there were issues with Amber on Aquaman 2, he said "my understanding is the production went very smoothly.

For some reason, the lawyer asked if he had spoken with Zack Snyder about using Amber Heard in Aquaman 2. Hamada laughed and said, "No, I've not had any conversations with Zack Snyder."

 

[Garlador]

Abrams is getting scrutinized by the new owners of WB for a "lack of output." It's funny how Zaslav can see everything we as neutral observers can see, while the previous WB leadership seemed utterly clueless and incompetent about the most obvious things.

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/t...overy-puts-pressure-on-j-j-abrams-1235153965/

The output is a mystery box…

On Aquaman 2, I’m sure WB is waiting for this whole torrid Amber Heard thing to conclude. If she wins, great, she got Rose Tico’d into a cameo. If she loses, cut or replace with minimal effort. I can tell when a studio is hedging their bets.

Unfortunately, they bet hard on Ezra Miller, and despite all the bad PR and petitions to get them removed, they’re sunk deep into that film and the financial cost to recast at this point would be astronomical.

Which is a shame, considering I love The Flash, actually kinda like the new suit, and I’m happy to hear Keaton is returning.

 

[Sachiel]

Did they intentionally make the suit look like like cgi?

 

[LIBBY1957DOG]

 

[Alatar]

Breaking: JJ Abrams to remake BvS set in 1941!

(jk!)

 

[JediJones]

I love the extra brutality in the Wonder Woman previz there. The similarities to what ended up in the movie are definitely more indisputable proof that Snyder and Damon Caro are the ones responsible for the quality of the action scenes in Wonder Woman 1. This is the Twitter link to a cleaner version of the video:

 

[Alatar]

I love the extra brutality in the Wonder Woman previz there. The similarities to what ended up in the movie are definitely more indisputable proof that Snyder and Damon Caro are the ones responsible for the quality of the action scenes in Wonder Woman 1. This is the Twitter link to a cleaner version of the video:

I was disappointed to learn that its not Snyder’s pitch for WW 1854, but rather the previz for 2017 WW. If you read through the thread one of the stunt coordinators confirms it. I don’t have the time or inclination to research it. But it looks like legit clarification. If so it bugs me that people post things like this.

A shame that the actual scene got so watered down from this.