It was a huge success when Warner boss David Zaslav announced that director James Gunn and producer Peter Safran would now take charge of the DC franchise. A week after they officially started their jobs, they provided insight into their plans for the first time as part of a virtual meeting. And don’t worry: these didn’t appear in just a week. In the background, the duo had been talking to Zaslav for several months to discuss the terms and conditions of a collaboration and of course there were already plans.
A big story for the DCU – bigger than the MCU!
From the words of Gunn and Safran, it quickly becomes clear that they want to get away from the recent crackdown in DC, where everyone did a little bit of what they wanted. Safran explained that the point is to tell “one big, all-encompassing story” – and by that he doesn’t just mean the movie universe: “a nice big story about movies, series, video games, live action and animation” (quoted from )!
This would mean that the DCU (James Gunn uses this abbreviation to distinguish it from the never-official term DCEU) would even overtake the MCU in terms of “size”. There they already tell a coherent story in cinema films and series, and in addition to live action, they now also have the first animation projects (“Marvel’s What If…”) at their disposal, but video games are still completely independent. They should now also be part of the coherent story in DC.
A big plan for the next 8 to 10 years
The development of the big story is already in full swing, reveals James Gunn. The director, who worked for both Marvel (“Guardians Of The Galaxy” trilogy) and DC (“The Suicide Squad”, “Peacemaker”), gave a glimpse into the first week of the new job:
“We’ve spent the last few days working with a group of the best thinkers in the industry, the best writers in the industry, to develop a plan for the next eight to ten years for what these characters will look like in the cinema, on TV, in. .. Animation and everywhere else in anticipation.”
The goal is clear. It’s about “making DC as big as possible and making it the way it should be,” said James Gunn.
Not only Batman, but also Bat-Mite – room for obscure characters
James Gunn also revealed that several characters were being discussed for this plan. Of course he loves Superman, of course he loves Batman and he loves their interaction, their similarities and their contradictions. Both will play a key role in the new DCEU. After all, it was also important for Warner boss David Zaslav that the two world-famous DC heroes were regularly present.
But Gunn also stated that he likes obscure characters. As an example, he cited the superhero group Metal Men, a sextet of robots with different characteristics created by a scientist. He also mentioned Bat-Mite, a huge Batman fan from another dimension who desperately wants to emulate and help his favorite hero, but mostly gets on his nerves. Such figures should also find their place in the new DC plan.
What does that mean for “The Batman 2”, “Joker 2” & Co.?
Characters like Aquaman by Jason Momoa, Superman by Henry Cavill, Wonder Woman by Gal Gadot, Shazam by Zachary Levi, Harley Quinn by Margot Robbie or Black Adam by Dwayne Johnson are under the new leadership of Gunn and Safran and become part of their grand scheme . The stories of these characters, which developed after the disappointing ending of “Justice League“ recently a bit further apart, are being brought closer together again.
The question is what happens to projects that fall outside the previous DCEU – like “The Batman” with Robert Pattinson or “Joker” with Joaquin Phoenix. Both films have a sequel. Gunn and Safran did not talk about these titles at all during the presentation, which surprised the fans.
In the past, insiders have reported that The Batman 2 and Joker 2 will be made outside the scope of DC and will instead remain under the umbrella of the mainstream theater department, run by veteran duo Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy.
Gunn contradicted this when asked by a fan of the short message service Mastodon. All DC titles are therefore under the control of Gunn and Safran. Batman director Matt Reeves was also one of the first people he spoke to on the phone after announcing his new role.
Still, we’re pretty sure these projects aren’t set in the new universe Gunn and Safran are creating. So don’t expect Robert Pattinson’s Batman and Henry Cavill’s Superman to team up to stop the Joaquin Phoenix Joker.
Nevertheless, DC fans should now be on the lookout for what Gunn and Safran have in store for them – albeit with some skepticism about whether it’s all really happening. In recent years, DC plans have been repeatedly jettisoned by numerous management changes.
By the way, the next DC feature film is “Shazam! 2 – Fury Of The Gods” (Theatrical release: March 16, 2023). But of course, it was made without any input from Gunn and Safran. first films of their grand plan see the light of day.
Author: Bjorn Becher
Source : Film Starts
I’m Jamie Bowen, a dedicated and passionate news writer for 24 News Reporters. My specialty is covering the automotive industry, but I also enjoy writing about a wide range of other topics such as business and politics. I believe in providing my readers with accurate information while entertaining them with engaging content.
