DC Comics' Comic-Con 2013 Announcements

Over the last few days, I’ve been working on this little editorial about whether or not Hollywood is spending way too much on films that perform poorly at the box office; mainly after hearing that ‘R.I.P.D.’, a film with a budget of $130 million, is only set to gross about $17 million. But… something happened today at San Diego Comic Con International and because of it, that first editorial might not happen now because… well, let me just say that the next few years are going to be pretty sweet in regards to comic book films. The news came from DC Comics’ film division, and while only one film was officially confirmed at Comic Con, there are also two films that are reportedly in production. The first film is a crossover that will star arguably the two most famous heroes in DC’s lineup. The second film is the first solo film for a key member of the ‘Justice League’. Finally, the ‘Justice League’ movie that DC has been working on for a few years might finally be coming together.

In terms of films, DC has been having a pretty good year so far. Their main film this year, ‘Man of Steel’, has been performing very well at the box office. It has grossed over $600 million worldwide despite receiving mixed reviews from critics (and partially from audiences as well). Obviously, this has led to DC green-lighting a sequel. Director Zack Snyder and writer David S. Goyer would both return for this new movie and after seeing ‘Man of Steel’, I have the upmost faith in them because, as that film proves, they were the right men for the job. But today, during DC’s Comic-Con press conference, Zack Snyder revealed some major details about this upcoming film, which is now set to come out in 2015. He introduced Harry Lennix (who played Colonel Swanwick in the film) to the stage, where he read a short passage. The passage is as follows…

“I want you to remember, Clark, in all the years to come, in all your most private moments. I want you to remember my hand at your throat. I want you to remember the one man who beat you.”

DC fans should recognize this as a passage from Frank Miller’s highly acclaimed graphic novel, 1986’s ‘The Dark Knight Returns’. So why did they quote a line from a Batman story when this is supposed to be a Superman film? Well, that’s because the next ‘Man of Steel’ film will be a crossover between Superman and Batman. DC fans, rejoice! As mentioned earlier, Snyder will return to direct and stars Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Laurence Fishburne, and Diane Lane will reprise their roles as Superman, Lois Lane, Perry White, and Martha Kent, respectively. As for Batman, seeing how Christian Bale recently confirmed that he will not be involved with any of DC’s future film projects; a new Batman will be cast. However, while a new actor will don the cape and cowl, ‘Dark Knight Trilogy’ director Christopher Nolan and his wife, producer Emma Thomas, will serve as executive producers; this continues Nolan’s run with DC, despite reports that Nolan did not want to be involved with more DC films.

Where do I even begin with this? This has to be one of the most exciting stories to come out in the last few years in terms of comic book films. I’m pretty sure that many comic book fans were anticipating a crossover film between these two icons and even though it was only confirmed today, this is an idea that has been in the works for quite some time. In fact, before Christopher Nolan made ‘Batman Begins’, a Superman/Batman crossover was pitched in 2001 by Andrew Kevin Walker (writer of 1995’s ‘Seven’). Obviously, as we know now, this project never happened but now things have changed, albeit a different team working on it. Another positive thing about this is that this is the perfect place to introduce the actor that will take over for Christian Bale in the role of Batman. But who will DC cast? Back when George Miller was working on a potential ‘Justice League’ film, Armie Hammer was cast as Batman. While that project was cancelled and ‘The Lone Ranger’ is currently performing poorly at the box office, he’s still my top pick for the part.



After this highly anticipated crossover, the next DC film will reportedly be a ‘Flash’ movie, which will come out in 2016. This is the one DC solo superhero film they really needed to make before ‘Justice League’. I know a lot of people are wondering about a possible ‘Wonder Woman’ movie, but I think that a ‘Flash’ movie is a safer bet for DC. Also, in the 70+ years that this character has been around, there has never been a live-action ‘Flash’ movie. Sure, there was a short lived TV series that aired for only one season from 1990 to 1991, and the character made cameo appearances on the show ‘Smallville’, but he has never been in a live-action movie. That means that this character is long overdue for one. As for casting, I’d recommend someone like Bradley Cooper or Ryan Gosling as I feel that either of those two would be a perfect fit for the character.



Speaking of ‘Justice League’, that was the last of the three movies that were revealed to be in production, and this film will hit theaters in 2017. While I certainly am excited for the Batman/Superman crossover, I’d say the ‘Justice League’ news is the most satisfying, because now it is clear that DC is taking their time in developing a Cinematic Universe. If you remember, back in 2012, DC had planned a live-action Justice League film for a 2015 release, so they could directly compete with ‘Avengers 2’ (UPDATE: just confirmed to be titled ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’) but when that initial plan was announced, I feared that DC was just rushing this film into production just so that the movie could come out the same year as ‘Avengers 2’. Keep in mind; at the time that this announcement was made, ‘Man of Steel’ wasn’t even out yet and DC had no other film plans at that point. Thankfully, that did not end up happening (reportedly the first draft of the screenplay was tossed out) and now, thanks to these upcoming DC movies, I’m more at ease about the possibility of a live-action Justice League film.

Before I conclude this editorial, I just want to point something out; in terms of the ‘rivalry’ between Marvel and DC in regards to their films, I mainly lean towards Marvel. I’m not saying that DC’s movies were bad. In fact, for the most part, they have been really good, namely Christopher Nolan’s ‘Dark Knight’ trilogy and ‘Man of Steel’. It’s just that, for the longest time, I feared that DC was going too fast in order to make a Justice League movie that would directly compete with ‘Avengers 2’. But while ‘Avengers 2’ is probably my most anticipated film of 2015 (keep in mind, that’s two years from now), today’s news might change things down the road. After all, why wouldn’t I be excited about a Superman/Batman crossover? Not only that, but this film will be followed by a ‘Flash’ movie in 2016 and a ‘Justice League’ movie in 2017. DC, I have to hand it to you, you finally got on the right track and I eagerly await these next three films. It’s a good day to be a fan of comic book films.