Update on DC Comics films from The Hollywood Reporter

[Out Of My Vulcan Mind]

You can read the full story from The Hollywood Reporter here.

Highlights:

Among the projects on front burners:

-- "The Losers," an action-adventure drama starring Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Zoe Saldana and Chris Evans, begins principal photography this week in Puerto Rico.

-- "Jonah Hex," a supernatural Western starring Josh Brolin, Megan Fox and John Malkovich, recently wrapped production in Louisiana.

-- "The Green Lantern," Warners' next big superhero tentpole, is set to star Ryan Reynolds after a long search.

-- Fox has picked up the TV series "Human Target," starring Mark Valley, for the fall.

-- And, in a rare example of a film project that has ventured off the Warners reservation, DC has set up "Red," a spy thriller to star Bruce Willis, at Summit.

To bring competing approaches into sync, Levitz and DC's Los Angeles-based film exec Gregory Noveck have overseen a reorganization of the development slate. While Warners execs still drive the creative side, DC now has more input, making it an actual participant in the shaping of material.

"The creative process is by and large a true partnership," Noveck said. "They'll ask us a ton of questions, and we'll give a ton of answers. We will talk back and forth. We'll discuss writers and talent, but ultimately it's their decision."

This past fall, Warners quietly hired three of DC's biggest writers -- Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison and Marv Wolfman -- to act as consultants and writers for its superhero line of movies. The move involved taking back the reins on projects being handled by such producers as Charles Roven ("The Flash") and Akiva Goldsman ("Teen Titans").

Some agents and scribes grumbled about being forced to work with the consultants, never mind that Johns started his career as a assistant to "Superman" director Richard Donner or that Wolfman has worked in animation since the 1980s.

The moves have begun to pay off. Johns worked up a new treatment for a "Flash" script, being written by Dan Mazeau; Johns will act in a producer capacity on the project, which has not attached a director.

The projects Morrison and Wolfman are working on are in the early stages at Warners, whose execs declined to comment.

The process involves one writer taking point, though the trio do collaborate on projects, reading one another's materials while hashing out a story that will be at once accessible to nonfans yet still adhere to each character's long history. The writers also work in tandem with producers, writers and the Warners execs overseeing the projects, showing them treatments and providing notes on scripts.

Meanwhile, other superhero projects are moving forward at Warners.

The studio is taking pitches on sci-fi hero Adam Strange and the underwater-breathing hero "Aquaman," to be produced by Leonardo DiCaprio and his Appian Way shingle.

Also in the pipeline: "Bizarro Superman" being written by "Galaxy Quest" scribes David Howard and Robert Gordon; a sequel to "Constantine," with Goldsman and Erwin Stoff producing; two concurrent Green Arrow projects, an origin story and a prison-set one titled "Super Max"; and "Shazam," which was set up at New Line but has moved to Warners, with Pete Segal attached to direct.

Not that all the stars in the DC firmament are aligned yet.

Warners and DC still haven't figured out how to translate "Wonder Woman" to the big screen. In part, that failure reflects the difficulties DC has had turning out a popular Wonder Women comic. Morrison, during a recent Q&A with Clive Barker at Los Angeles' Meltdown Comics, admitted he didn't have a complete handle on the character when he was writing the comic "Final Crisis."

Also, ever since Bryan Singer's 2006's "Superman Returns," a new Superman has been in limbo.

"Our hope is to develop a Superman property and to try again," Warner Bros. Entertainment president Alan Horn said in April. "What hurt us is that the reviews and so on for the Superman movie did not get the kind of critical acclaim that Batman got, and we have other issues with Superman that concern us."

 

[Mr Light]

I'm very happy to hear Geoff Johns has an influence on the forthcoming DCU movies. Did he have any hold on the Green Lantern movie? He should have written the damn thing

 

[Broccoli]

Wait...wait...wait.

Bizzaro Superman: The Movie?

 

[Out Of My Vulcan Mind]

I'm very happy to hear Geoff Johns has an influence on the forthcoming DCU movies. Did he have any hold on the Green Lantern movie? He should have written the damn thing

I believe the first draft was completed before Johns was signed as a consultant, but Marc Guggenheim said that they consulted with Johns and got his input - it's not quite clear whether he was talking about the first draft or subsequent drafts after Johns was signed by Warners. Probably the latter.

 

[the Dagman]

Wait...wait...wait.

Bizzaro Superman: The Movie?

The one movie where bad reviews can be thought of as critical acclaim!

"Bizarro Superman am so bad! It is worst movie ever!" - Bizarro Ebert

 

[melancholymecha]

The projects Morrison and Wolfman are working on are in the early stages at Warners, whose execs declined to comment.

rumor is that the Morrison project is the NIN Year Zero movie/series...

 

[Temis the Vorta]

The projects Morrison and Wolfman are working on are in the early stages at Warners, whose execs declined to comment.

rumor is that the Morrison project is the NIN Year Zero movie/series...

Still kickin'? Cool!

I'm more of a Marvel partisan but The Losers and Jonah Hex sound good.

The studio is taking pitches on sci-fi hero Adam Strange and the underwater-breathing hero "Aquaman," to be produced by Leonardo DiCaprio and his Appian Way shingle.

Adrian Grenier is available...

 

[JacksonArcher]

Ha! Maybe Jeremy Piven can cameo!

Actually Leo DiCaprio as Aquaman would be damn fine casting if DiCaprio takes the part...

 

[melancholymecha]

The projects Morrison and Wolfman are working on are in the early stages at Warners, whose execs declined to comment.

rumor is that the Morrison project is the NIN Year Zero movie/series...

Still kickin'? Cool!

Maybe....

 

[Stevil2001]

I want Super Max.

 

[Broccoli]

Wait...wait...wait.

Bizzaro Superman: The Movie?

The one movie where bad reviews can be thought of as critical acclaim!

"Bizarro Superman am so bad! It is worst movie ever!" - Bizarro Ebert

 

[darkwing_duck1]

You can read the full story from The Hollywood Reporter here.

Highlights:

Also, ever since Bryan Singer's 2006's "Superman Returns," a new Superman has been in limbo.

"Our hope is to develop a Superman property and to try again," Warner Bros. Entertainment president Alan Horn said in April. "What hurt us is that the reviews and so on for the Superman movie did not get the kind of critical acclaim that Batman got, and we have other issues with Superman that concern us."

I'd dearly love to know what those were...

 

[Broccoli]

You can read the full story from The Hollywood Reporter here.

Highlights:

Also, ever since Bryan Singer's 2006's "Superman Returns," a new Superman has been in limbo.

"Our hope is to develop a Superman property and to try again," Warner Bros. Entertainment president Alan Horn said in April. "What hurt us is that the reviews and so on for the Superman movie did not get the kind of critical acclaim that Batman got, and we have other issues with Superman that concern us."

I'd dearly love to know what those were...

There are a bunch of hold ups with the original creators of Superman. There was another thread here somewhere that went over the fact that WB has until 2013 to make a new Superman movie or the rights revert to the original creators or something.

 

[barnaclelapse]

I really do like the sound of that Jonah Hex movie, and the Bruce Willis one might be really good, too.

 

[Captaindemotion]

I'm in two minds as to whether I'd rather see a Green Arrow origins movie or a Supermax one. I have to say, I'm a creature of habit, so I think I'd rather see the origin one first, then Supermax as a sequel. Perhaps they should cast Wentworth Miller in the lead ...

 

[Out Of My Vulcan Mind]

I'm in two minds as to whether I'd rather see a Green Arrow origins movie or a Supermax one. I have to say, I'm a creature of habit, so I think I'd rather see the origin one first, then Supermax as a sequel. Perhaps they should cast Wentworth Miller in the lead ...

Miller's Prison Break experience aside, Bradley Cooper is the man I'd like to see play Green Arrow.

 

[Captaindemotion]

^ Maybe having lost out on the other Green DC hero, Cooper will get this one. I've only seen him in The Hangover, liked him a lot in it, but have no idea whether or not he's any good in a dramatic role. I'm sure he's fine, though - they could do worse.

I wasn't entirely serious about Miller, btw (though, again, they could do worse) - just a Prison Break nod, as you surmised. Might Josh Holloway be a good GA?

 

[darkwing_duck1]

I'm sorry, but someone at DC is smoking funny leaves if they think Jonah Hex is going to be a major draw. He's a Z-list character who only the most die-hard readers have even HEARD about.

I'd be much more interested in a Superboy movie featuring Kon-El (BEFORE all the retcons about him having Luthor's genes, et al), or a new Supergirl film.

 

[Shazam!]

and we have other issues with Superman that concern us."

I'd dearly love to know what those were...

I think it's the fact that nobody at WB seems to understand the Superman character at all.

 

[Greg Cox]

I'm sorry, but someone at DC is smoking funny leaves if they think Jonah Hex is going to be a major draw. He's a Z-list character who only the most die-hard readers have even HEARD about.

Name recognition value is not always the deciding factor. Look at BLADE or THE MASK or HELLBOY. Heck, most people don't even know that MEN IN BLACK was based on an obscure comic book.

If people think JONAH HEX looks cool, they'll go see it--even if they've never heard of the comic book. Warner will probably market it as a hip, supernatural Western starring Megan Fox, not a comic book movie.