DC/WB Films/Worlds (No Spoilers)

[Hypo]

TV Line just revealed that the Black Canary movie is in development at HBO MAX.

It doesn't make sense since Discovery announce that they wouldn't be making any movies for HBO Max anymore.

The article also includes tweets that Jurnee Smollet made when the movie was first announced. That was last year. She hasn't posted or tweeted in months about the movie.
Deadline, Variety, or The Hollywood Reporter ( which I consider more reliable sources) didn't mention in their articles that the movie was going forward either. I think this TV line article is fake.

To be clear the tvline report is citing a spokesperson from Warner Bros directly not just unnamed sources:

TVLine: Black Canary Standalone Movie Still in Development at HBO Max

In the wake of Warner Bros. Discovery abruptly pulling the plug on the nearly complete, Leslie Grace-starring Batgirl movie, a spokesperson for Warner Bros. Pictures confirms for TVLine that the Black Canary standalone movie that was first announced a year ago remains in development at the streamer.

There's also a report that the GLC series is still happening, which recent actions and news with HBO Max does not support.

My hunch is that WBD won't officially cancel any DC projects until the Batgirl news dies down and they have a firm plan in place for their future filmverse. They can keep GLC and Black Canary "in development" forever.

The GL report is from THR:

DC’s ‘Strange Adventures’ Scrapped at HBO Max

Green Lantern remains on track at the streamer, sources say, with Finn Wittrock and Jeremy Irvine set to star and Lee Toland Krieger (Superman & Lois, You) on board to direct the first two episodes. Sources say all involved are taking their time with the effects-heavy show — the priciest series Berlanti Productions has ever mounted — in order to get it right. (Berlanti co-wrote the screenplay for the 2011 Green Lantern feature film, which was panned by critics and considered a flop, grossing $219 million worldwide against a $200 million budget.)

EDIT: TVLine also saying the same thing re: GL per a HBO Max spokesperson.

[Refrax5]

Thanks, that’s not saying they will or even that anyone at WBD wants to however. But their plan to keep quiet and hope this blows over has clearly failed, the media is watching Ezra like a hawk and every fuckup they make is going to get an article. They are absolutely going to be asking Keaton and Calle for comment about Miller during the press tour, and God only knows how things will unfold if WBD actually tries to get Ezra out there lol

A lot of those press tour appearances have pre-approved questions.

[Serpico Jones]

Perhaps Zaslav is getting cold feet about all the cancellations?

[skyvolt2000]

I can't think even Zaslav wants the heat for canceling Sesame Street.

Don't let Disney or Netflix swoop in to buy the rights.

[Serpico Jones]

THR reports DC executives were extremely upset with David Zaslav’s comments last week. His decision to cancel Batgirl and the comments he made during the investor call left DC executives “pissed”. THR also confirmed The Flash would lead into a Crisis on Infinite Earths mega event film. Development on that film as well as JJ Abrams’ Superman film has slowed to a crawl.

Ezra Miller participated in The Flash reshoots this summer without incident. The plan is for the movie to still be released in theaters but WBD “is currently evaluating all options”.

[WebLurker]

My hunch is that WBD won't officially cancel any DC projects until the Batgirl news dies down and they have a firm plan in place for their future filmverse.

Wonder if it will? (Logic would dictate that it will eventually go away, but we've seem some fans remain vocal long after the oxygen was cut off.)

[Vordan]

THR reports DC executives were extremely upset with David Zaslav’s comments last week. His decision to cancel Batgirl and the comments he made during the investor call left DC executives “pissed”. THR also confirmed The Flash would lead into a Crisis on Infinite Earths mega event film. Development on that film as well as JJ Abrams’ Superman film has slowed to a crawl.

Ezra Miller participated in The Flash reshoots this summer without incident. The plan is for the movie to still be released in theaters but WBD “is currently evaluating all options”.

https://out.reddit.com/t3_wklt6u?app...-1235196017%2F

Honestly it sounds like the only reason we haven’t gotten hit with more cancellations is because Zaslav hasn’t found his new DC guy and Hamada hasn’t left yet. Expect another wave of cancellations once that happens.

[Serpico Jones]

Also, Black Adam tested with a new post credits scene in June. The scene “introduced a new element to Dwayne Johnson’s place in the DC universe”.

[Frontier]

Seems like DC Movie News is as all over the place as ever.

[Vordan]

Also, Black Adam tested with a new post credits scene in June. The scene “introduced a new element to Dwayne Johnson’s place in the DC universe”.

Pretty sure that’s referring to the Superman tease at the end.

[Guy_McNichts]

THR reports DC executives were extremely upset with David Zaslav’s comments last week. His decision to cancel Batgirl and the comments he made during the investor call left DC executives “pissed”. THR also confirmed The Flash would lead into a Crisis on Infinite Earths mega event film. Development on that film as well as JJ Abrams’ Superman film has slowed to a crawl.

[The Kid]

https://out.reddit.com/t3_wklt6u?app...-1235196017%2F

Honestly it sounds like the only reason we haven’t gotten hit with more cancellations is because Zaslav hasn’t found his new DC guy and Hamada hasn’t left yet. Expect another wave of cancellations once that happens.

Honestly, they should use Flash as an excuse to do a full reboot but sunk cost fallacy will keep from making this decision and as a result, the DCEU will continue to be this weird beats no is particularly enthusiastic for

[Vordan]

Honestly, they should use Flash as an excuse to do a full reboot but sunk cost fallacy will keep from making this decision and as a result, the DCEU will continue to be this weird beats no is particularly enthusiastic for

The DCEU is the greatest example of sunken cost fallacy ever created. Instead of making the hard call to reboot and start over they just keep going

[OOPS]

Honestly, they should use Flash as an excuse to do a full reboot but sunk cost fallacy will keep from making this decision and as a result, the DCEU will continue to be this weird beats no is particularly enthusiastic for

I don't know. At this point my suspicion is contracts are playing a role. Remember Johannson sued when Black Widow went direct to streaming because of her contract wording. If any of people involved having similar wording, WB maybe required to release unless specific circumstances exist. This would be different from a straight to streaming situation where release was never the plan for the film.

[Myskin]

But the thing none of these studios realize is that Marvel got off to a somewhat shaky start before Avengers kind of brought everything together. With the exception of Iron Man and Iron Man 2 (the latter of which, while financially successful, was not a critical or fan darling), the other three movies in Phase 1 were only moderately successful commercially and from a fan & critical response. But Marvel stayed patient and pushed everything towards Avengers. The rest was of course history, and it's changed the landscape for movies ever since.

If you're not patient and not willing to weather the initial storm, then you're not going to succeed. A shared universe approach is fine, but you have to understand not every film will make $1 billion out the gate. It took Marvel a few years to get to that point. You also need good writing and a figurehead who will push things in the right direction.

I agree on these points. I would also add a couple of things:
When and if DC finally finds the right direction for a shared universe, they will also have to face at least one more problem - an entire, pre-existing decade (or 15 years) of Marvel movies which will have already explored a lot of, if not all, the possible directions a superhero/sci-fi movie may go for. We had the big epic, the time travel, the comedy, the surreal takes à la Wandavision/Legion, the romcom, the horror, the multiverse, et cetera. Which means that for them it will be EVEN more difficult not to look as Marvel wannabes. Let's say that the Flash movie is finally released in a year or so. Well, provided that Ezra Miller's reputation won't have damaged the flick beyond repair and provided that by then viewers won't have the entire movie spoiled for them on social networks (the spoilers are already everywhere and it's quite easy to find them), the real question IMHO is how people will find it interesting to watch a movie entirely based on doppelgangers from alternate universe and nostalgia for previous, popular movies AFTER No Way Home, AFTER Multiverse of Madness, AFTER Wandavision, and AFTER (or during) an entire Marvel phase entirely focused on alternate timelines. With one additional flaw: in the movies the character of the Flash is barely a character at all. He has no background, no cast, no characterization. So what is the point of watching a movie which revolves entirely around themes which other movies have already explored (and probably in a more interesting way)?

There is a series of possible strategies WBD could implement, but all of them require efforts and a vision no one at WBD currently has. One possible direction - the one I'd like them to go for, personally speaking - would be to make very stylized, creative series of movies each in their own separate universe and with very reliable people at helm. Marvel movies all look the same (with some vaguely different flavors, ok), so why not go the opposite way? A George Miller or Edgar Wright Superman movie, for example, could be very interesting, as long as they give the director more or less free rein and they don't try to put the character in the same universe as Batman. Or they could just start making animated movies, but - again - they should go with very original and unique takes, something along the lines of Tim Miller's Love Death and Robots series. And even in that case they should be forced to face the competition of the Spider-Verse movies, which all look quite original in comparison to stuff like Super-pets.

Some people may argue that WBD just wants the money and are not interested in looking original or particularly creative, so they won't care. Well, this is only partly true. If they find the right release window, even their bad movies can be a success, but the problem is that in the mid-term this type of decisions just hurts the brand. People tend to forget that Suicide Squad was released during a very accurately chosen time window and the movie was one of the DCEU's big hits. The problem is that a couple of years later people only remembered Jared Leto's ridiculous grilled teeth, the Enchantress' laughable belly dance and the huge plot holes. So when Gunn's The Suicide Squad was released it was a huge flop for a series of reasons, including the fact that it was a sequel to a movie many viewers considered a joke.

This is actually a huge problem with many Hollywood studios right now - the fact that producers have become more or less cash grabbers entirely focused on making as much money as possible in the first two weeks of theatrical screenings (Jason Kilar did even worse with his idiotic double release choice, but I won't delve into that). But the problem is that in the long term other directions may prove more successful or advantageous. George Miller's Mad Max Fury Road was not a huge hit when it was released, but it got a lot of Oscars, it was critically acclaimed, they made like two-three different versions of it for a Blu-Ray edition which sold a lot, and they are planning to create an entire series on it. Plus: it is a culturally significant movie which everyone remembers fondly and recognizes, it is constantly quoted, copied and referred to and it gave the studio a lot of prestige. In the long term, making a significant, well-done movie is more useful than making a movie everyone will forget in one year, or will remember as a laughingstock.

It's not that Disney/Marvel made excellent or 100% original movies, but one of their winning cards is that they didn't make horrible movies, either. They are considered reliable (and justly so). So Iron Man 1 was a moderate success, but people decided to trust Disney and their following movies were increasingly more successful. But it took time and efforts. On the contrary, WB was doomed from the very beginning, when MOS was released and didn't actually convince the audience nor the critics.

I'd also like to say that I more or less agree with Mark Waid's position on the matter, when he said that it should have taken years for DC to release a movie about an obscure property like Suicide Squad, before establishing themselves as a recognizable brand for movie-goers. Personally speaking, I can't understand the mindset behind stuff like the Black Canary movie. Who that project is supposed to be for and what the reasoning behind it is is beyond my understanding.