Is Everyone As Confused As Me About the DCEU?

[calebhernes]

Especially now with Birds of Prey apparently existing in some "alternate timeline"? Does you guys think DC will explain anything or officially announce explanations to an extent? Will we ever see another type of Justice League film?

[exile001]

The DCEU as it was is dead. From now on we'll get movies intended to stand alone, which may or may not reference other/previous DC movies.

Don't worry about trying to fit it into a continuity or overarching narrative, just enjoy each movie as its own thing.

[SecretWarrior]

The DCEU as it was is dead. From now on we'll get movies intended to stand alone, which may or may not reference other/previous DC movies.

Don't worry about trying to fit it into a continuity or overarching narrative, just enjoy each movie as its own thing.

Yeah, they're going the Fox route at this point.

[bat39]

Aquaman, Shazam, WW '84 and Birds of Prey all fit into the DCEU. They may or may not explicitly reference previous DCEU films, but they don't go out of their way to ignore or erase anything either.

Joker is a standalone set in its own universe.

The Batman is the interesting one in that, for all intents and purposes, it looks like a total reboot. Hell, if the rumors about it being set in the 90's are true, it could fit into the Joker timeline. But we're being told that the latter isn't the case, and if its to fit in with the former, some amount of retconning/rebooting looks par for the course.

Then you have the possibility of a future Superman movie with Cavill, which hasn't died yet. That would reinforce the DCEU continuity, whereas a recast Superman takes us further away from DCEU canon. And if we ever get a Flashpoint movie, that may well be the 'fix' they need to get this whole mess sorted out!

[Gaastra]

Don't think they care anymore. If a movie crosses over fine but if not who cares. Like someone said that's fox X-Men where half the films don't line up. Pretty much dc films before the mcu.

[Tzigone]

Aquaman, Shazam, WW '84 and Birds of Prey all fit into the DCEU. They may or may not explicitly reference previous DCEU films, but they don't go out of their way to ignore or erase anything either.

Well, I mean, the WW walking away from the world for a century got erased.

Then you have the possibility of a future Superman movie with Cavill, which hasn't died yet. That would reinforce the DCEU continuity, whereas a recast Superman takes us further away from DCEU canon. And if we ever get a Flashpoint movie, that may well be the 'fix' they need to get this whole mess sorted out!

I don't see another Cavill movie happening, but I wouldn't mind it. Flashpoint - kinda scary to me. They could screw up so much. Problem is that I hate the comic book concept (which wouldn't have to translate to a movie, admittedly) that a hero trying to fix what a villain did is destructive and bad. Heroes undoing the villainous acts of villains should be heroic and triumphant and good, IMO.

But yeah, I feel as others do that any great, overreaching continuity is dead in the water.

[Jim Kelly]

In the first place, the DCEU is a perception invented by the fan press. Warner never called it that. And in the second place, there weren't that many connected movies--really only three: MAN OF STEEL (which was pretty much a stand alone movie itself); BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE (which created the idea that movie Superman could be connected to other heroes); and JUSTICE LEAGUE (which was supposed to launch the connected movie universe but failed to catch on with the audience). The other movies that spun off from those never relied too heavily on the Justice League for their success at the box office--and you don't really have to know about the other movies to enjoy each on their own. So there's really only two movies that depend on this connected universe--BVS and JUSTICE LEAGUE. The other movies are self-explanatory and you can go into them knowing nothing about any other DC movies.

[Vakanai]

Especially now with Birds of Prey apparently existing in some "alternate timeline"? Does you guys think DC will explain anything or officially announce explanations to an extent? Will we ever see another type of Justice League film?

No, not for a long, long, long time. JL bombed so hard WB is probably as wary of it as I would be of a rattlesnake. Heck, a pool full of rattlesnakes. Right now they're just going with what works and don't care so much for the whole continuity or shared universe thing. They probably don't even know what their universe/timeline/multiverse is, and they don't care just as long as it makes profit.

[superduperman]

They keep dragging their feet on Cavill, he's going to be too old to play Superman. I'm torn on whether or not I want the DCEU to survive. They can't do anymore Batman movies in that universe. Snyder insisting on a 50 year old Batman just so he could do his own version of DKR kind of shot them in the foot in the long term. In interviews I've seen, the BOP director is making it pretty clear this is not part of the DCEU. Which is stupid. Then there is Snyder still stirring up **** demanding his stupid half finished JL movie get released for some reason. In short, I don't think they have much of a plan. If they can get Cavill back, then they'll probably make more movies. But I don't see that happening. Everyone else has moved on. Amy Adams has said in interviews that she thinks it's done. What happens if they can't get her back? Plus, how many more can he make, physically? He was 33 when he did MOS. He'll be in his forties by the time they get around to even writing another script unless this happens within the next couple years or so. I think this new Batman movie will be the beginning of another universe and they'll just move on from there.

[astro@work]

They keep dragging their feet on Cavill, he's going to be too old to play Superman. I'm torn on whether or not I want the DCEU to survive. They can't do anymore Batman movies in that universe. Snyder insisting on a 50 year old Batman just so he could do his own version of DKR kind of shot them in the foot in the long term. In interviews I've seen, the BOP director is making it pretty clear this is not part of the DCEU. Which is stupid. Then there is Snyder still stirring up **** demanding his stupid half finished JL movie get released for some reason. In short, I don't think they have much of a plan. If they can get Cavill back, then they'll probably make more movies. But I don't see that happening. Everyone else has moved on. Amy Adams has said in interviews that she thinks it's done. What happens if they can't get her back? Plus, how many more can he make, physically? He was 33 when he did MOS. He'll be in his forties by the time they get around to even writing another script unless this happens within the next couple years or so. I think this new Batman movie will be the beginning of another universe and they'll just move on from there.

While Cavill went on record as saying the role is still is, I have to ask "what role?"

Cavill was great in a poorly written role, so nothing against him, but I don't see ANY plans to produce another Superman appearance. DC movies have been announced through 2022 now, and there aren't any that would hint at a Superman appearance. So all the arguments about who should play Superman are highly theoretical because it would be 2023 at the earliest for another Superman or JLA movie. That would be easily 6 years since his last appearance in Justice League (2017).

As for the BOP and next Suicide Squad sequel being a "different" reality, I would ask whether they even need to be? Did anything really happen in the first film that would be contradicted by the next movies? We know Harley will have broken up with Joker...but does that really contradict anything? (Was there no such thing as breakups in the DCEU before?)

As noted, it's really the Joker and upcoming Batman movies that would seem to require a different universe. But if the Batman movie is set in the 90's, even that would still fit into a shared universe. Did we really learn that much about his past in B v. S or JL? They never showed Dick, Barbara, Selina, Jason, Tim, Damien. And all we know for sure is "a" Robin died. Unless they kill Bruce or Alfred or Gordon in the new film it doesn't contradict anything.

[Flash Gordon]

They're just film adaptations of comic characters and stories. You can enjoy one without seeing 5 others. As it should be.

As long as AQUAMAN 2 follows up on AQUAMAN, I'm happy. I still think SHAZAM should have just recast Superman for that cameo, in 10 years nobody will care about what actor was Superman there but not showing his face neutered what could have been a rad cameo. The flick was still really great, but still. There are plenty of lookalikes for a bit part.

[Digifiend]

Don't think they care anymore. If a movie crosses over fine but if not who cares. Like someone said that's fox X-Men where half the films don't line up. Pretty much dc films before the mcu.

At least the X-Men films explained most of it - timeline changed due to Days of Future Past, which means the two later sequels overwrite the original trilogy.

[Vakanai]

They're just film adaptations of comic characters and stories. You can enjoy one without seeing 5 others. As it should be.

As long as AQUAMAN 2 follows up on AQUAMAN, I'm happy. I still think SHAZAM should have just recast Superman for that cameo, in 10 years nobody will care about what actor was Superman there but not showing his face neutered what could have been a rad cameo. The flick was still really great, but still. There are plenty of lookalikes for a bit part.

Am I the only one who preferred not seeing Supes' face in that Shazam cameo? Just seeing that S really nailed the humor of that movie perfectly and sold the scene.

[Flash Gordon]

Am I the only one who preferred not seeing Supes' face in that Shazam cameo? Just seeing that S really nailed the humor of that movie perfectly and sold the scene.

I mean it didn't kill the scene for me or anything. I deeply enjoyed SHAZAM! It's top 5 superhero flicks for me, easy.

I just thought it felt very much like "we can't show his face", and anytime I can see the studio hand in anything it pulls me out.

[Colossus1980]

They keep dragging their feet on Cavill, he's going to be too old to play Superman. I'm torn on whether or not I want the DCEU to survive. They can't do anymore Batman movies in that universe. Snyder insisting on a 50 year old Batman just so he could do his own version of DKR kind of shot them in the foot in the long term. In interviews I've seen, the BOP director is making it pretty clear this is not part of the DCEU. Which is stupid. Then there is Snyder still stirring up **** demanding his stupid half finished JL movie get released for some reason. In short, I don't think they have much of a plan. If they can get Cavill back, then they'll probably make more movies. But I don't see that happening. Everyone else has moved on. Amy Adams has said in interviews that she thinks it's done. What happens if they can't get her back? Plus, how many more can he make, physically? He was 33 when he did MOS. He'll be in his forties by the time they get around to even writing another script unless this happens within the next couple years or so. I think this new Batman movie will be the beginning of another universe and they'll just move on from there.

Lots of old actors playing hero roles. The Rock will be 49 when Black Adam comes out. Jason Momoa is already 40 and be 43 when his sequel comes out. Will Smith was 48 when Suicide Squad came out. Steroids helps a lot for older males who want to look jacked onscreen.