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The DCEU has had a seemingly endless array of problems in recent years, from underperforming movies and critical bombs to the controversy surrounding major franchise stars. There has been little coherence between films and constant changes in release schedule have not contributed to the creation of a true cinematic universe.
Of course, the recent merger between Warner Bros. and Discovery have not helped matters, with new CEO David Zaslav looking to completely reshape the structure and programming of not only the studio’s television programming, but also the direction and focus of the entire DCEU. There’s a 10-year plan to transform the floundering franchise, but is the emulation of Marvel’s MCU strategy really what the DCEU needs?
It’s no secret that the DCEU seems to be in trouble. However, the issues go back further than years past and the imminent attempt to create a united cinematic universe. To fix the issues, Warner was on a mission to find their version of Kevin Feige to lead the creation of an MCU-esque cinematic universe and make the DCEU a true competitor to the box office titan that is Marvel.
Currently on the release list for the new and expanding DCEU: Black Adam starring Dwayne Johnson to be released in October 2022, Shazam! Fury of The Gods starring Zachary Levi released in time for Christmas 2022, The flash starring Ezra Miller, the eternal headliner, sometime in 2023, Aquaman: The Lost Kingdom starring Jason Momoa, and the sequel to joker, Joker: Folie a Deux starring Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga sometime in 2024. Numerous projects are also in development, including: Blue Beetle, Wonder Woman 3, and a sequel to Matt Reeves’ the batter reboot starring Robert Pattinson.
Previous releases have varied wildly in quality and reception. Man of Steel started the DCEU in 2013. The film stars Henry Cavill Man of Steel and the return of Superman to the big screen was welcomed by fans. But even before the planned universe began, there were problems. The history of DC movies has long been plagued by subpar adaptations and directionless plots. For example, everyone remembers the fateful Green Lantern adaptation starring Ryan Reynolds, who received scorn upon release for its ill-advised use of CGI and lackluster plot. Even Reynolds regularly takes pictures of it in interviews and in Deadpool.
Of course, there have been fantastic successes in the history of DC movies. Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy starring Christian Bale has always been praised for its performances, scripts, and incredible action sequences. It also gave the audience one of the best on-screen portraits of the Joker by the late Heath Ledger.
When it comes to the recent DCEU entries, they have also been extremely hit or miss. the 2016 suicide squad film was considered a universal failure, apart from Margot Robbie’s excellent portrayal of Harley Quinn. The 2021 James Gunn helmeted sequel/reboot was at the other end of the scale, with a fantastic reception from critics and fans alike and spawned a spin-off TV show for John Cena’s Peacekeeper.
These are just a few examples of the highly variable quality and reception of DC movies before and after the current DCEU creation. The common thread running through all the turbulence in the studio behind the scenes and at the box office is a lack of strategy, or more importantly, a constant fluctuating and dismantling of the plans they come up with.
With the new restructuring following the merger of Warner Bros. and Discovery has undergone a new revolution. The new CEO Zaslav has made constant changes since he took up the position in April 2022. Most recently, in a move that has angered audiences and creatives alike, the HBO Max streaming service has embarked on a restructuring that has resulted in the cancellation of multiple upcoming projects including the near-complete batgirl film by filmmakers Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah and starring Leslie Grace.
The CW Arrowverse shows and DC themed output have also been reduced by Arrow already gone, and batwoman and Legends of tomorrow were canceled soon after Zaslav took over. In the past few weeks it became known that The flash would also end after the ninth season currently in production.
WBD’s focus would shift more towards exclusively theatrical releases after many of their major films debuted on streaming service HBO Max due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Zaslav also announced the new plan to integrate Discovery Plus and HBO Max digital platforms. This move caused even more backlash when Zaslav stated that women don’t watch scripted television and decided to separate and categorize content on a mind-boggling gender-based system.
When you compare what WBD is and has done compared to what Marvel has done building the MCU, the differences are obvious. Marvel has focused its energies on creating a universe that is interconnected and planned and has done well to focus on keeping the core of the main comic strip arcs intact while making them adaptable to the big screen format. As for the DCEU, their films are disjointed, the individual characters isolated in their own stories. When they cross, as in Justice League, it feels clunky, with characters just being thrown into a situation without much effort to actually bring them together and create bonds.
While Zaslav recently announced an MCU-style ten-year plan, he has also officially stated that they want to make profit over substance. While this is understandable, the company has $55 billion in debt to pay off, focusing solely on the money side won’t help the floundering company. The consistent problem with WBD and the DCEU is not prioritizing quality. Constantly re-strategizing and scrapping projects will of course affect everything that is spent.
Zaslav can get ready to be the next Feige by drawing up multi-year plans and overhauling the company, but these things aren’t enough. More attention should be paid to the actual story elements in the DCEU. There has to be a concerted effort to integrate all these characters in an organic way.
Zaslav and WBD should also be more in line with what their fans are saying. With the huge backlash surrounding the cancellation of batgirl and the constant pressure to let go The flash without any kind of commentary on star Ezra Miller’s behavior, the studio must learn to communicate with and listen to its audiences. The history of sweeping things under the rug and dumping projects here and there has not served them well and the only way the DCEU can be viable is by actually learning from past mistakes rather than constantly working in the same diving patterns.
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