Warner Bros. has exclusive movie rights to many of the most iconic characters in fiction history, and using those characters was a disaster. Things have derailed so far that fans are beginning to wonder if the studio is preparing to abandon one of its biggest cash cows.
The DC Comics universe used to dominated the big screen while Marvel’s efforts struggled to be anything but cheap junk. Over the years, Marvel has become a success factory with a reliable model and DC either starts running out of steam or stops trying.
Warner Bros. seems to be pursuing an extremely grim and cynical business strategy. Anything that doesn’t have the potential to become a monster hit seems poised to be scuttled as the studio desperately searches for a big hit. batgirl may have been canceled due to poor test screenings, but lone new studio head David Zaslav may be talking about his desire to make big blockbusters for tent poles. Warner Bros. supposedly uses a ten-year plan, similar to Marvel’s comically long schedules. The company appears to be planning to continue its DCEU film experiment, but there have been significant bumps in the road. As HBO Max is slowly losing its grip on DC material, fans are wondering if WB might be considering quitting.
The DC Extended Universe began in 2013 with Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel. For the first few years, Snyder’s unique creative vision was the dominant design of the franchise. Even if he didn’t direct the films, they fit into a puzzle in which he was the lead architect. This was a hugely difficult decision that in many ways has turned out to be just a huge wound in the business. Snyder’s fan base is one of the most die-hard, rabid, and hateful to outsiders. During his reign, his fans were happy, but a huge percentage of the public despised his wretched hyper-masculine view of the characters. When he left Justice League and the studio released the misshapen mess that hit theaters in 2017, fans began demanding a fully restored Snyder Cut. They’ve got that Snyder Cut, and they’re still demanding the director step back. WB will have to deal with a section of its audience who will forever ridicule and review their material.
One of the biggest problems with WB as a studio is its inability to move forward. WB had one undeniably guaranteed annual monster success ten years ago, and they’ve never stopped to recapture it. When WB de . had Harry Potter franchise, it had a reliable hitmaker that could easily make billions year after year. What WB seems to want from his DCEU efforts is that same level of undisputed monster success. While every DCEU movie makes a comical amount of profit, it’s still not enough for them. Movies cost a lot of money to make, and taking even the slightest risk on a project that might not make a billion dollars isn’t considered worth it. This problem is not exclusive to WB, it has become commonplace. Film studios want to make fewer films and see more success. A billion dollar hit covers a dozen mild successes or flops. This strategy is poisonous, but clearly popular.
WB has a few more central DCEU tent poles that it seems to continue to use. Aquaman, Shazam and Wonder Woman will likely continue to get solo films. Blue Beetle will be introduced next year. Despite the star’s many public crimes, The flash is yet to come out. All these established characters can continue to lead massive blockbusters to immense financial rewards. But the moment one of them fails to deliver the massive returns they’re expected to deliver, WB will likely toss them aside and destroy the stable again. Despite Zaslav’s talk about ten-year plans, the whole operation seems very reactionary. Undoubtedly, the studio is putting a lot of effort into the same character they’ve always had success with, Batman. Matt Reeves has a long contract with WB, but as the list of viable options gets shorter, WB’s DCEU could be running out of material.
Warner Bros. not leaving the DCEU yet, but it still feels like it could be an option. Fans online seem prepared for Zaslav to cancel every film on the reel in pursuit of a tax write-off. In the modern era, studios seem to rewrite their entire cinematic strategy every time the weekly box office rolls in. While projects are being wildly canceled, closer to release than anyone could have imagined a decade ago, anything seems possible. With its nightmarish fanbase, cynical corporate strategy and desperate pursuit of quick profits, WB could easily destroy its own biggest franchise. Fans will have to wait and see if another company’s logos appear in a decade for the next Superman movie.
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