NBC Chairman Comments on the Tone of DC Comics Adaptation Constantine
by Eric Goldman
This past week, NBC ordered a TV pilot for Constantine, a potential ongoing series based on the DC Comics/Vertigo character. At the TCA (Television Critics Association) press tour, I asked NBC chairman Robert Greenblatt what the approach was – would it mainly tap into the character’s supernatural/horror elements, or work to incorporate more of the DC Comics universe?
Said Greenblatt, “I don’t know the DC comic very well, but there is dark, interesting stuff in it, but it’s also got some witty banter.” David Goyer (Man of Steel) and Daniel Cerone (Dexter, The Mentalist) are executive producing Constantine and Greenblatt added, “It’s a fun tone, although the supernatural stuff is scary.”
If Constantine gets picked up to series, NBC will be the third network with DC Comics-based series on the air, following The CW with Arrow (and likely The Flash and possibly Hourman) and FOX, who have Gotham coming up. All are produced by Warner Bros., but doing crossovers across networks is a rare (though not unprecedented) thing.
I asked Greenblatt if Constantine could ever crossover with those other DC/Warner Bros. shows and he replied, “Cross-network is really hard. It’s hard enough to do it within your network. I think let us see how the pilot goes before we answer that question!”
