Screenwriter talks Teen Titans Movie - wants to make it "real"

[Jack Rabbit]

This movie is going to bomb.

 

[Artistsean]

I think its too soon to say if this will be a mega movie success or a dud, but I think it sounds good so far.

I think it sounds incredibly cool and I hope he makes it, and soon. I really want to see it made. While reading it I thought, he should talk to Marv Wolfman about it. And then I read that he did.

I think the tone will be about Batman Begins level, in terms of realism, but possibly not so dark in tone and not so dark in terms of color pallet. Batman Begins had lots of dark colors like black and brown. I think Teen Titans might be more brighter in color pallet.
I think what he messed up with, or hope he messed up in saying, Watchmen level of tone. Because unless I am wrong, which I could be, isn't Watchmen incredibly dark.
But if he is constantly consulting Marv Wolfman I doubt things will go wrong.
I think he meant that, with it being like Batman Begins, that you feel like Batman is human and that everyone around him is human too. And that these characters can actually get hurt and die, and when they do amazing stuff it is really special. And that they all have inner stuff going on.

I also think he hit the nail on the head without having to actually do it in terms of theme of the whole title.
Teen Titans started as the team of Sidekicks and spin off characters:
Robin- Batman's sidekick
Aqua Lad- Aquaman's sidekick
Wonder Girl- Wonder Woman spinoff
Kid Flash- Flash spinoff

In a way the Teen Titans is like a transition sort of team for young heroes.
They were apprentices or heroes training under veterans, but the time is come to be on their own. So the team sort of is where they figure that out, and where they make a name for themselves seperate from their mentors.

Except they don't actually want to be just a spinoff of the previous movies or the movies yet to come, they don't want to have to adhear to the rules of Batman Begins just because Robin/Nightwing, is going to be in it. So that is cool.
They are dealing with the idea that the team is where the kids leave their sidekick identities behind them and make a name for themselves,
without actually dealing with the sidekick stuff.

It would be cool to have them actually mention, for those who are former sidekicks, that they were sidekicks without nameing names. In fact they really need to for characters like Robin.


the line up,
I think it will be close to the Teen Titans cartoon cartoon series, maybe not exactly the same but close.
With maybe Cyborg or Starfire in it. Characters who may not really have another title connected to them, like Robin with Batman.

Well,
I am incredibly interested to see where this movie is going now.

 

[GL's Light]

I wouldn't read anything too specific into him saying that the tone will match Batman Begins, Superman Returns and Watchmen. I think producers and screenwriters have taken to using that sort of description as a shorthand to signal that a superhero film won't be an overblown kitschy tongue-in-cheek campfest, but will instead take itself seriously and have a sense of emotional and dramatic realism to it. There would still be room, though, for a tone that's not quite as dark as Batman Begins, as well as, perhaps, for more sci-fi or supernatural elements.

 

[Eros]

well GL'S lght considering the movie [if it gets made] is going to feature a bunch of young poeple in tights, possibly including an alien girl, a green skin boy who changes in animals, and etc, I don't see how "real" this movie can feel. It might be the most upsurd and pretentious superhero movie ever made, or it may be decent.

 

[GL's Light]

well GL'S lght considering the movie [if it gets made] is going to feature a bunch of young poeple in tights, possibly including an alien girl, a green skin boy who changes in animals, and etc, I don't see how "real" this movie can feel. It might be the most upsurd and pretentious superhero movie ever made, or it may be decent.

Movies that have very fantastical elements can still be imbued with a sense of emotional realism and, to use Dick Donner's favorite word, verisimilitude. That doesn't mean it's going to be "real" in the sense of being a realistic representation of our day-to-day world, but that the film will create a world wherein the fantastic exists yet there's still a sense of real danger and naturalistic emotion and reactions, rather than cardboard characters tossing quips at each other. Of course this can be a difficult tone to pull off and it remains to be seen whether they achieve it (if it gets made, natch).

 

[Red Mask]

They should just call it the Titans. Introduce the young adult versions instead.

 

[Saint]

Hm. Interesting comments. Perhaps there is hope for this project.

 

[Artistsean]

You know, if the characters in the movie are 17, 18, and 19 they are still technically teenagers. So they can still be the Teen Titans and be young adults at the same time.

I think GL's Light is right. He isn't trying to say its like Batman's world in Batman Begins, where everything is more realistic (like our world). Where things in the movie and its sequal where changed to be more realistic.
I think he is trying to get across to the studio that will make it and the viewing audiance that it wont be a cheesy movie about a green boy, and orange girl, and a bunch of kids running around in tights.

I am very much looking forward to not only the movie, but hearing about the process of the movie. Hearing the news and stuff.
I can't wait to see the Robin/Nightwing character, sounds cool. While the others have been born with powers Robin/Nightwing has turned himself into a weapon. I just hope they mention that Robin had a Mentor to train him.
Do you guys think they will mention at all the Mentors? Like Batman or anything? It would suck if Robin's story became like Daredevil in the first movie, that he trained himself all by himself alone with no help and totally cut Batman or any other mentor out.
I hope its like the Teen Titans cartoon show, hinting at Batman from time to time, mentioning past mentors but not by specific names, but never actually mentioning Batman at all.

Do you think Marv Wolfman and George Perez will have camoe roles like Stan Lee does? I mean just short
non scene stealing ones?

 

[Isildur´s Heir]

I like what i hear, but, then again, ALL comic book movies should be serious and "real".

 

[Savage]

Nnnot all. Deadpool for one should be quite comedic. A Green Lantern Corps or Nova Corps movie would be pretty unrealistic as well...You'll be hard pressed to find too many realistic comics actually. For some titles it's just unavoidable even when being translated to the big screen.

...Unless you were being sarcastic.

 

[terry78]

Any comic featuring guys or girls with superpowers, characters that are alien or supernatural in nature, you can try your best to ground in reality, but it's just going to come off pretentious and poor.

 

[Abaddon]

What's importnat is that the characters are real enough so that we can buy into the fantasy.

 

[Tempest19]

This film, I think, is going to be great!!! I was skeptical before, but his comments- yeah, they definitely found the right guy.

The wrong guy would want to go in a Agent Cody Banks or Spy Kids approach with these characters and story. And that would not suit this universe AT ALL! And make a mockery of the potential this kind of film actually has.

I haven't seen the cartoon, but I am catching up- caught the first couple of episodes actually. And what I found was that these were very realistic characters, albiet being in an unrealistic universe. I could relate to them. They were teenagers going through teenage problems and as a teenager I could definitely relate to their story and what they were going through. One key episode that I saw this in was the episode in season 1 'Sisters' which really felt grounded in reality and not overly fantastical, while still being in that realm.

So, the very fact that this guy is saying "Batman Begins" as being inspiration for the take and this still being teenagers, then hell yeah. I seriously can not wait and they got the right guy for the job.

As I said before there are two routes to be taken- this could have EASILY been made into a Spy Kids, but rather we are getting a mature coming of age story that EVERYONE can relate to and enjoy. It's not setting out to be a toyetic and kid driven film, but a serious film with serious characters and that is actually how I viewed the cartoon. Yeah, they were a bit wacky at times- but, which teenager isn't? Minus the anime aspects, these were real teens. So, to see that the writer is approaching it in those regards and respect- GREAT!!!

I also checked out what this guy wrote for 'Smallville' and he actually wrote some of my favorite episodes. Alot of them getting into the heart and seriousness of teenage life. Most notably Dichotic, Heat, and Red. And I'm sure many other 'SV' fans will agree with this. I know there are some people on here who don't like SV due to straying from the mythos, but the show is one of the best teenage related shows out there today and especially in it's early seasons.

So that and his comments, yeah- I'm definitely now hyped for this film.

SMALLVILLE:

X-Ray




Rogue



Zero



Obscura



Heat





Red (Clark is on Red K which is like Spidey's symbiote)




Perry



WRITTEN EPISODES:
- X-Ray
- Rogue
- Shimmer
- Zero
- Obscura
- Heat
- Red
- Dichotic
- Suspect
- Witness
- Perry
- Hereafter