I remember, as I was young, a sort of dichotomy, and in my mind, a competition between Disney cartoons and Warner Brothers cartoons, especially during that 3-6pm time slot. One one hand you had BTAS, on the other hand you had Darkwing Duck, on one hand there was Animaniacs, on the other hand there was Duck Tales.
Now, it seems that Disney and WB are in direct competition again on another niche market: the superhero movie, and indeed, comic books as a whole. I find that kind of funny.
Losers, Jon Hex, that's just this year. What is so hard about making a great Superman movie? It's 2010! I hope Green Lantern kicks butt so they (Warner Bro) gain some confidence in the source material. I know I could come up with a good Superman movie ... they made Avatar for like $400, I think.
Keep his Blue uni exact as comic and give him a real foe, lose that looser Luther. Then ACTION, ACTION, ACTION. Drop Lois, make the treat world wide and progressive.
Dark Knight was good, but I enjoyed Batman Begin's more. I needed to know what made this Joker so unbeatable.
Love the Green Arrow ideas about the prison. Make it already.
I think WB is over analysing. Pay the writers that understand the characters to start writing. Superrvise the Producer & Director, is it that hard?
How would you turn things around?
Well, first I'd get a lay of the land. Successful movies will not make WB more confident in all superheroes, only in the successful properties. This is what
they learned for Superman Returns, putting a good character with a proven director and team does not make success. So, what to do? It works for Marvel, perhaps the public just isn't interested in DC heroes. That's the perspective that WB execs are coming from. How would they know who undersetands the characters if they don't understand the characters?
What's so hard about making a Superman movie?
- Superman is a messianic character, driven by morality and destiny in a world and industry that is more and more appreciating the Machiavellian ubermensch archetype. To make Superman a great character, you have to accept something higher than humanity as relevant, valid and logical, and there just aren't many people in charge who do.
What would I do to turn it around?
Well, honestly, I'd take 3-5 steps.
1) I'd write an epic Superman script about destiny, responsibility and morality contrasted with a more Machiavellian perspective of Luthor with an epic and innovative action component embodied by Metallo and a change in general audience perspective of Superman embodied by Lois Lane and show it to Steven Spielberg, letting the messianic aspect of Superman (Spielberg was raised Orthodox Jewish) and the epic spectacle (and likes a challenge) appeal to him. He'd be all in. I'd let him use his A++ talents to get the team together for that. Now we've established that Superman is not only as awesome and profitable as Batman, but that heroes can be fascinatingly interesting and dynamic without being tragically flawed (girlfriend dead, anger problems, powers out of control thing).
2) I'd write a Wonder Woman TV pilot that was quick with the dialogue, had a very girl next door fish out of water charm to it, and involved more than its fair share of girl power butt-kicking. I'd show the CW how dramatically it would appeal to their target audience, with the women empowerment, the female protagonist, the sprawling spectacle of ancient decor. I'd bring on Tom Welling as a producer/showrunner, let him get his chair experience that he wants so badly in an element he's familiar with.
3) Once those drop, make sure that DC heroes are in position to cash in on the crazes. Field TV pilots for Flash, John Stewart Green Lantern, 'Robin Begins,' Zatanna, and Green Arrow. Get Joss Whedon on the phone, ask him if he wants Power Girl or Birds of Prey. Field Fall and Spring Release scripts for Aquaman, Captain Marvel, Catwoman, Black Lightning, Static Shock, Justice Society of America, and all of those non-superhero graphic novels. Field animation films for major events like Knightfall, Crisis on Infinite Earths and JUSTICE. Field new
kids cartoons for Young Justice (I know, already done), Plastic Man, Archie and Friends, Jamie Reyes Blue Beetle (steal the Spectacular Spider-Man team), and others. Once the money is there, they'll be all over it. Even pitch an Atom and Friends to public television, and definitely field the Wildstorm Universe to Paul Dini and Bruce Timm, though I'd also field something that didn't seem so... tired. 4th World, Adam Strange, Green Lantern, even some non-powered period stuff. Let them go as adult as they want and put it on adult swim, or get Dawn Ostroff fired and put it post primetime on the CW. This ensures not only that DC becomes an incredibly recognized brand, but that the next generation will continue to see value in these characters.
4) I'd do Batman vs Superman, an epic battle that really breaks down the two characters and what they are about and what they are not about. The conflict would be something important enough for them to fight about, I assure you. They'd team up in the very end, relax.
5) I'd do Justice League as 3 films, all filmed simultaneously, as ridiculously magnificent as Lord of the Rings. Filled with people reprising their roles from the other films. I would, through sheer force of my personality, get James Cameron, Peter Jackson, Steven Spielberg, Joel Silver and Ang Lee to produce and select a fitting director. I'd suggest Brad Bird... I'd dare even get Tom Welling.
From there, just promote the next generation of heroes in whatever genre is popping. If more fantasy mystic stuff is big, do Dr. Fate, Spectre, Hawkman and Hawkgirl, If more Sci-Fi stuff is big, do another Trilogy of Green Lantern and some Adam Strange. I would dare even develop non-action movies with DC characters, including Romantic Comedies, Suspense Thrillers, Period Dramas, Science Fiction, Horror... the works. By that time, DC's brand will be solidified, Batman will be emerging as a film series on par with James Bond and Superman on par with Rocky, known for it's epic climactic fight scenes. Wonder Woman will have become a household name as talked about as LOST and Heroes. I'd also approach the other powers that be at Disney and make a Marvel DC crossover happen, either in the vein of 'Marvel vs DC' or in the vein of JLA/Avengers.
And then I'd get on with my own personal projects...
