Is There Hope for the DC Universe?
by EG
Blue Beetle is the latest movie based on a DC Comics character to struggle at the box office. The Flash, Shazam, Black Adam, and others have faced a similar fate lately, calling into question the commercial future of a megafranchise with big plans. Will new franchise-runners James Gunn and Peter Safran have any luck revitalizing the DC universe at a time when even the once-invincible Marvel Cinematic Universe is struggling to attract moviegoers? Read on for details.
It’s been more than a decade since Man of Steel ushered in the DCEU, and 10 years this very week since Ben Affleck was announced to play Batman in Zack Snyder’s cinematic saga. We all know the turmoil that endeavor ultimately resulted in, and the seemingly ceaseless restructuring of DC that followed partially as a result.
But for now, let’s journey back to the summer of 2013, a simpler, yet undeniably passionate age. The noise from comic book movie fans circling the newly minted DC Extended Universe was near deafening that summer. Everyone had an opinion, both on Man of Steel with its controversial third act in which Superman killed Zod, and the casting of Affleck, who still hadn’t quite come clean of the spandex stench of 2003’s Daredevil yet was somehow supposed to measure up to Christian Bale’s beloved Dark Knight.
The DCEU was shiny and new, and whether reactions were positive or negative, everyone had an opinion on its future. Fan theories took hold quickly, comic creators took sides, bloggers discovered they could gain control of the narrative early, and DC fans fortified defenses and stockpiled ammunition. In just a few years, they would take what was theoretically supposed to be fun (Comics! Movies! Superheroes!) and turn it into pure misery, a war of personal attacks, vendettas, cult mentalities, antagonistic journalism and career-altering decisions.
Cut to 10 years later, and Henry Cavill is no longer the Man of Steel, Ben Affleck is no longer Batman, Zack Snyder is building universes at Netflix with his Army of the Dead and Rebel Moon franchises, Joss Whedon is persona non grata in Hollywood, and that guy who showed everyone just how successful the Guardians of the Galaxy could be, James Gunn, just wrapped up the Guardians trilogy on a successful note and is now the co-head of DC Studios, alongside Peter Safran.
Together they are relaunching the universe as the DCU. And as for the DCEU? Blue Beetle is in theaters -- though, sadly, it seems few know it. Is it the penultimate installment of the DCEU, paving the way for Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom? Or is it the DCU’s first entry? Few seem to know the answer to that one either, given Gunn’s perplexing comments that Blue Beetle is the first DCU character but not the first DCU film. Blue Beetle’s opening weekend, among lowest in the franchise’s history, comes after a string of box office misses including The Flash, Shazam! Fury of the Gods, Black Adam, and COVID-affected titles, Wonder Woman 1984 and The Suicide Squad. As Gunn and Safran tee up their relaunch with a slate of film and television projects, pundits are wondering: Where have all the DC film fans gone?
A decade of constantly shifting decisions, executive musical chairs, overly aggressive critics and overly aggressive fans have left DC fandom a house pided, the reflections of which we can see all over social media. It’s a swamp that even Swamp Thing would be hesitant to dip a mossy toe into. There are those who are optimistic about the DCU’s future and eager for a reboot following Gunn and Safran’s unveiling of “Chapter One” in January. There are those who are puzzled over what the DCU actually is, given the mixed messaging behind some actors and projects continuing, like The Suicide Squad-spinoff series, Peacemaker, while most will not. There are those who lament that Snyder did not get to finish the saga as he envisioned, but there are others who have moved on, just as the director has. There are those who find a reboot unnecessary given the decade of work that’s gone into building the DCEU. There are those who have taken a cult-like approach to Snyder’s films, making them (and him) their entire identity, and crowding out those who were just fans of his movies and didn’t conjure up images of Eminem’s “Stan” with violent threats and mobilized harassment. And there are those who have moved on from the whole comic book movie thing.
Get the rest of the story at The Hollywood Reporter.