TheBatman v Superman: Dawn of Justicefallout isn’t over just yet, and Warner Bros. has made its biggest move thus far in course-correcting after the disappointing critical and commercial reception to the superhero smackdown. PerTHR, the studio has set DC Chief Creative OfficerGeoff Johnsand WB executive vice-presidentJon Bergto co-run DC Films, serving as the first executives specifically in charge of running the studio’s slate of DC Comics Adaptations.
Johns has been involved with all of the films sinceMan of Steelin one capacity or another, serving as a member of the DC Braintrust, but this move puts him at the head of the fray in an official capacity as a creative executive who can hopefully help spearhead the development and production of the films going forward. Berg, meanwhile, is also well-entrenched in the DC Extended Universe, having already worked onBatman v Superman,Suicide Squad,Wonder Woman, andJustice League. Moreover, both men have a connection to Batman himself,Ben Affleck. Johns has been co-writing astandaloneBatmanmoviewith Affleck, and Berg worked with the filmmaker as a WB executive onArgoand Affleck’s upcomingLive by Night.
This DC shakeup is part of a larger transition at Warner Bros., which is shifting its executives into being in charge of more specific “genre streams”—Johns and Berg will run DC Films,Courtenay Valentiwill oversee theLEGO Moviefranchise andFantastic Beasts and Where to Find Themmovies, andJesse EhrmanandNiija Kuykendallwill spearhead comedy/family and action/sci-fi films for Warner Bros., respectively.
So what does this mean for the DC slate of films, exactly? Essentially, Warner Bros. just finally learned the right lesson from rival Marvel Studios. One of the reasons Marvel has succeeded is because it has an incredibly passionate creative in charge of the MCU in Marvel Studios PresidentKevin Feige. He approaches the development and production of the various MCU movies as an expert on the source material and a consummate storyteller, and with a single voice he’s able to funnel the various ideas into the pipeline to either get them going or put them back into development.
Warner Bros. lacked a singular voice for its DC movies, withBvSfilmmakerZack Snydersomewhat falling into the head position by default as the director ofBvSandJustice League, and as a result the approach to its various films has been muddled and a bit haphazard. By officially putting Johns and Berg in charge of DC Films, there’s now at least a semblance of order in terms of setting up and executing the slate going forward, so hopefully this is a step in the right direction.
WhileBatman v Superman: Dawn of Justicehas grossed nearly $870 million worldwide since its late March release, that’s a far cry from the $1 billion WB was hoping to hit given that the film pits the two most iconic comic book characters of all time against one another for the first time in screen history. To add insult to injury, Marvel’sCaptain America: Civil Waris about to hit $1 billion in just two weeks of release.
This executive shakeup isn’t the only measure WB has taken to enact some changes in the wake ofBvS. Affleck was recentlyupped to executive producer onJustice League, making him an official creative voice in the superhero follow-up that began production just weeks afterBvSopened. Additionally, the studio andThe FlashdirectorSeth Grahame-Smithparted ways, with THR noting that WB is now looking for a more seasoned filmmaker (The Flashwould’ve been Grahame-Smith’s feature debut) who can not only handle a big budget, but can also put an authorial stamp on the movie—this is still the filmmaker-driven Warner Bros. after all.
And just this week we learned that WB is developinga Harley Quinn spinoffforMargot Robbie’sSuicide Squadcharacter, signaling that the studio’s initial slate of DC films up through 2020 might not be complete or final.
Speaking of which, THR notes that this August’s promisingSuicide Squadhas been another point of post-BvSfallout, as Johns’ involvement in that film’s post-production directly led to the escalation of his role in the DC movies. The report adds thatSuicide Squadunderwent “major additional photography” to clear up some third act issues, and indeed directorDavid Ayerpreviously hinted that the widely-reported reshoots involved a new action sequence.
Setting Johns and Berg as the heads of DC Films is certainly a solid step in the right direction, but THR cautions that further executive changes are anticipated, so this may not be the end of theBatman v Supermanfallout just yet. The good news is the studio is acknowledging that they may need to change a few things, and the slate is pretty solid. Here’s hoping the DC Extended Universe can course-correct, because these movies—particularlyPatty Jenkins’Wonder WomanandJames Wan’sAquaman—have the potential to be terrific.
