The DC Extended Universe: To Thanagar and Beyond!

[Bruinsfan]

Chris' fivehead is not conducive to a 40s era hairdo. Though I suppose it's better than the highlighted nightmare pompadour he was sporting in Into the Woods.

[MarkHB]

Pure speculation: maybe they'll use Chris Pine in old-age makeup in the present-day portion of the movie and do the "why it's hard for immortals to have romantic connections with mortals" thing.

[MarkHB]

Gal Gadot Tweeted this pic last night:

 

Almost 75 years in the making... #WonderWoman is underway.

 

Also, Warner Bros. made the following official announcement:

BURBANK, Calif.— Principal photography is underway on Warner Bros. Pictures’ Wonder Woman feature film, the highly anticipated action adventure from director Patty Jenkins (“Monster,” AMC’s “The Killing”), starring Gal Gadot (the “Fast & Furious” movies) in the role of Diana Prince/Wonder Woman. The character will make her big screen debut this spring in “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice,” but the new film will mark her first time headlining a feature.

 

    The film also stars Chris Pine (the “Star Trek” films) as Captain Steve Trevor, Robin Wright (“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo,” Netflix’s “House of Cards”), Danny Huston (“Clash of the Titans,” “X-Men Origins: Wolverine”), David Thewlis (the “Harry Potter” films, “The Theory of Everything”), Ewen Bremner (“Exodus: Gods and Kings,” “Snowpiercer”), Saïd Taghmaoui (“American Hustle”), Elena Anaya (“The Skin I Live In”) and Lucy Davis (“Shaun of the Dead”).

 

    The film is being produced by Charles Roven, Zack Snyder and Deborah Snyder, with Richard Suckle, Stephen Jones, Wesley Coller, Geoff Johns and Rebecca Roven serving as executive producers.

 

    Joining Jenkins behind the camera are director of photography Matthew Jensen (“Chronicle,” “Fantastic Four,” HBO’s “Game of Thrones”), Oscar-nominated production designer Aline Bonetto (“Amélie,” “A Very Long Engagement,” “Pan”), and Oscar-winning editor Martin Walsh (“Chicago,” “Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit,” “V for Vendetta”), and Oscar-winning costume designer Lindy Hemming (“The Dark Knight” trilogy, “Topsy-Turvy”).

 

    Principal photography will take place on location in the UK, France and Italy.

 

    Set to open in 2017, the Wonder Woman feature film is based on characters created by William Moulton Marston, appearing in comic books published by DC Entertainment. It will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

(Emphasis added to help spot the creative personnel.)

 

Interesting that Charles Roven brought his daughter in as an EP; she's largely had assistant work before this although she's listed as a creative exec. at Atlas.

[Trini]

The obvious Photoshop collage is distracting, but yay! this movie is being made!

[MarkHB]

Do you mean the WW pic? I don't think it's a Photoshop; Clay Enos (set still photographer on all these films) essentially took credit for it when he re-Instagrammed it with the comment, "f2.0 for the win."

[Trini]

The lighting on the face doesn't match the rest. It's not a huge deal; it's stuff I notice because of my graphic design training.

[VCRTracking]

Set pics of Wonder Woman filming in England:

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3338482/PICTURE-EXCLUSIVE-Gal-Gadot-Chris-Pine-spotted-filming-Wonder-Woman-alongside-150-extras-Essex.html

 

Interesting that they chose to set it during World War One(the 1910s) instead of the traditional World War II when she was created and was the setting of the first season of the 1970s show with Lynda Carter. I guess it's too differentiate it from Captain America.

[MarkHB]

I agree on avoiding the Cap comparison, but several other things stick out to me as well:

 

• Compared to World War II, World War I is relatively uncovered in modern movies, so it's a bit fresher.
• If one wants to show Ares reveling in the horrors of war, you can't do better than trench warfare.

  (Spoilered due to reflecting a rumor about one of the villains of the film.)

• This movie is scheduled to hit theaters just a couple of months after the 100th anniversary of the US declaration of war on Germany and just after the 100th anniversary of the first members of the AEF landing in France.

[VCRTracking]

There's also the suffragette movement happening at the time.

Edited November 30, 2015 by VCRTracking

[Trini]

DC Universe preview on the CW, Jan. 19th:

DC FILMS PRESENTS: DAWN OF THE JUSTICE LEAGUE invites viewers behind the scenes of the exciting new movies coming out of the DC Films universe, culminating in the thrilling world premiere of the all-new trailer for "Suicide Squad," DC's misfit crew of antiheroes forced into saving the world this summer, with director David Ayer. Hosted by filmmaker/writer/lifelong comics fan Kevin Smith, with special guest DC Entertainment's Geoff Johns, the special showcases the explosive landscape of DC's greatest heroes, kicking off with "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice," in theatres this March, and with a sneak peek from the upcoming Wonder Woman feature film.

Get a look at never-before-seen footage, and see interviews with such stars as Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill and Gal Gadot, and directors Zack Snyder and Patty Jenkins - just a few of the creative forces behind the much-anticipated film franchise that will bring together the greatest collective of Super Heroes in the upcoming Justice League feature film. And because no Super Hero could make his or her mark without a truly formidable foe, the special also provides glimpses of DC's most famous Super Villains.

(emphasis mine.)

Edited December 30, 2015 by Trini

[Trini]

I know it's not coming out for a while, but I'd love to get more info on the Flash film.

[Bruinsfan]

Please God, let them pay attention to audience reactions and NOT have Eisenberg's Luthor as one of the super villains getting featured. (At this point I'd be happy if they reshot all his scenes with Michael Rosenbaum. Or Gene Hackman.)

[MarkHB]

USA Today had a decent-sized article on the entire DCEU project this weekend.

[MarkHB]

THR is reporting that Connie Nielsen will be playing Hippolyta in Wonder Woman.

[MarkHB]

For those who are interested, I have created a thread for discussion the "Dawn of the Justice League" special here.

 

Also, new set photos of Gal Gadot as Diana Prince:

[VCRTracking]

Gal Gadot looks very cute in glasses.

[MarkHB]

We now have official Twitter and Facebook pages for the Wonder Woman movie, as well as an official Facebook page for DC Films.

 

[Rick Kitchen]

New Suicide Squad trailer

 

http://moviepilot.com/posts/3744028

Edited January 20, 2016 by Rick Kitchen

[MarkHB]

From the special, the Wonder Woman peek:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9Ur4De7yT8

[Kromm]

Holy hell it IS actually real.

[lion10]

The MCU movies are leading up to Infinity Wars.  What do you guys think of the DCEU concluding with the story Kingdom Come?

[MarkHB]

The Flash will premiere a week earlier than originally planned.  It's still in 2018, though.  The schedule on the first page of this thread has been updated.

[Bruinsfan]

The MCU movies are leading up to Infinity Wars.  What do you guys think of the DCEU concluding with the story Kingdom Come?

I think there's enough grimdark worldview and disaster porn already on the page that Snyder would have to wear depends while filming the movie.

[lion10]

Kingdom Come isn't completely grimdark though.  It actually ends on a super high note and has themes of reconciliation, new love, and finding reasons to hope again.  

 

Spoilers

[MarkHB]

Justice League to start filming April 11.

 

Zack Snyder’s Justice League — Part 1 is officially a go at Warner Bros. and will begin filming on April 11, a little over two weeks after the release of Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, the director and studio tell EW.

“The idea that we could begin to boot up a Justice League concept was a cool thing,” says Snyder, who also directed 2013’s Man of Steel and has become one of the key figures in shaping DC’s connected film universe...

 

Justice League will shoot at the Warner Bros. Leavesden studios in southeast England, as well as various locations around London and in Iceland.

 

Part II will shoot separately.

[Trini]

EW article on the DCEU, with quotes from WB/DC producers, etc. SuperHeroHype has the highlights and major *spoilers* for BvS.

[BetterButter]

‘Justice League’: J.K. Simmons Cast as Commissioner Gordon

[AimingforYoko]

‘Justice League’: J.K. Simmons Cast as Commissioner Gordon

"Dammit Wayne, get me pictures of Batman!"

[MarkHB]

The Wall Street Journal has an interview with Chris Terrio, writer of Batman V Superman and Justice League Part I.  Since the WSJ doesn't leave stories public for long, you can also see a recap at Batman-News.

 

 

 

There are many more DC movies to come, including a second “Justice League.” Will you be writing more?

 

I have written “Justice League Part One,” but I won’t necessarily write “Part Two.” This has been the most rigorous intellectual exercise I’ve had in my writing life. For “Batman v Superman,” I wanted to really dig into everything from ideas about American power to the structure of revenge tragedies to the huge canon of DC Comics to Amazon mythology. For “Justice League,” I could be reading in the same day about red- and blueshifts in physics, Diodorus of Sicily and his account of the war between Amazons and Atlanteans, or deep-sea biology and what kind of life plausibly might be in the Mariana Trench.

 

If you told me the most rigorous dramaturgical and intellectual product of my life would be superhero movies, I would say you were crazy. But I do think fans deserve that. I felt I owed the fan base all of my body and soul for two years because anything less wouldn’t have been appreciating the opportunity I had.

[Bruinsfan]

I will say this, even though I don't worship at the temples of Miller or Morrison, it does sound like the screenwriter has put more thought into this movie than Zack Snyder has into... well, anything he's ever done. It reassures me slightly that there may be a solid well-designed foundation for the latter to build his testosterone-laden disaster porn atop.

[MarkHB]

Jason Fuchs ("Pan", "Wonder Woman") has been hired to write a Lobo movie.  For those who aren't familiar with The Main Man, his Wikipedia article hits the essentials.  Unlike the R-rated "Ultimate Cut" of Batman v Superman, which is using footage that was shot in 2014, I think it's safe to say that this one, if it comes to fruition, really is an attempt to capitalize on the success of Deadpool.

[Trini]

Even though it isn't out quite yet, the mixed-to-bad reviews of BvS already have people speculating that the DCEU is derailed. I just hope that we still get a good, fun Flash movie. If BvS doesn't make enough money, Wonder Woman may have to 'save' WB.

Edited March 25, 2016 by Trini

[MarkHB]

They have Suicide Squad before WW, too.

[JessePinkman]

I think the characters are popular enough to withstand BvS being critically ravaged and WB is bullheaded enough to soldier on but it's now about how they soldier on. Do they continue in the muted landscape of Zack Snyder's brain or try for something different? I wonder how much they can afford to keep chugging along.

 

So far the specific complaints about BvS make Suicide Squad seem like a risky concept.

[Morrigan2575]

I used to want Jeffrey Dean Morgan to play Lobo, probably too late for that now.

My only experience with the character was that big DC vs Marvel crossover back in the 90s.

[Trini]

Actually Suicide Squad looks like it'll be good; or at least fun. And the expectations aren't as high.

[Captain Carrot]

Actually Suicide Squad looks like it'll be good; or at least fun. And the expectations aren't as high.

 

 

I'm cautiously optimistic about Suicide Squad. The property fits the tone that WB wants. Add a little gallows humor, and it will be a fun movie.

 

As for Batman vs Superman, I hope it does poorly enough that WB makes some changes. I've always preferred Marvel to DC, but I still like many of the DC characters. (Robinson's Starman is my all time favorite comic). I WANT to see those characters in good movies. That won't happen as long as WB insists on every property having the same tone, regardless if its the correct tone for that property. It also won't happen as long as Snyder and Goyer are involved in their movies.

[revbfc]

BvS isn't the trainwreck some of chatter may have implied. It's actually really fun and looks to reward repeat viewings. It's not without flaws, but they don't overshadow the good. As for the upcoming Suicide Squad, the tone of that looks very different, and I hope that kind of fun insanity is merged with all the awesome in BvS. My opinion is that the only truly lazy part of BvS was Doomsday. Not so much the story with that character, more the CG rendering.

[SeanC]

The villain of the Justice League film is obviously Darkseid, based on BvS.  Not that that was surprising, mind you.

[revbfc]

The villain of the Justice League film is obviously Darkseid, based on BvS. Not that that was surprising, mind you.

Yeah, but I hope it's a bigger deal than just that. I'd actually like it better if Darkseid is in the second JL movie and all of our favorite characters get deputized by the Green Lantern Corps to help on another planet. Just thinking outside the box here.

I was actually hoping for Vandal Savage to be A villain in JL (as opposed to THE villain), but Legends of Tomorrow dashed those dreams.

Edited March 25, 2016 by revbfc

[revbfc]

My real wish for JL part I is for the team to clean up a global mess created by Amanda Waller. Save the intergalactic threats for part II.

[Trini]

So the internet noticed that Ezra Miller has significantly bulked up for his role as The Flash. Even his face is chiseled; crazy!

[Jazzy24]

Someone help me out here.

Suicide Squad is the next and only DC movie released this year besides BvsS right?

And next year we get Wonder Woman and JL am I correct?

So how many movies will the JL do? And will we be getting the Flash and Aquaman in between movies and is all of them orgin stories?

Also will any othe Superman movies be released?

[Trini]

Here you go: DC movies dates: When the next 10 films come out

• Suicide Squad - Aug. 5, 2016
• Wonder Woman - June 23, 2017
• Justice League - Part One - Nov. 17, 2017

 

Another Superman movie isn't scheduled yet, but WB/DC has said there will be one.

[revbfc]

Someone help me out here.

Suicide Squad is the next and only DC movie released this year besides BvsS right?

And next year we get Wonder Woman and JL am I correct?

So how many movies will the JL do? And will we be getting the Flash and Aquaman in between movies and is all of them orgin stories?

Also will any othe Superman movies be released?

I hope they won't all be origins, though some might. I heard some talk about an ancient war between the Amazons and Atlantis being used as part of one of the movies, but we should be so lucky. Edited March 27, 2016 by revbfc

[Demented Daisy]

Aquaman will have a lighter tone than Batman v Superman, according to its director.

 

Really looking forward to this one.  

[Bruinsfan]

Oh, I hope that starts a trend of all the other directors disavowing Snyder's frenetic murder porn sensibilities!

[Trini]

I mean, almost anything else would have to be 'lighter in tone' -- amirite?

[Bruinsfan]

I suppose they could always get Lars von Trier to direct a movie for the franchise.

[Actionmage]

I suppose they could always get Lars von Trier to direct a movie for the franchise.

 

Ha!

 

SO the grimdark Elseworlds movies are done, right?  We're going to have hopeful movies with heroes that, while they fight Evil, they aren't totally shunned by the populace?  Heroes that are allowed to smile, as opposed to ruefully grin or sneer?  I will probably go see The Suicide Squad, as they have their place, but it's a movie that's meant to be villain-centric. Or at least anti-hero-centric.  I'm not looking for some idiotically saccharine, positive hero movie, just one I can take nieces and nephews to see without disclaimers.  There is a middle spot that was last seen sometime around Superman 1 and 2, and those dealt briefly with a fickle public. Grimdark is fine, but there seems to be an overabundance of it. 

 

For “Batman v Superman,” I wanted to really dig into everything from ideas about American power to the structure of revenge tragedies to the huge canon of DC Comics to Amazon mythology. For “Justice League,” I could be reading in the same day about red- and blueshifts in physics, Diodorus of Sicily and his account of the war between Amazons and Atlanteans, or deep-sea biology and what kind of life plausibly might be in the Mariana Trench.

 

 

I at least appreciate that Mr. Terrio  researched so hard. That's going pretty deep. I'm sure it informed many of the better choices he made.