Tag Archives: DC Studios

Jul 12 2026

DCU: Fallout From Supergirl

The relatively new cinematic universe, DC Universe (DCU), got off to a solid start with last year’s release of Superman and two TV shows, Creature Commandos and the second season of Peacemaker. However, the DCU and DC Studios, which produces the DCU films and TV shows, have been rattled by the failure of the DCU sophomore film, Supergirl.

It was hoped by DC Studios that Supergirl’s popular cameo appearance in Superman would translate to a healthy and respectable box office performance with her solo film. No one expected it to earn $1 billion dollars but at least it should have earned $400 to $500 million and help cement the DCU. Unfortunately that was not how things turned out and based on BTS stories about how DC Studios struggled with the film’s poor reception during previews is not a surprise. As the film was being put together the film studio and its head James Gunn saw that Supergirl was not scoring well during previews and the film was hastily edited. This resulted in a movie that felt disjointed in its mood. Sometimes it felt like a gritty and somber Mad Max-style action piece. Other times it seemed as if it was trying to ape the atmosphere of a more light-hearted and goofy space adventure like Guardians of the Galaxy.

This doesn’t mean that Supergirl is a terrible film. It has its faults but overall it was a fine superhero film and certainly cannot be compared to those awful Sony films featuring Spider-Man villains or some of the worst of the former DC Extended Universe (DCEU). But in DC Studios’ situation, the film had to be more than fine, it had to stand out and resonate with audiences. Perhaps if they delayed the film to tinker with it some more in reshoots or editing and released it another time it would have fared better. It is maddening to think that Warner Bros. thought that releasing the film in late June sandwiched between the animated juggernauts of Toy Story 5 and Minions & Monsters was a good idea. They could have released the film in early May where it had no competition. It probably would have still received the same negative to mixed reviews but it might have earned much more than it will now. Traditionally, the early May schedule was reserved for films from the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), but this year, there were no MCU films scheduled with only The Devil Wears Prada 2 in the way.

Despite how much Monday-morning-quarterbacking can go on, Supergirl is in the rearview mirror. Where does the DCU go from here? Is it already doomed? Will James Gunn be removed? To answer the last two questions: no the DCU is not in trouble though it took a nasty black eye from Supergirl’s failure and it is too premature to deem the DCU dead or in trouble, and Gunn’s position is safe…for now. Certainly the next DCU film, Clayface, has to do very well, as well as the upcoming TV show, Lanterns. The success of one or both projects will stem all the negativity the film studio is getting until the big test coming with next year’s Superman: Man of Tomorrow.

Fortunately, the previews for Clayface and Lanterns have been received well, especially Clayface’s. What is helping Clayface is that it seems more like a horror film and will come out at a perfect time to take advantage of that perception. Plus, being perceived as a horror film helps distinguish Clayface from standard superhero/comic book films and this is something that DCU needs at the moment. Meanwhile, Lanterns is being marketed as more of a murder mystery which will annoy Green Lantern fans who expected a traditional space adventure, but the more grounded TV show could pull in viewers who are not traditional superhero fans.

Of course, none of that will matter if Superman: Man of Tomorrow does not perform well. Going for it is that like Superman, it is being directed by James Gunn and the reaction to what has been revealed about it has been positive. Given Gunn’s talent, it is unlikely that the film will get negative reception but it has to do at least as well as Superman and earn over $600 million to keep the DCU viable. Its success also will determine the future of the DCU and James Gunn’s position as head of DC Studios.

Gunn’s contract with Warner Bros. will end next spring and no one can say for certain if he will remain as the president of DC Studios. Many have speculated with Warner Bros. being taken over by Paramount Pictures that it will mean that there will be massive executive changes at Warner Bros. Paramount could take a hard look at how the DCU is performing and demand changes or else. Whether or not Gunn will go along with this is unknown, and it has to be considered that he will be wooed by other film studios, starting with Disney. Do not be surprised if news comes out next year after Superman: Man of Tomorrow is released that Gunn will leave DC Studios to work for Marvel Studios with the intent that he could take it over at some point in the future. If that happens what becomes of the DCU? Who will take over and what direction will it take? Obscure heroes like Booster Gold and the Authority will be disregarded for proven popular characters, that is certain. But do not expect a return of the old DCEU or its creator Zack Snyder despite what some fans wish for.

There are many unknowns but expect a hard shift to focus on Batman as the lynchpin of the new DCU. Given the supposed lack of progress in launching a new Batman for the DCU, Gunn could face pressure to just fold The Batman films into the DCU since the first film, was very successful. The only thing is that that grounded version of Batman will be nearly impossible to connect it to the more bright and goofy DCU that Gunn has created. Of course, all this could be moot if the next couple of films and TV shows succeeds.

It is unlikely that the DCU will be dissolved by Warner Bros. anytime soon. It just got started with only two films under its belt. The cinematic universe has not achieved the disastrous results of the DCEU and still has some good will towards it. Some adjustments will have to be made just as Marvel Studios did and continue to do with their MCU films and TV shows. For one, James Gunn will have to step away from actively directing films and concentrate on running DC Studios. Trying to do both is impossible since running a film studio and maintaining the quality of films is a full time position. He has to devote more time to ensuring that what comes out is above average and deserves to be made, otherwise you end up with another Supergirl. Another thing for Gunn to contemplate is that although he loves quirky obscure characters major DCU projects cannot be devoted to them. He should be paying his full attention to the most popular DC characters like Batman, Wonder Woman, The Flash and so on. It’s fine to feature the quirky characters in films about popular characters like Superman did. Doing so would serve as a testbed for the quirky character and see if they are well received by fans, as what happened with Mr. Terrific, who is being considered for a TV show.

So, is it time to panic for DC Studios? Not yet, it’s early, Warner Bros. and the fans just have to be more patient and see how upcoming projects turn out. Yes, Supergirl is a failure but this experience was an opportunity for Gunn and the film studio to learn from the mistakes and make adjustments. Seeing what worked and what doesn’t will guarantee future success for the DCU going forward.

Aug 11 2025

We Are The Winners Of The Summer 2025 Superhero Film War

It sounds like a cliche by now to make a statement that we fans are the true winners of summer 2025’s superhero film wars between Marvel and DC, but it’s true. It does not matter which of the two films, Superman and The Fantastic Four: First Steps, is better, although fans have made arguments that Superman was better than The Fantastic Four: First Steps and vice versa. It’s all subjective and open to interpretation. What matters is that we finally got a summer where the two superhero-based film studios, Marvel Studios and DC Studios, went head to head with top-tier film releases that were well made and successful (more on that soon).

The result was that we were treated to two great superhero films in a relatively short amount of time. It would have been better if they performed better at the box office but they are not flops. Who knows what would have happened if both films pulled in a billion dollars? Would this have triggered some kind of race between the two studios to outdo each other at every turn? This would not be realistic or viable and probably lead to a huge crash after some of their films failed. Perhaps the films would have made a lot more money if their releases were not so close to each other since the films came out in a two-week period. Both studios should adjust their release schedules to consider this.

One thing to dispel is that there isn’t superhero fatigue. That is something that trolls and others want to create a narrative in order to drive clicks and views. Sure, we are past the heyday of the superhero craze and the new normal is that they are not guaranteed box office gold. But that is because too many inferior films came out which turned off many to superhero films. The two studios should share some blame for that but other studios, especially Sony Pictures, dumped out garbage like Madame Web and Morbius, which diluted the Marvel name and superhero films in general. It does not matter that the Sony Spider-Man-less films were not part of the Marvel Studios films; the average moviegoer does not know or pay attention to such subtleties. Even though Sony announced they won’t produce any more of these films, the damage has been done.

Right now both Marvel Studios and DC Studios are in a rebuilding phase. Both of this summer’s superhero films launched new phases for their shared cinematic universes and past history has shown that the early films of the studios started off relatively small but they built interest for the characters who later on headlined blockbuster films. For example, Man of Steel earned $670 million dollars, while that is great for most films, Warner Bros., the parent company of DC Studios, would have preferred it earned more. The following film after Man of Steel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice was more successful in part because it featured Superman. The problem for Warner Bros. is that they got greedy and impatient and jumped into the big tentpole epics like Justice League, which did not allow for the characters and events to grow naturally. In the end, these films failed to make the money Warner Bros. wanted and eventually the first DC shared universe collapsed.

James Gunn took over the DC films and is now carefully launching a new cinematic universe. For the most part, he is keeping things close as to what direction the films will take. As far as we know the only followup film in the new DC universe that is coming out will be Supergirl, while on TV Lanterns and Peacemaker will be streaming soon. Gunn has made it clear, that future films will only go into production once a complete script satisfies everyone, which is how it should be. Right now, Superman will have earned $600 very soon and maybe will finish out its run earning a bit more, which means it is profitable. This is a promising start for the new DC films but it’s important that Superman appear soon in future films in order to keep the character fresh with audiences.

Meanwhile, the early Marvel Studios films did not even come close to making a billion dollars until The Avengers. The Marvel films released this year were not outright flops nor were they were humongous successes, although the final numbers for The Fantastic Four: First Steps is not known at this time. The films earned from as low as $382 million (for Thunderbolts*) to $434 million and counting for The Fantastic Four: First Steps. In the end, the latter film will probably finish its run with over $500 million, which is respectable.

Marvel Studios tried to repeat this pattern with Phase Four of their films after the Infinity Saga ended. But circumstances prevented followups to the Phase Four films TV shows and characters. Sure, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings was a hit back in 2021 and all, but where is the sequel? Where is Shang-Chi for that matter? Yes, he will appear in Avengers: Doomsday but that will be a time gap of five years between appearances, which is too long. This lack of followup was a huge error on Marvel’s part. They had to keep to momentum going with Shang-Chi, especially since he was an unknown character. In the past, after minor and unknown characters made their debuts, Marvel Studios quickly featured them in other films to keep up interest. Examples of this include the Guardians of the Galaxy and Doctor Strange, who rocketed in popularity after they made appearances in Avengers films and their future films earned much more than their debut films. This even happened with the Marvel Studios version of Spider-Man. His debut film, Spider-Man: Homecoming, did not make a billion dollars but his second and third films did so, easily. This formula will work with the Fantastic Four and other new characters. Thankfully, Marvel Studios will repeat this formula in the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday as that film will feature the Fantastic Four, the Sam Wilson Captain America, and the Thunderbolts.

Both film studios are focusing on quality and long-term strategies, which is great because this will help word of mouth for these superhero films. Marvel Studios now has genuine competition when it comes to producing quality superhero films. Again this is great for us fans. Even the head of Marvel Studios, Kevin Feige, has said in the past that he wanted DC films to succeed because the competition would be good for Marvel Studios. Competition generates innovation and creativity and encourages competitors to do their best work. In fact, the lack of competition from DC could be seen as one of the reasons why Marvel Studios floundered for a few years.

It is great that there is genuine competition between the two superhero film studios. Whether or not Superman or The Fantastic Four: First Steps is more successful is irrelevant at this point, although Superman is the clear winner when it comes to box office result. Both films can be enjoyed by fans for what they bring to the table. What matters is that two great superhero films came out in one summer, which is something we have not had in a while. This is why we are the winners in this competition.

Jul 22 2017

Comic-Con 2017 Movie & TV Highlights

San Diego is host once again to Comic-Con and after a slow couple of days, interest exploded into unbridled passion today with the reveal of several high profile trailers and announcements. By no means does this mean that the news coming out of Comic-Con before today wasn’t anything to laugh off, it’s just everyone was waiting for the big guns today.

ben-affleck-as-batmanBefore today’s revelations, the biggest news coming out of the comic book/genre convention could have been considered negative. First, was the rumor that Ben Affleck was stepping away from the role of Batman in the DCEU. That was disturbing to the fledgling cinematic universe since his character was supposed to be the lynchpin tying the DCEU films together. It was kind of ironic because when he was first announced as Batman/Bruce Wayne in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, his casting was widely derided among fans but since the release of that film, many have come around to embrace his portrayal as an older and embittered Batman. In fact, many have claimed that Affleck has been the best actor to play the legendary superhero to date. Today, the actor dispelled the gossip and stated his intention of remaining in the role. Whether that holds up as filming starts with The Batman remains to be seen, but hopefully it will be true.

Next was the unveiling of the second trailer for Marvel’s upcoming TV show Inhumans. Overall, it was a better looking trailer compared to the first bland teaser, but what ruined it was the cheap looking CG used to animate Medusa’s hair, something that everyone was waiting for and it was a disappointment. With the IMAX pilot coming in less than two months it is hard to see how the effects will improve significantly. The other disheartening news was that 20th Century Fox is apparently not letting go of the Fantastic Four film rights with the announcement that a Doctor Doom film is in development. If this were to happen, the rights will stay with the studio instead of going back to Marvel Entertainment since Marvel’s premier supervillain is so closely associated with the Fantastic Four. The fact that the film is being developed by the showrunner of Legion is a bittersweet salve for fans hoping and desperately wishing that Marvel Studios would get back the rights to the superhero team given Fox’s abysmal record with their versions of the Fantastic Four.

Today, the big guns were brought to bear as trailers after trailers were released to hungry fans attending the crowded convention or scouring the Internet. In many ways, Warner Bros. and DC Studios won the day with the universal acclaim received for the third trailer for this year’s Justice League. Building on the success of this summer’s Wonder Woman, the new trailer opens with the Amazonian princess doing her thing then quickly cuts to showcase the other members of the team and a tantalizing tease of the film’s villain Steppenwolf. The Flash stole the trailer with his awkward and funny demeanor that called to mind Spider-Man. Sadly, although he was teased, there still isn’t any sign of Superman. Come on DC throw us a bone!

Speaking of Superman’s absence, DC Studios announced their updated slate of films and a sequel to Man of Steel was not on the roster, which is disappointing. However, some of the announcements made up for it with Green Lantern Corps, Justice League Dark, Batgirl, Wonder Woman 2, Shazam, Aquaman (this one is no-brainer given that it’s currently filming and footage was shown tonight), Suicide Squad 2, The Batman and The Flash: Flashpoint. The last film sounds very exciting since it can be the method used to reboot the DCEU if needed, and on the other hand could explain the recasting of Batman if that were to happen.

Marvel Studios, like DC Studios, had a huge presentation with stunning announcements and teases of their upcoming films. We got a glimpse of concept art for Captain Marvel and sweetening that presentation was the news that Captain Marvel will be set in the ’90s and have her fighting the Skrulls, one of the core enemies of the Fantastic Four. We also learned that Lawrence Fishburne and Michelle Pfeiffer are joining the cast of Ant-Man and the Wasp as Bill Foster/Black Goliath and Janet Van Dyne, the original Wasp.

The highlights for Marvel Studios’ presentation were the trailers for Thor: Ragnarok, Black Panther, and Avengers: Infinity War. While the visually stunning and trippy Thor: Ragnarok trailer was released online, the ones for the latter two films so far are absent. This has been super frustrating for fans online since we have all been teased for a week about how jaw-dropping the footage is in Avengers: Infinity War. It was first shown in the ultra-exclusive D23 expo last week and everyone was hoping to see it this weekend. For some reason, probably for marketing, Marvel has refused to drop the trailer and most of us have to contend with leaked grainy footage. Our best hope is that enough leaks forces Marvel to release the trailer like DC did with Suicide Squad two years ago. But seriously, Marvel stop the tease, you could have topped DC tonight but you let that victory slip from your fingers!

Other trailer highlights include these nuggets:

Stranger Things 2! With our favorite ’80s geeks cosplaying the Ghostbusters as they come upon another sci-fi mystery!

Defenders, which has a kick ass trailer featuring a grounded and gritty version of the Avengers and Justice League!

A new trailer for Star Trek: Discovery, looks stunning though the Klingons seem weak compared to the classic space viking look!

But the most exciting trailer for the day was the first teaser for Steven Spielberg’s next sci-fi epic, Ready Player One. This trailer about a futuristic video game player is so loaded with genre Easter eggs, it warrants multiple viewings! Who knows how jammed the final film will be? But the awesomeness of this trailer will make anyone want to go out and read the book that inspired Ready Player One. Those shots of the Iron Giant and the DeLorean from Back to the Future sold it!

That does it for this year, sure there is one more day left of Comic-Con 2017, but no major announcements are expected, but you never know. Maybe first looks of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, The Predator, or Avengers: Infinity War will finally be unveiled to the entire world. Check out our Facebook and Twitter pages for updates, and here, of course!