It was inevitable that Justice League‘s disastrous box office would lead to some heads rolling over at Warner Bros. and DC Films. I mean, how could it possibly earn less than the other DCEU movies? It takes a screwup of epic proportions to pull that off, but so far that’s what they’ve done. And all of this comes just as a new initiative to lighten things up and make the movies fun, a good idea in theory, has fallen flat. The damage may have been too far gone.
So the axe has come down and it has hit the head of DC Films, Jon Berg, who is moving into a producer capacity. They say this plan has been in the works for months, but I guess it was just a coincidence it happens right after the company’s biggest failure. Slightly less certain is the future for Chief Creative Officer, comic book pro and all-around swell guy Geoff Johns. While he is staying at his current position, Variety suggests his role could “evolve” into something lesser, like an advisory position.
Neither Berg or Johns is expected to get full producer credits on future films, either. They’ve been hit hard for sticking with Zack Snyder, who will remain in a producer capacity for a while, even though his films have been disappointments overall. An early cut of Justice League alarmed studio execs for being too bleak, prompting a lighter tone from Joss Whedon that never quite meshed into a cohesive movie.
All is not lost, though. The studio, while disappointed in the numbers, is happy that Justice League effectively introduced both Jason Momoa’s Aquaman and Ezra Miller’s Flash into the DCEU. That should set them up for future movies down the line that they hope will be as successful as Wonder Woman. We just had the first look at Momoa in the film which will be directed by James Wan and opens next year. The Flash’s movie, titled Flashpoint, has had a difficult time getting up to speed and currently has no director attached.
Speaking of Flashpoint, it’s expected that Ben Affleck will appear as Batman, but he’s not likely to have anything to do with Matt Reeves’ standalone The Batman. Reeves wants somebody new in the cape and cowl, with recent rumors suggesting Jake Gyllenhaal as the frontrunner.
The point of all this is that DC Films is a mess and desperately needs a singular hand guiding the ship. I noted how ridiculous it was having Margot Robbie, in the middle of a random TV interview, announcing a brand new Harley Quinn movie, which is like the third or fourth movie featuring the popular Suicide Squad character. None of them have gone anywhere yet, but she’s already announcing another. That’s just nuts, and you don’t see this kind of sloppiness over at Marvel where Kevin Feige is the only voice you hear on these matters. I’m not saying Warner Bros. should ape the Marvel way, but this is one are where they should.
