Justice League and how it may have saved the DCU

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I am the Watcher in the Night
As Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy came to an end in 2012, Disney had already set about creating a connected universe on their Marvel properties (Iron Man, Thor and Captain America). The latter was ab old move that paid off with The Avengers releasing to the tune of one and a half billion dollars, which was almost half a billion more than The Dark Knight Rises. This was remarkable, considering Batman was a far better known quantity than the likes of Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Hulk and Black Widow. Warner Bros. looked at Disney's success and knew they had to get in on the money and do it quick.

Rumours circulated on whether or not Nolan would return for a fourth Batman film, the director declined and then further rumours circulated on whether or not any future projects would be a continuation of Nolan's work or something new all together? Eventually, Warner Bros'. decided to go in a different direction and at first, it all sounded so promising. There would be a re-boot of Superman, which acquired David Goyer as screen writer. This would be a more "grounded", "gritty" and "dark" take on the Superman mythos (you see kids, all the studios not named Disney were going for that dark and gritty, Nolan-esque view of superheroes, including WB, as well as Sony with their Spider-Man reboot).

Whether or not this would work would be down to the film itself but WB's plans were far bigger than that. Batman would be re-booted alongside his red and blue friend, and eventually the studio would release movies for Wonder Woman, Aquaman and The Flash. These would all culminate in the Justice League cross over. Sound familiar? It was the exact same process that Disney had taken and it had worked perfectly. WB however, did not have the patience, the skill or the realisation for this vision.

As Man of Steel released to underwhelming reviews and box office receipts, Disney was forging ahead with phase 2 of the MCU, with ever bigger hits and new properties connecting with fans (remember this as the arrival of The Guardians of the Galaxy). WB got nervous, they got greedy and they rushed into development for Batman v Superman. As if combining the two biggest properties that DC had was not a big enough task, they wanted Snyder and everyone else involved to introduce Wonder Woman, The Flash and Aquaman to an unknowing and possibly uncaring audience. Why should audiences care about characters they had yet to see on screen or know about? The MCUs success was not about getting as many superheroes on screen as possible, it was about making us care for them in the first place.

Batman v Superman crumpled under the weight of its own expectations, Snyder's inability to understand or care for either character and WB's greed. The movie did well at the box office but it was no run away success; it fared worse among critics. This was a sad, grey, dismal film and yet we still somehow had to watch as Justice League ambled onto our screens. Slowly, non-sensically, in a drab grey CGI world, it disappeared, swallowed by its own excesses and hubris. What WB did not understand was, even in this capitalist world, consumers care about where they spend their money.

For all intents and purposes, Wonder Woman and Aquaman, stand alone projects that appeared around Justice League, did well. Both were financial successes and both received favourable reviews. However rumours were already circulating that Batfleck's appearance Justice League and Suicide Squad film (a sorry, Guardians of the Galaxy, cash grab) would be his last. These rumours turned out to be true. Thus died the DCU...and did anyone care beyond a few, hardcore DC comic book fans?

The answer is likely no, it certainly was for me but after watching The Joker, I realised WBs may well have accidentally struck oil. The film is already a monster hit, has caused controversy, publicity and discussion on a number of topics and could earn its star an Oscar nod. Why? How did this come from the house that Warner built, the same house that gave us grey on grey in BvS and Justice League? The answer, partly, is down to this being a stand alone movie. It is not burdened with trying to replicate Disney's success, or to form a universe. It simply puts into motion a stand alone script. Who would have thought that could work?

Batman, DC and WB's biggest property is also getting a re-boot. No more Afleck, hello Pattinson. There is currently little or no talk about connecting this Batman to Wonder Woman or Aquaman...certainly no talk about connecting him to The Flash. WB are looking to build a stand alone Batman, which may one day feed into a shared universe but that is unlikely for now. The writers, directors and casts involved can work on projects that are built with a singular aim in mind, not a collection of "what ifs". This may just well work. Justice League may have killed the DCU and it may be the best thing to happen to DC, their characters and their ideas.
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I am the Watcher in the Night
It was really Wonder Woman who saved the DC cinematic universe.
Wonder Woman grossed about 800 million....Aquaman grosses over a billion. Neither of them saved the DC cinematic universe because, as of now, the DCU no longer exists. The re-boot of Batman is to (for the moment) create a standalone film. How WW and AM will fit into, if they ever do, is to be seen but an MCU style expanded universe has been scrapped.

So although Wonder Woman was well received, the DCU collapsed around it.



Welcome to the human race...
I don't know if the DCEU has been totally scrapped, though. You still have Wonder Woman 1984 and Birds of Prey coming out, after all. If anything, it might work out if it's not focused on Batman; after all, the MCU was built around "lesser" superheroes like Iron Man or Thor while the most famous Marvel character, Spider-Man, existed independently for the most part (albeit because of rights issues).
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I am the Watcher in the Night
I don't know if the DCEU has been totally scrapped, though. You still have Wonder Woman 1984 and Birds of Prey coming out, after all. If anything, it might work out if it's not focused on Batman; after all, the MCU was built around "lesser" superheroes like Iron Man or Thor while the most famous Marvel character, Spider-Man, existed independently for the most part (albeit because of rights issues).
These movies are not necessarily going to lead to team ups or cross overs, which is what the DCU was gearing up to by outright copying the MCU, which itself copied the massive comic book cross overs we have seen since the 80s on wards.

Wonder Woman, Aquaman and for some weird reason Suicide Squad are all receiving sequels but they are not gearing up towards a big Justice League reunion. In my opinion that is a great thing, as they can stamp their place on a stand alone basis and be better for it.



I guess it depends on whether you see the DC cinematic universe as stand alone films sprung from the same universe or an interconnected series of films, a la Marvel. I think Wonder Woman helped generate interest in Justice League after a relatively lukewarm response to Batman v. Superman as well as Aquaman and other stand alones. Personally I wouldn't mind stand alones with their own styles.



I wouldn't mind seeing a JLA sequel of galactic proportions as Starro the Conqueror invades Earth (their first comic book villain).
And it would have to have Green Lantern and Martian Manhunter (2 of the original founders).

I'd like to see a redo on Cyborg's bionics - this didn't seem like the Cyborg (Vic Stone) I grew up with. He just looked like a CGI creation (which of course he was) but he should look like his father built him (not some sort of alien tech hybrid).



I am the Watcher in the Night
I wouldn't mind seeing a JLA sequel of galactic proportions as Starro the Conqueror invades Earth (their first comic book villain).
And it would have to have Green Lantern and Martian Manhunter (2 of the original founders).

I'd like to see a redo on Cyborg's bionics - this didn't seem like the Cyborg (Vic Stone) I grew up with. He just looked like a CGI creation (which of course he was) but he should look like his father built him (not some sort of alien tech hybrid).
I think there is no need to rush any of this. A return for Batman in stand alone form will be interesting, especially to see how Patterson fairs. Then there is Aquaman, hugely successful and adored (especially by the girls), which could spawn a series of movies without any forced need for universe creation. Wonder Woman, with all its critical success could also carry on without trying to hard to connect to anything else. If these movies are successful, WB could risk putting Green Lantern back on screen, include the Martian Manhunter and other less known characters, just like Disney now have the confidence to do with Marvel properties.