Warner Bros. really wants to catch up to Marvel, and I do mean really. With their DC Comics film slate officially announced today, the studio has plans set until 2020 that include a whopping ten films.
And yes, those plans do include a Wonder Woman solo film. And the Jason Mamoa Aquaman film they’ve been denying for months. There are also a couple of surprises that I don’t think anyone expected.
- Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, directed by Zack Snyder (2016)
- Suicide Squad, directed by David Ayer (2016)
- Wonder Woman, starring Gal Gadot (2017)
- Justice League Part One, directed by Zack Snyder, with Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill and Amy Adams reprising their roles (2017)
- The Flash, starring Ezra Miller (2018)
- Aquaman, starring Jason Momoa (2018)
- Shazam (2019)
- Justice League Part Two, directed by Zack Snyder (2019)
- Cyborg, starring Ray Fisher (2020)
- Green Lantern (2020)
A Green Lantern reboot? Flash has already been cast?
Ok, the Green Lantern reboot isn’t that surprising. They were bound to check out just how poison the character is eventually, and nine years might be enough time for people to give him another chance. They gave Batman another shot after eight.
It’s Flash that’s the real stunner here. There were no rumors of who the studio was talking to or looking at, not even a shortlist, then suddenly they cast Ezra Miller, an actor known for films that are about as far from comic book adaptations as you can get. You’ve probably seen him in The Perks of Being a Wallflower or We Need to Talk About Kevin, decidedly not blockbusters, where he played characters as unlike either Barry Allen or Wally West as possible.
Don’t worry. Even though they’re not on the list, WB is working on stand-alone Batman and Superman movies. You will see Affleck’s Batman working outside of team-ups. Promise.
What might be most interesting here is WB’s commitment to diversity. There’s going to be a film with a female lead before Marvel (and three more where she has major roles). They’ve got at least three films anchored by POCs (several of which will have major roles in the team-ups). Hell, one of the stars even identifies as queer. It’s a very good time to be a comics fan on Tumblr.
Hell, it’s just a very good time to be a comics fan, period.
