New DC CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran are looking to shake things up in a big way as they map out the future of the troubled DC Extended Universe. According to a new article from The Hollywood Reporter, the biggest moves are the axing of the already announced Wonder Woman 3, the cancellation of the Man of Steel sequel and the end of the Aquaman series after the second film next year.
Gunn and Safran are essentially aiming to wrap up the DCEU as director Zack Snyder established it a decade ago, and that will likely involve recasting the main characters. While Warner Bros. has already tried hard to distance itself from Snyder’s dark vision for the franchise with more colorful Aquaman movies, Shazam! and Birds of Prey, most of the films retained the core cast that Snyder had prepared.
According to THR, Safran and Gunn let Wonder woman director and star Patty Jenkins and Gal Gadot knew last week that the film would not be part of the vision for the future. This was after Jenkins created a story outline for the third film. Last week, Gadot posted an unsolicited tweet thanking fans for supporting Wonder Woman and promising a movie everyone will enjoy.
A few years ago it was announced that I would be playing Wonder Woman. I was so grateful for the opportunity to play such an incredible, iconic character, and more than anything, I’m grateful for YOU. Fans. Can’t wait to share her next chapter with you🙅🏻♀️🙌🏼💃🏻♥️ pic.twitter.com/XlzhrMx4xe
— Gal Gadot (@GalGadot) December 6, 2022
Similarly, Dwayne Johnson posted a tweet disputing reports that his recent film Black Adam lost WB over $50 million. According to THR , WB isn’t moving forward with a Black Adam sequel either, but Johnson continued to hint that the film successfully laid the groundwork for a new era in the franchise.
Johnson has left no stone unturned in promoting Black Adam , which is grossing less than $400 million worldwide against a reported $200 million budget — a THR report suggests that number could be even higher — and was launched with the promise of a future setting. the encounter between Black Adam and Superman. Henry Cavill, who piloted the franchise, was brought back into the role and later confirmed that he was returning as the character. But THR said that while WB has opened talks about Man of Steel 2, it will likely come back to their decision to move forward with the film.
I was waiting for confirmation with financiers before sharing this excellent #BlackAdam news – our movie will make $52 million to $72 million.
Reality.
At nearly $400 million worldwide, we’re building our new franchise one step at a time (the first Captain America grossed $370 million) for DC’s future.https://t.co/GBIgsbtnkq— Dwayne Johnson (@TheRock) December 7, 2022
One series that Gunn and Safran are not touching is director Matt Reeves’ The Batman, which has spin-off series and sequel films in development. But this series falls outside the scope of the DCEU, as does director Todd Phillips’ Joker, which is about to get a sequel.
Aquaman star Jason Momoa will likely be recast as the Lobo character going forward, he told THR. Momoa recently shared a video expressing his excitement at landing the role he’s been eyeing for a long time, and Gunn recently posted a photo of Lobo on Twitter.
Gunn and Safran are expected to present their plans to WB Discovery CEO David Zaslav within a week, by which time fans will likely have a clearer idea of where the DCEU is headed.
