While DC Comics and Warner Bros. may be having trouble getting their properties to the silver screen, the company has had success on the small screen with shows like Smallville and Arrow. It looks like the company is going to continue to expand the DC Universe for home viewers with even more shows in the pipeline.
GOTHAM ON FOX
First up is “Gotham” a cop drama featuring James Gordon during his detective years, before he and Batman became the best of friends. According to Ed Brubaker, the series currently at FOX is not based on the Gotham Central series that he and Greg Rucka created in 2003.
I don’t know anything about that Gotham show, and I have no idea if it’s anything to do with Gotham Central in any way. I’m guessing not.
— Ed Brubaker (@brubaker) September 25, 2013
This is kind of shame because a Gotham Central series could easily fit in the Batman universe, allowing the appearance of known Bat-foes, but keeping the big bads (Joker) at bay. Regardless, don’t expect to see the Dark Knight appearing in the series.
“The Mentalist” creator, Bruno Heller is heading the Gotham project.
HELLBLAZER TO NBC
If the Constantine movie left a bad taste in your mouth, NBC and DC Comics are looking to David Goyer to fix that problem by bringing John Constantine to the network. Mr. Goyer and Daniel Cerone (also of “The Mentalist”) will be penning the script for the network that has “a commitment to the script, plus penalty for the project.”
This is by no means a firm “It’s going to happen” statement from the network, but they are invested in seeing what Mr. Goyer and Mr. Cerone bring to the table.
THE FLASH GETS A FACE
We already know that The CW has The Flash appearing in this season of Arrow, with a potential spin-off series coming out of the network later. We now have a face to go under the mask of the Scarlet Speedster. Grant Gustin, who many of you may know from Glee and 90210 will play a young-ish Barry Allen in upcoming episodes of The Arrow.
Barry Allen is currently set to appear in episodes 208, 210, and 220. Those episodes will be penned by Geoff Johns, Andrew Kreisberg and Greg Berlanti.
BARRY ALLEN is a Central City assistant police forensic investigator who arrives in Starling to look into a series of unexplained robberies that may have a connection to a tragedy in his past. A comic book fan boy, Barry is obsessed with the Arrow unaware that working with Oliver and Felicity to solve the crime has brought him right into the dangerous world of the vigilante.
For those of you who are concerned about the young age of actors in the roles, Mr. Gustin is 23. Stephen Ammel who plays Oliver Queen/Arrow is 32.
FOX WANTS MOORE
Finally something that we may have missed months ago, but Fox is also looking to adapt League of Extraordinary Gentlemen into a television series. The network and studio have given a put pilot commitment to the show. A “PPC” is a guarantee from the network that once the script is delivered, the network will “put” the pilot into production, but it may never air.
Michael Green (Green Lantern, Smallville) and Erwin Stoff (Kings, The Matrix) will serve as the executive producers with Mr. Green and writing the show if it gets turned into a series.
For those who think the likelihood of this series happening, you may be right, but keep in mind the literary show has become a big deal lately as Once Upon a Time, Headless Horseman, and Jekyll have all been in production and have had moderate success on the various networks.
With the eleven plus million people watching Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD this past week, Warner Bros. and DC Comics may see a big opportunity to push more of their properties to the small screen in the weeks and year’s to come.
7 Comments
If Gotham Central became I series, done well mind you, I would plotz. That remains one of my favorite series by one of my favorites writers. I almost don’t want it on tv. I’m afreared they’ll mess it up. Quite likely, they just want to capitalizing on Agents of SHIELD
I think I’m going to pass on the Constantine series because, he’s a chain-smoking, swears like a sailor, sympathetic, but irredeemable character. Also his average stories in the comics are always mature in content, and what NBC I don’t think would allow even his more tame adventures. Also very key to who ever they cast, if it gets that far: British, smokes, blond(dyed or otherwise), and it rimes with “tine.”
NBC might surprise you. They aired Hannibal this past Spring and it was certainly meant to satisfy a more mature taste.
I was probably being overly reactionary (I apologize) the character just seemed like he could only be played on a Shotime or HBO.
Go with what you know.
DC is excellent at putting out direct to DVD animated movies, and Smallville was, for the most part, excellent, though I haven’t seen Arrow because I can no longer afford cable TV (When they pushed the price of basic service up to $80 a month I pulled the plug.) On the other hand, DC’s live action movies have been less than stellar with a few notable exceptions (i.e., Dark Knight trilogy & Man of Steel). Marvel, on the other hand, had the opposite problem. Their animated cartoons and television shows have been mediocre at best, but their live action movie adaptations have been surprisingly excellent with a few notable exceptions (i.e., Spiderman 3, Both Fantastic 4 movies).
I am afraid, though, that we’re going to end up with a glut of Superhero movies and TV shows and quality will begin to suffer in the attempt to keep the market flooded, and it will eventually collapse under its own weight. Look at what happened to Star Trek pretty much choked to death on its own success until J. J. Abrams managed to breathe new life into the corpse.
Oh, I forgot to include the Ang Lee Hulk movie in Marvel’s Hall of Shame…
I’ll watch almost anything not on the CW.