Did You Hear? is a weekly examination of headlines in the entertainment industry and a take on what they could mean for the future of the industry and (often), the little geeky bubble that we occupy!
The Future of DC Movies
Variety released a piece earlier this week that set Nerd Twitter aflame about Warner Bros and the future of the DC Movie Universe. As readers of this column know, DC Movies have been in a transitional period the past couple years and appear to be in the process of reinventing themselves – particularly in a post Joker era.
Shawn Robbins of BoxOffice.com broke it down like this:
They’re on the upswing. They had a rocky period, but they’re starting to find their footing.
The article goes on to point out that Batman seems to have a lot of clarity with the upcoming Matt Reeves/Robert Pattinson The Batman right around the corner with its Long Hallowe’en-cum-Arkham Asylum points of view. Standing in the shadow of The Joker many film people contend Warner Bros is eyeing up more stand alone, singular properties with a darker bent entirely.
They also estimate that Wonder Woman is in good shape with Wonder Woman 1984 hitting screens in 2020 surrounded by the rumour that it directly contradicts everything the eponymous character does and says in her previous appearance in Justice League.
By contrast, Superman, the hero who started it all, appears to be a little more unclear with the issue of whether or not Henry Cavill will ever get to reprise the role still up in the air – at least as far as everyone outside of the Warner Bros building is concerned.
To help find a way to make Superman relevant to modern audiences, studio brass has been polling lots of high-profile talent. There have been discussions with J.J. Abrams, whose company Bad Robot recently signed a massive first-look deal with the studio, and there was a meeting with Michael B. Jordan earlier this year with the “Creed” star pitching Warners on a vision for the character. However, Jordan isn’t ready to commit to taking on the project since filming doesn’t seem likely to happen for several years and he has a full dance card of projects. Insiders think that a new Superman film is unlikely to hit screens before 2023, given that there’s no script and no director attached.
Via Variety.
The mention of Killmonger himself, Michael B. Jordan, set the Twitter-verse aflame. Many fans appeared shocked and delighted by this choice forgetting that Jordan has previously working with WB providing the voice for Cyborg in several of their new-continuity Justice League original animated movies.
The credit for these new moves is being laid largely at the feet of new President of DC Films, Walter Hamada, with Robbins going on to state of the old regime:
Their initial mistake was that they tried to do too much, too fast. “They were trying to copy the Marvel model, but that took time and years of building up characters. You can’t start with a big ensemble movie. You need to earn that.
Later Analyst with Exhibitor Relations, Jeff Bock, said.
There’s a huge appetite for R-rated superhero movies and if Marvel isn’t going to step up, that presents an opening for DC to tap into that audience.”
While I enjoy a well-earned R-rated superhero movie, because of the breakneck speed DC Movies have moved at in the past, I worry that we’re going to get an R-rated Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and Flash movie and I’m not certain if that’s where my hopes and dreams for the future of these characters lies.
The article also notes that Green Lantern Corps and Ezra Miller’s solo Flash movie are still in development (no mention about their respective potential ratings), and Green Lantern television show are still in active development.
We would love to read down in the comments section what you think about the current shift in the world of DC Films and whether or not you’re looking forward to more R-rated superhero content!
‘Frozen 2’ Wrecks the Box Office
Thanksgiving weekend has had a bunch of awesome movies hitting cinemas around the world including 
Frozen 2, Knives Out, Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood, and Queen & Slim. THR broke down their earnings respectively, with Frozen 2 surpassing and destroying all expectations. Based on the success of the first movie none of us should have been surprised the sequel was going to do big numbers, but I’m shocked it set the records that it did.
Walt Disney Animation’s tentpole Frozen 2 led the bounty with a record-shattering $123.7 million for the Wednesday-Sunday stretch, easily besting the $109.9 million grossed by The Hunger Games: Catching Fire in 2013. Most rivals believe Frozen 2 will come in between $126 million and $128 million when final numbers are tallied on Monday.
In a later piece from Forbes they subtitled their article:
Frozen has the record for a Thanksgiving opening weekend and now Frozen II has the record for a Thanksgiving weekend, opening or otherwise.
… which succinctly tells you everything you need to know about the success of the movie.
They further conclude:
The $86 million Fri-Sun frame marks the biggest non-opening weekend for an animated film, ahead of Incredibles 2 ($80 million) and (if you count it) The Lion King ($77 million).
In the wake of Frozen 2’s rampant success writers have taken to their social media to draw attention to the fact that animation writers are not covered under WGA regulations, nor entitled to the pay rates Guild membership ensures, while still managing to produce the biggest movie of the holiday weekend:
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Post-Black Friday, I’ll leave you with that food for thought.
