Its a sad day when the only thing posted is the little google drawing of its logo. Needless to say it was a busy day at work yesterday as it today, but I’m taking a moment to post this. I’ve been following this for the last few weeks with the huge box office business of Batman, Warner Bros have been racking their brains trying to figure out what to do with Superman. And I guess they figured it out.
from comingsoon.net:
Warner Bros. Confirms Superman Reboot
Source: Steelsheen August 22, 2008
Just a few days after this article was posted, Warner Bros. Pictures Group President Jeff Robinov has told The Wall Street Journal that the studio is going to be reintroducing Superman. We assume this will be similar to how Louis Leterrier’s The Incredible Hulk was a reboot of Ang Lee’s Hulk. Here is what the article says:
Warner Bros. also put on hold plans for another movie starring multiple superheroes — known as “Batman vs. Superman” — after the $215 million “Superman Returns,” which had disappointing box-office returns, didn’t please executives. “‘Superman’ didn’t quite work as a film in the way that we wanted it to,” says Mr. Robinov. “It didn’t position the character the way he needed to be positioned.” “Had ‘Superman’ worked in 2006, we would have had a movie for Christmas of this year or 2009,” he adds. “But now the plan is just to reintroduce Superman without regard to a Batman and Superman movie at all.”
The article also talks about Warner Bros. adapting other DC properties over the new few years. “By 2011, Mr. Robinov plans for DC Comics to supply the material for up to two of the six to eight tent-pole films he hopes Warner Bros. will have in the pipeline by then,” it says. Those projects will likely be about single characters at first, and will be darker much like The Dark Knight:
With “Batman vs. Superman” and “Justice League” stalled, Warner Bros. has quietly adopted Marvel’s model of releasing a single film for each character, and then using those movies and their sequels to build up to a multicharacter film. “Along those lines, we have been developing every DC character that we own,” Mr. Robinov says.
Like the recent Batman sequel — which has become the highest-grossing film of the year thus far — Mr. Robinov wants his next pack of superhero movies to be bathed in the same brooding tone as “The Dark Knight.” Creatively, he sees exploring the evil side to characters as the key to unlocking some of Warner Bros.’ DC properties. “We’re going to try to go dark to the extent that the characters allow it,” he says. That goes for the company’s Superman franchise as well.
The studio is set to announce its plans for future DC movies in the next month. For now, though, it is focused on releasing four comic-book films in the next three years, including a third Batman film, a new film reintroducing Superman, and two movies focusing on other DC Comics characters. Movies featuring Green Lantern, Flash, Green Arrow, and Wonder Woman are all in active development.
We’ll let you know as soon as the studio has announced its plans for future DC movies.
Let’s get one thing straight, not everything needs to be as dark as The Dark Knight was. But to make a compelling story you need a little bit of character development, which was what made Spiderman and now Batman two great film franchises. It pushed the stories forward. Also, instead of simply stand alone movies, they were also episodes in a greater part of a film series, if that makes sense.
So, go ahead, take your time developing new superhero movies. But, don’t forget, we want to see action!
–Cos
PS I found this pic while searching for a pic of Superman:
I don’t know too much about the girl, her name is Lucy Pinder (and right underneath of this pic were links to Lucy Pinder wet t-shirt contest, so I can only guess what she is) but if Warner Bros. wants to do a Supergirl series, they should wisen up and do something like this. I’m sure it’ll make a lot of money…
Well, hello there, Supergirl.
Really, Batman worked because it was well done, but also because Batman needs to be dark. Superman shouldn’t be dark – that’s what makes the Batman-Superman team-ups so good, because it’s an interesting clash of dark and light (I’m a huge fan of the crossovers, hope they get to those soon!).
If they make Superman dark, it’s going to suck. It sounds like they just don’t get it…glad Marvel’s doing it right, though.
Why can’t DC get the comics people do work on these movies?
Like I said, the reason why Batman worked was because of the character development for him. Not because it was dark, the dark part is a part of the whole Batman universe. Superman is supposed to be light and crazy, and maybe we don’t need a Superman anymore. I’m being serious. With the way the world works right now, perhaps people don’t want to see a guy that can stop things, and if he can stop pretty much anything, why can’t he?
That’s an interesting idea. Superman’s also such a lazy superhero, too – almost no imagination required to create him. He can fly! He’s really strong! Bullets bounce off of him! Oh yeah, and laser eyes!
Exactly, Batman is supposed to be dark, so making him dark helps the movie work.
I agree with you, the world right now needs a mortal superhero – someone that has faults, someone people can relate to. Batman’s a regular old guy, just with some toys and extensive martial arts training. You and I could be Batman.
No…I am Batman…
lol…I agree, Superman really didn’t take much to create, I mean, whenever there was a problem they would just add another super power to his repertoire of powers (but, he didn’t start out flying, in the earlier comics he was bouncing or leaping (like a flea) which is why in those early serials where the whole “look in the sky, is it a bird, a plane, no its superman” thing came from they have a line that says able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. The flying thing came from somewhere. Again, probably to combat some villain or something.
You’re a comic book fan, you’ve obviously heard of Crisis on Infinite Earths (the original one from the 80’s) right? Well, apparently when that happened they took away a lot of Superman’s powers. But we’ll continue this conversation when I know you know what the Crisis is.
Oh man, I have not read Crisis on Infinite Earths. That’s not when Superman became two, a red and a blue one, right?
oh no, that one happened a lot more recent, probably right before I went to college (around 99 or 2000). Crisis on Infinite Earths came out in 1985 (I myself have never read it) but about three years ago they did the sequel: Infinite Crisis and they just started the last of the “trilogy” (I put the quotes because I’m sure in 1985 they really thought they’d pump out three of these–its more of a ploy to make money) and if you want to read up on it, let me send you here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crisis_on_Infinite_Earths