To call this year a disappointment for DC’s film branch would be both an understatement and entirely inaccurate. Although reviews have been universally middling for both Batman v Superman and Suicide Squad, both movies raked in hundreds of millions of dollars at the box office.
DC has been able to consistently turn a profit even without a modicum of the critical acclaim that greets Marvel every time it unleashes another movie into theaters, which is why everyone is so intrigued about what DC will do next.
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We know about the next few films DC plans to release—Wonder Woman, Justice League, The Flash, Aquaman and an untitled Batman flick from Ben Affleck—but there’s a great deal we don’t know as DC tries to find a way to make its lineup more appealing to the general moviegoing audience without losing its personality.
Most of this information won’t be made available for months or years, but this week, an anonymous source on Reddit posted dozens of unreleased details about the DC movie slate. Many sound reasonable, others sound ridiculous, but despite the fact that we have no idea whether or not any of them are real, it’s at the very least a fun fantasy checklist from a dedicated DC fan.
Before you read on, remember, if any of these do happen to be real, they could be considered massive spoilers for future DC movies, so read on at your own risk.
Here’s the full list ScreenGeek pulled from Reddit before it was taken down:
- Cyborg is out, folks. Expect a full Titans flick with Deathstroke as the main antagonist. Nightwing is in it, though, if that’s any consolation. Cyborg will be in the Flash movie. Barry and Vic knew each other in school.
- Deathstroke was offered to a bunch of actors but it ultimately went to Joe Manganiello.
- Sequel to Man of Steel will be released in 2020 (the name Superman will not be in the title). Villain is Braniac. They’re trying to court several directors including J.J. Abrams and Duncan Jones. Other characters being considered include Supergirl and Superboy. Lex Luthor will be a key character in Brainiac’s new origin. I believe the origin they have planned at the moment is Lex uses Kryptonian and alien tech to enhance LexOS and it becomes Brainiac. From what I’ve seen though, they DEFINITELY want Brainiac in a physical comic book-y form, not as some AI controlling drones or machines or something.
- Edgar Wright is also being courted for a DCEU project.
- They’re trying not to make Justice League feel overcrowded but it’s very clear that there is a lot they’re working with already. Looking to be a long movie. They know they can’t cut out a ton of stuff and repeat past mistakes.
- Justice League’s villain is Steppenwolf as you all know. The League fights Parademons for a good chunk of the film. Lex is let out of prison and gets the public to love him. He tries to manipulate the public into hating heroes like Batman and Superman but it doesn’t work. Lex helps Steppenwolf come to Earth in exchange for technology and knowledge. Lex is very manipulative and much calmer than he was in BvS. He’s also much scarier in my opinion. There’s a funny scene after the League is assembled where Joker and Harley are committing a crime and they expect Batman to show up…when the whole League arrives. It’s really funny and Joker and Harley just stand there, not knowing what to do now. Kind of like a “Well…shit” moment. Later, the League get their asses kicked by Steppenwolf but then Superman returns and weakens him. The full Justice League then works together to defeat Steppenwolf in an awesome climactic fight reminiscent of the big fight scene in The Avengers. Superman has a beard, long hair, tattered/scorched-looking black suit, and is thin at first (not as thin as Flashpoint Superman but still thin). During the fight with Steppenwolf, you see his full strength return with each swing and with each second he’s in the sunlight. Green Lantern shows up at the very very end of the film (may even be moved to mid/post-credit scene). There’s a full Darkseid tease at the end buuuuut…
- Justice League 2 may or may not use Darkseid as the villain. The biggest concern is comparisons to Thanos. They may hold off and use him further down the line once the dust has settled following Infinity War. Other villains being considered are the Injustice League, the Crime Syndicate and The Society. They really want multiple villains for the sequel for some reason. Tower of Babel is also being discussed as a possible plot.
- Justice League 2 will be pushed back to the end of 2019 to make room for Justice League Dark (which will have a different title to not confuse moviegoers).
- Aquaman will release August 2018. The villain is Black Manta, though as far as I know he has not been cast yet. The concept sketches do show the full suit which made me very excited. They want Black Manta to be a Darth Vader-esque character, in that his voice and presence is intimidating and terrifying even when he’s not fighting. Aqualad is in it and serves his father for a good chunk of the film. He eventually switches sides and helps Aquaman. There’s a cool fight scene planned where Aquaman and Aqualad fight Black Manta’s army before Aquaman goes off to fight Black Manta at the end.
- Flash’s release date is March 2018. Villains are the Rogues, led by a really…creepy Captain Cold. The film is going to be really fun but Captain Cold is…strange. Creepy is really the best way I can describe it. I’m not entirely sold on the concept so hopefully it’ll work better on the big screen. He wears a sleek mechanical suit that has the same color scheme and pattern as his comic book incarnation. They noticed how fan’s loved the Speedforce scenes in the show and hope to put their own spin on something similar.
- The Batman film (right now called The Batman though they’re considering other titles) will release October 5 2018. Current plot has Black Mask as the main villain breaking other villains out of Arkham to kill Batman. Joker and Harley have a subplot involving a bomb to blow up all the inmates once Batman recaptures them all that results in Harley leaving the Joker because of the abuse and Batman trying to rehabilitate her. Deathstroke is sent in by Waller to help contain the situation so she can use them for her own means but Batman fights Deathstroke and promises Waller that he’s coming for her next. Deadshot is also in it but leaves the Asylum to be with his daughter instead of getting his revenge on Batman. There’s a really cool scene where Black Mask lines all the villains up and asks who will join him to get revenge (this scene will focus a lot on Deadshot’s reactions, making it clear he wants only freedom). Many of the villains get away in the end, with Batman promising to hunt them all down. The film will end with Batman overlooking Gotham and seeing one of the B-List villains (has yet to be decided) committing a crime.
- Luke Evans was approached to play Sinestro in Green Lantern Corps. Not sure if he agreed. The film will be lighthearted and fun. They’re modeling the tone after old cheesy sci-fi serials. As of right now, the villain will be Sinestro with a tease of Atrocitus towards the end (subject to change however). They want to explore the various Lantern Corps with this film and the sequels.
- They want to do something fresh and new to revamp Black Adam in Shazam. From what I’ve heard, Dwayne Johnson has been in constant communication about what they could do to make this film better. Billy is also a huge Justice League fan and he meets them at the end of the film as Shazam.
- Misha Collins, Channing Tatum, Milo Ventimiglia, Steven Yeun, and Jake Gyllenhaal have been approached for various roles.
- Rob Lowe was approached to play one of the villains in the Flash film. They apparently really want him to play a villain.
- Emily Blunt, Rosamund Pike, Alexandria Daddario, and Jessica Chastain have also been approached.
- Expect full trailers for both Wonder Woman and Justice League emphasizing the “fun” of these movies. The Wonder Woman trailer shows the villain a little. Also expect a bunch of announcements regarding casting, release dates being moved, a few new films being added to the slate, plans for DCEU shows and DCEU animated movies (no shows or movies will be announced, just that they will make stuff that tie in), and more.
- Going off that last bit, they’re planning on bringing the DCEU shows to HBO exclusively. Ideas being tossed around include Birds of Prey, Nightwing, The Question (heavily being considered as being the first, last I heard), The Phantom Stranger, Zatanna, and Doctor Fate.
- The animated films will show what some of the characters are up to during the events of the other films.
- Suicide Squad 2 will happen though after 2020, likely to be 2021. Will have a slightly altered roster. It also will not be directed by David Ayer.
- The DCEU has been mapped out to about 2025.
- The Booster Gold/Blue Beetle movie is up in the air right now. They’re leaning on the edge of approving it after the success of Deadpool but may use it as an HBO show.
