DC Films
TypeDivision[1]
IndustryFilm
GenreSuperhero fiction
FoundedMay 17, 2016; 4 years ago (2016-05-17)
FounderGeoff Johns
Jon Berg
Headquarters4000 Warner Boulevard,
Burbank, California
,
United States
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
ProductsMotion pictures
ParentWarner Bros. Entertainment
Websitedccomics.com/movies

DC Films is an American film studio that is a subsidiary of Warner Bros. through the Warner Bros. Pictures Group, dedicated to the production of films based on characters from DC Entertainment. Walter Hamada is the current president of DC Films.[3]

History

After the divisive reception of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Warner Bros. Pictures made moves to stabilize the direction of the DC Extended Universe. The studio reorganized in May 2016 to have genre-responsible film executives, thus DC Entertainment franchise films under Warner Bros. were placed under a newly created division, DC Films, created under Warner Bros. executive vice president Jon Berg and DC Comics chief content officer Geoff Johns. This was done in hopes of competing more directly with Marvel Studios' Marvel Cinematic Universe. Johns also kept his existing role at DC Comics.[1][4] However, the division's formation was not designed to override the "director-driven" mandate.[1]

Justice League had one of the biggest film budgets (nearly $300 million) but grossed about $96 million in its opening weekend. An analysis in The Washington Post expected that there would be a course correction again, with a possible change in leadership.[5] The DC Extended Universe operated under a "director-driven" mandate.[1] Forbes contributors felt that the course correction would be for DC Films to give up on the shared universe, while continuing with the Wonder Woman films and occasionally other films, as Warner Bros. has other franchises they can work with.[6] Despite this, in December the studio reiterated their current film slate for the unofficially titled DC Extended Universe.[7] That same month, Warner Bros. announced that a new strategy and organization of DC Films would occur with Berg leaving his position as studio's co-president of production to form a Warner Bros.-based production company with Roy Lee, the producer of The LEGO Movie and It. In January 2018, it was announced that Warner Bros. executive Walter Hamada will be the new president of DC Films, and will oversee the films in the DC Extended Universe. Hamada has been closely associated with New Line Cinema, and helped develop horror films, such as It and The Conjuring film franchises.[2]

Criticism over "director-driven" mandate

DC Films' "director-driven" mandate has been met with skepticism. Suicide Squad actress Margot Robbie, who played Harley Quinn and the producer of several upcoming Harley Quinn-related movies stated that producers must trust their director's vision. "In the DC Universe, too, once you decide on who your director is, and they have a vision, you have to enable that vision and step in at moments to keep it on course if need be. I think that's the way. I think that's what a producer should do," Robbie said.[8] Zack Snyder dealt with studio pressure to make Justice League funnier and lighter in the wake of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice's negative reviews because of its dark tone. Eventually, he stepped down after losing the will to fight with the studio after the death of his daughter[9], and Joss Whedon was hired to do re-shoots for the movie. Whedon originally wanted a funnier opening sequence involving Batman. However, instead of adhering to Whedon's vision the studio tweaked the scene to make it serious. Later, Whedon was tasked to make the movie under two hours long.[10][11] Director Rick Famuyiwa, who was originally involved with the upcoming Flash movie, disparaged Justice League over the success of Black Panther, which surpassed the total U.S. gross of Justice League in just four days and became one of the highest-grossing films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He parted ways with Warner Bros. due to creative differences. In November 2017, it was reported that the studio wanted to recast Kiersey Clemons who was Famuyiwa's pick to play Iris West. Her scene was cut from Justice League. It was also hinted that it was the studio's decision to move away from Famuyiwa's take on the Flash.[12]

Management

Current

Former

Production library

Films

Further information: DC Extended Universe § Films

All productions are part of the DC Extended Universe unless otherwise stated.

Title U.S.
release date 		Director Co-production companies Notes
Released
Suicide Squad August 5, 2016 (2016-08-05) David Ayer RatPac-Dune Entertainment, Atlas Entertainment
Wonder Woman June 2, 2017 (2017-06-02) Patty Jenkins RatPac-Dune Entertainment, Atlas Entertainment, Cruel and Unusual Films, Tencent Pictures, Wanda Pictures
Justice League November 17, 2017 (2017-11-17) Zack Snyder
Joss Whedon[a] 		RatPac-Dune Entertainment, Access Entertainment,[16] Atlas Entertainment, Cruel and Unusual Films
Aquaman December 21, 2018 (2018-12-21) James Wan The Safran Company, Cruel and Unusual Films, Mad Ghost Productions
Shazam! April 5, 2019 (2019-04-05) David F. Sandberg New Line Cinema, The Safran Company, Seven Bucks Productions, Mad Ghost Productions
Joker October 4, 2019 (2019-10-04) Todd Phillips Village Roadshow Pictures, BRON Creative, Joint Effort Productions Not part of the DC Extended Universe
Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)[b] February 7, 2020 (2020-02-07) Cathy Yan LuckyChap Entertainment, Kroll & Co. Entertainment, Clubhouse Productions
Wonder Woman 1984 December 25, 2020 (2020-12-25) Patty Jenkins Atlas Entertainment, The Stone Quarry
Zack Snyder's Justice League March 18, 2021 Zack Snyder Access / Dune Entertainment, Atlas Entertainment, The Stone Quarry Director's cut of Justice League; released on HBO Max
Upcoming
The Suicide Squad August 6, 2021 (2021-08-06) James Gunn Atlas Entertainment, The Safran Company, Troll Court Entertainment Awaiting release
The Batman March 4, 2022 (2022-03-04) Matt Reeves 6th & Idaho Motion Picture Company Post-production; not part of the DC Extended Universe
DC Super Pets! May 20, 2022 (2022-05-20) Jared Stern & Sam Levine Warner Bros. Animation In production; not part of the DC Extended Universe
Black Adam July 29, 2022 (2022-07-29) Jaume Collet-Serra New Line Cinema, Seven Bucks Productions, FlynnPictureCo.[19] Filming
The Flash November 4, 2022 (2022-11-04) Andy Muschietti The Disco Factory Pre-production
Aquaman 2 December 16, 2022 (2022-12-16) James Wan Atomic Monster Productions, The Safran Company
Shazam!: Fury of the Gods June 2, 2023 (2023-06-02) David F. Sandberg New Line Cinema, The Safran Company, Seven Bucks Productions, Mad Ghost Productions
In development
Batgirl TBA TBA Warner Bros. Pictures In development[20][21][22][23]
Blue Beetle TBA Angel Manuel Soto
Static Shock TBA TBA Warner Bros. Pictures, Milestone Media, Outlier Society Productions
Zatanna TBA Emerald Fennell Warner Bros. Pictures, Bad Robot Productions
Untitled Superman film TBA TBA
Untitled third Wonder Woman film TBA Patty Jenkins Warner Bros. Pictures

Television series

Further information: DC Extended Universe § Television series

All productions are part of the DC Extended Universe unless otherwise stated.

Series Aired Showrunner Co-production companies Original network Notes
Upcoming
Peacemaker January 2022 James Gunn The Safran Company, Troll Court Entertainment HBO Max Filming; spin-off of The Suicide Squad
Green Lantern TBA Seth Grahame-Smith In development[24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32]
Constantine TBA TBA
Justice League Dark TBA TBA Bad Robot Productions

Notes

  1. ^ Whedon was hired by Warner Bros. Pictures during post-production to significantly alter the film. He is credited as co-screenwriter, while his directing was credited theatrically as executive producer.
  2. ^ Also known as Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey or Birds of Prey[17][18]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d Lincoln, Ross A. (May 18, 2016). "Warner Bros Responding To Fans & Critics With DC Films Shakeup". Deadline. Penske Business Media, LLC. Retrieved November 30, 2017.
  2. ^ a b c Lang, Brent. "Warner Bros. Taps Walter Hamada to Oversee DC Films Production (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 4 January 2018.
  3. ^ a b "Walter Hamada". www.warnerbros.com. Retrieved 2018-11-20.
  4. ^ a b c Kit, Borys (May 17, 2016). "'Batman v. Superman' Fallout: Warner Bros. Shakes Up Executive Roles". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 30, 2017.
  5. ^ Zeitchik, Steven (November 20, 2017). "Why 'Justice League' failed — and where DC goes from here". The Washington Post.
  6. ^ Mendelson, Scott (November 22, 2017). "Box Office: As 'Justice League' Crosses $320M, Should DC Films Be Saved?". Forbes. Retrieved December 1, 2017.
  7. ^ Bacon, Thomas (December 10, 2017). "Warner Bros. Doesn't Adjust Film Slate in Response to Justice League". Screen Rant. Retrieved January 14, 2018.
  8. ^ "Margot Robbie has some advice for DC producers". The Indian Express. December 3, 2017. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
  9. ^ https://www.thewrap.com/zack-snyder-left-justice-league-after-losing-the-will-to-fight-with-studio-after-daughters-death/
  10. ^ Robinson, Joanna (November 24, 2017). "Justice League Was Apparently Micromanaged Even More Than We Thought". Vanity Fair. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
  11. ^ Guerrasio, Jason (November 25, 2017). "Joss Whedon wanted a funny opener for Justice League but was overruled by Warner Bros., actor says". Business Insider. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
  12. ^ Dumaraog, Ana (February 20, 2018). "Former Flash Director Throws Shade at Justice League With Black Panther's Success". Screen Rant. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
  13. ^ https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/dc-films-taps-chantal-nong-key-production-role-1086317
  14. ^ a b c Hughes, Mark (December 7, 2017). "Jon Berg Moves Out Of Warner Leadership As Studio Reacts To DCEU Failures". Forbes. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
  15. ^ https://variety.com/2018/film/news/geoff-johns-exiting-as-dc-entertainment-president-1202840461/
  16. ^ https://screenrant.com/justice-league-brett-ratner-credit-removed/
  17. ^ Anderton, Ethan (February 10, 2020). "'Birds of Prey' Gets a New Title in Theaters After Underperforming at the Box Office". /Film. Retrieved February 10, 2020.
  18. ^ Aquilina, Tyler (February 10, 2020). "Birds of Prey gets new title after disappointing opening at box office". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved February 10, 2020.
  19. ^ Schmidt, JK (November 14, 2019). "Black Adam Release Date Revealed by Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson". Comicbook.com. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
  20. ^ Mancuso, Vinnie (March 11, 2021). "'Batgirl' and 'Zatanna' Projects Confirmed for HBO Max by Warner Bros". Collider. Retrieved March 11, 2021. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  21. ^ Nebens, Richard (March 11, 2021). "DC Confirms Batgirl & Zatanna On-Screen Titles, Reveals Two Dozen Superhero Logos". The Direct. Retrieved March 11, 2021. CS1 maint: discouraged parameter (link)
  22. ^ Newby, Richard (February 26, 2021). "Ta-Nehisi Coates and the Future of Superman". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
  23. ^ Rubin, Rebbeca (December 27, 2020). "'Wonder Woman 3' in the Works With Director Patty Jenkins". Variety. Archived from the original on December 28, 2020. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  24. ^ "'Green Lantern' TV Series Among Pair of Greg Berlanti DC Dramas Set at HBO Max". The Hollywood Reporter. 2019-10-29. Retrieved 2021-03-03.
  25. ^ Rogers, Vaneta (December 20, 2019). "Inside DOOMSDAY CLOCK With GEOFF JOHNS After its Finale". Newsarama.
  26. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (January 15, 2020). "Greg Berlanti 'Green Lantern' HBO Max Series Details Teased At TCA".
  27. ^ "Green Lantern: Geoff Johns to Produce New HBO Max Series". DC. Retrieved 2020-06-05.
  28. ^ "'Green Lantern' Series Gets Greenlight at HBO Max, Seth Grahame-Smith and Marc Guggenheim to Write". Variety. 2020-10-09. Retrieved 2020-10-10.
  29. ^ "Green Lantern: HBO Max Series To Include Dominators as Villains, Mature Content (Exclusive)". The Direct. 2020-11-16. Retrieved 2020-11-20.
  30. ^ "GREEN LANTERN TV SERIES: NEW CHARACTER DESCRIPTIONS, STORY DIRECTION, AND START DATE: EXCLUSIVE". The Illuminerdi. 2020-11-19. Retrieved 2020-11-20.
  31. ^ Otterson, Joe (February 17, 2021). "'Constantine' Series in the Works at HBO Max". Variety. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
  32. ^ Goldberg, Lesley (April 16, 2020). "J.J. Abrams Sets 3 HBO Max Shows: Justice League Dark, 'The Shining' Spinoff, 'Duster'". The Hollywood Reporter.

External links

Warner Bros.
Categories