When Discovery bought out Warner Bros. last year, most fans of WB’s output weren’t expecting for the new parent company, and WB’s new chief David Zaslav, to whip out the machete and start slashing DC Comics-related projects on both the big and small screens. One of the first projects to get the cut was The Wonder Twins, a movie that was close to going into production. But even more outrageous was the scrapping of the Batgirl movie which had already been completely shot and was in post-production. Following that came buzz that the Supergirl movie which had not begun pre-production would also not likely move forward.
Now fans are worried about what other DC projects might face the “ax of Zaslav.” But do you remember all of the DC projects that are even in development?
Below you can find a listing of all of the theatrical movies, HBO Max flicks, and HBO Max series that are– as of this moment– still in some form of development as far as we know. (Meaning, they haven’t been announced as canceled… yet.) However, I will offer the most recent updates and offer my own speculation on certain projects that seem like a sure shot to get made or those that are likely to taste the ax.
Amanda Waller (HBO Max Series)
Announced in May of this year, the untitled Amanda Waller HBO Max series is the newest project on this list and therefore should be the safest. Viola Davis will reprise her role from the Suicide Squad movies and Peacemaker. James Gunn will serve as executive producer along with Christal Henry and Peter Safran.
Gunn has declared that this program will dial back the humor that was so pervasive on Peacemaker. Other characters from that show are expected to pop up in this new one. (Danielle Brooks’ Leota Adebayo, Waller’s daughter, is a safe bet.)
Even though Gunn’s The Suicide Squad flopped, Peacemaker was a runaway hit for HBO Max, so WB is likely to continue their partnership for as long as Gunn is interested.
Amazons (Theatrical Film)
Announced in late 2019 along with the Aquaman spinoff The Trench, Amazons was intended to be a lower-priced mid-tier entry in the DCEU. Patty Jenkins was attached to produce but not direct, opting to focus on the Wonder Woman movies proper. This was to be set between Wonder Woman 1984 and the as-yet-untitled Wonder Woman 3. There has been no news about this in a long time and after the poor performance of 1984, it wouldn’t be surprising if Zaslav scraps this.
Arkham Asylum (HBO Max Series)
Not a part of the DCEU, the untitled Arkham Asylum anthology series is a spinoff from Matt Reeves’ The Batman. Reeves has stated that it will have a horror tone and compared the famous mental institution to a “haunted house.” Zaslav might be tightening his belt, but I can’t imagine he would scrap this and risk alienating Reeves after the success of The Batman and the extensive plans he and WB have for this storyline. It also doesn’t seem as though this will be that expensive a project, so that helps.
Black Canary (HBO Max Film)
Jurnee Smollett was announced as returning as Black Canary in a solo film to be written by her best friend, Misha Green (Lovecraft Country) in August 2021. As of May 2022, Green confirmed she was still working on the script. Last year, it was teased that other characters from Birds of Prey would also appear.
However, Zaslav’s scrapping of Batgirl and declaration that DC projects belong on the big screen doesn’t bode well. Add to that the fact that Birds of Prey underperformed at the box office pre-pandemic and that’s another strike against Black Canary.
But as of Tuesday, August 9, 2023, Black Canary was reported to still be in development as an HBO Max original movie.
Booster Gold (Theatrical Film)
One of the longest gestating DC movies, Booster Gold was announced early in the life cycle of the DCEU in 2015! At times it has been a solo Booster movie or a buddy flick with Blue Beetle (Ted Kord). Greg Berlanti was attached to direct with a script by Zack Stentz. According to Berlanti, this film would not connect to the rest of the DCEU. Stentz declared that the screenplay was completed in March 2018. In May 2019, he said pre-production would begin as soon as Warner Bros. approved it. That was in 2019.
Zaslav has stressed that he wants to push the big guns and not the B-listers. You don’t have to be a time traveler to see that this project is probably not going to happen.
Constantine (HBO Max Series)
This series would focus on a young John Constantine and was announced in February 2021 with Guy Bolton attached to write the pilot with J.J. Abrams producing. This looks to be building toward Justice League Dark but more on that in a minute. As of Friday, August 7, 2022, it was reported that Constantine is one of the projects that is still safe at HBO Max.
Deadshot (Theatrical Film)
Prior to the release of 2016’s Suicide Squad, it was announced that WB had plans to spin Will Smith’s Deadshot and Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn off into their own movies, but Smith’s never arrived. Due to his busy schedule, Smith also backed out of 2020’s The Suicide Squad and was replaced by Idris Elba. However, Elba’s character was changed to Bloodsport on the off chance that Smith wanted to return as Deadshot at some point in the future.
In April 2022, Deadshot was put on the back burner due to the amount of money that Smith insisted on for the film’s budget. Then Smith slapped Chris Rock live on stage at the Academy Awards so who knows when we’ll see him in another movie? This project is most likely… dead.
Gotham City Sirens (Theatrical Film)
Announced in 2016 as another potential spinoff to Suicide Squad, this picture would have teamed Robbie’s Harley Quinn with Poison Ivy and Catwoman, with Ayer directing from a script by Geneva Robertson-Dworet. Robbie chose to make Birds of Prey instead, but as of 2019, Robbie stated that she was still pushing for Gotham City Sirens to happen.
But once again, Birds of Prey underperformed and it seems that WB is shifting its Batman properties into their own timeline, so there may no longer be a place for this project. And does anyone really still want to see it? If I had to place a bet, I’d say Gotham City Sirens is also dead.
Green Lantern/Green Lantern Corps (Theatrical Film/HBO Max Series)
Of all of DC’s properties going into the DCEU, Green Lantern had the deck stacked against it the most as the stench of the 2011 Green Lantern film starring Ryan Reynolds was still in the air. A Green Lantern Corps movie was announced and would have been a “buddy cop” movie focusing on Hal Jordan and John Stewart. David S. Goyer and Justin Rhodes began writing the screenplay in 2017. In the following years, Christopher McQuarrie and Geoff Johns were brought on to deliver their own treatments.
John Stewart was cut from Zack Snyder’s Justice League because WB had other plans for him. As of last year, this film was still on track.
However, a separate HBO Max Green Lantern anthology series is also in development and will showcase other GLs from the comics. This program has already cast Jeremy Irvine as Alan Scott and Finn Wittrock as Guy Gardner.
As of right now, it looks as though both of these projects are still in development. Whether they are directly connected or not is unclear.
Harley Quinn (Theatrical Film)
A solo Harley Quinn has been in development since Suicide Squad in 2016. Birds of Prey got made and didn’t do well. A Harley Quinn/Joker movie to costar Jared Leto was scrapped. Margot Robbie’s star keeps rising. It’s kind of hard to imagine she will return for another Harley Quinn flick, but never say never.
Justice League Dark (HBO Max Series)
Focusing on the supernatural side of the DCU, this project originated with Guillermo del Toro who worked on it, at first as a feature film, then as a TV series, for years beginning in 2013. In 2016, del Toro departed and J.J. Abrams took over. However, it was announced that the individual members would get their own shows first before bringing them together as Justice League Dark. This project’s survival will most likely depend on the performance of Constantine. If that show is successful, it could still lead into this one.
On the negative side, Zaslav and Discovery have already scrapped one Abrams HBO Max project, the ambitious film Demimonde. If Warner Bros. Discovery feel that JLD will be too expensive, they may balk.
Lobo (Theatrical Film)
I’m afraid the appeal of Lobo is lost on me. This feels like it’s coming 25 years too late. Lobo was first announced YEARS before the dawn of justice the DCEU — all the way back in 2009! Guy Ritchie was originally attached as director, with Brad Peyton later taking over. Then in 2018, Michael Bay was announced as director with a script by Jason Fuchs. That was in 2018 and there hasn’t been an update since, so this looks dead.
Madame X (HBO Max Series)
Based on the character Madame Xanadu, Madame X is another piece of J.J. Abrams’ JLD puzzle. It was announced in 2016, with Abrams producing and Angela Robinson writing. Like Justice League Dark, Madame X‘s fate likely rests in the success or failure of Constantine.
Metal Men (Theatrical Film)
Like Lobo, Metal Men has been in development for longer than the DCEU has existed, first being announced in 2007. Barry Sonnenfeld signed on to direct way back in 2012. (That’s a decade ago!) But just when you would assume that this project had quietly died behind the scenes, Sonnenfeld popped up in October 2021 to say that the script was still being written.
Peacemaker Season 2 (HBO Max Series)
When fans flooded James Gunn’s inbox following the cancellation of Batgirl to see if Peacemaker Season 2 was safe, Gunn replied:
“Yes, guys, calm down.”
The Penguin (HBO Max Miniseries)
Before the release of Matt Reeves’ The Batman, it was announced that HBO Max would release two series tie-ins, Gotham City PD and The Penguin starring Colin Farrell. Gotham City PD has since been scrapped in favor of Arkham Asylum, but it looks as though The Penguin is still a lock. It was first announced in September 2021 and was ordered as a miniseries in March 2022.
As with Arkham Asylum, it doesn’t matter how much Zaslav and Discovery want to cut costs, it’s hard to imagine them canceling a Reeves/Batman project.
Plastic Woman (Theatrical Film)
A Plastic Man film has been in development since 2018. In December 2020, it was announced that this project was being switched to Plastic Woman with Cat Vasko penning the script. Plastic Man is one of DC’s wackiest concepts and considering that one of the first projects that Zaslav squashed was the also-wacky The Wonder Twins, I expect to hear that Plastic Woman has likewise been scrapped any day now.
Static Shock (HBO Max Film)
A Static Shock movie was announced in August 2020 at DC Fandome. In October, Michael B. Jordan and Reginald Hudlin were announced as producers. WB exec Walter Hamada (who is on his way out the door) stated that this would be an HBO Max movie, but it does not seem that Zaslav and Discovery are interested in making any more DC movies for the small screen.
However, the studio did give more money to Blue Beetle, another movie that was intended for streaming, in order to make it suitable for a theatrical release and that could happen for Static Shock as well.
Superman (Theatrical Film)
In February 2021, it was announced that Ta-Nahisi Coates was writing a new Superman screenplay, with J.J. Abrams attached to produce. It was soon revealed that this project would feature a Black Superman. Considering the next project listed below, it seems as though this film will feature Calvin Ellis, a.k.a. Kalel, the Superman of Earth-23 who is also the President of the United States in that reality.
This project stirred up controversy when it was first announced. WB/DC could use the diversity, but with all the attention on streamlining the DCEU, having an alternate Superman could lead to consumer confusion. Then again how many Batmen and Jokers are we up to now? We’ll have to wait and see how this develops.
Val-Zod (HBO Max Series)
Michael B. Jordan originally pitched a Val-Zod theatrical movie based on the teenage Black Superman from the parallel universe of Earth-2, who is the son of Zod, not Jor-El. Jordan’s project has since been scaled back to an HBO Max series due to Jordan’s busy schedule.
Jordan will produce and possibly star. (He’s a little old to play Val-Zod, so he will probably have a different role.) Darnell Metayer and Josh Peters are writing.
Is there room for two Black Supermen in the public eye? What about the Caucasian Superman, played to this point by Henry Cavill?
I can’t imagine the Coates/Abrams Superman and Jordan’s Val-Zod both coming to fruition. We should learn which of these makes the cut… or if they both get the cut… within the next few months, as Zaslav continues his fat-trimming.
Wonder Woman 3 (Theatrical Film)
The DCEU has had its ups and downs, but Wonder Woman was an absolute up! Patty Jenkins announced that the story for a third Wonder Woman feature had already been written shortly after the release of WW 1984 and WB officially greenlit the third movie around the same time.
Even though many are concerned for the future of the main DCEU with all of the cost-cutting and streamlining, as well as the narrative shakeups that could come after the release of The Flash, it seems to be a safe bet that Wonder Woman 3 will arrive as planned and that it will adhere to Jenkins’ vision. Gal Gadot will return as will Lynda Carter who cameoed in 1984 as the Amazon Asteria.
Zatanna (Theatrical Film)
A Zatanna theatrical film was first announced in November 2018, then again in March 2021, during an investor call. J.J. Abrams is producing, so this likely ties into his Justice League Dark project. Last March, Emerald Fennell was announced as director. Since then, has been very little news about Zatanna. It’s possible that it could get switched to an HBO Max series since Zatanna isn’t an A-lister and this does connect to JLD.
What do you think? Which projects are you hoping survive the ax of Zaslav?
