With its big-ticket universe swallowed by a black hole of casting chaos, critical busts, andbizarre behavior, Warner Bros. appears to be reaching for the reset button with theDC Extended Universe. The franchise had a soft launch with 2013’sMan of Steel, continued withBatman v Superman: Dawn of Justicein 2016, and officially hit the skids withJustice Leaguein 2017. It rebounded fairly well withWonder Woman,Aquaman,andShazam!,but hasn’t quite lived down its negatives or caught up to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
In its scramble to rival the MCU, WB has churned out an uneven and rushed slate of movies but is now formulating a new “ten-year plan” in the wake ofBatgirl’scancellationto get back on track with its roster of DC superheroes. The MCU painstakingly and patiently built its way to the firstAvengersinstallment, giving each character a formal introduction and solo outing before the team got together. Conversely, the DCEU slapped a few cameos inBatman v Supermanto introduce crucial team members and brought them to full-time status via the aforementionedJustice League. In essence, they developed characters in reverse.
With this perceived DCEU reboot in the works, what characters should get their own movies?
A Ben Affleck Batman Movie Would Be a Huge Win
It was reported in May that Warner Bros. was prepared to raid the vault tobring Ben Affleck backinto the famed cape and cowl. This $30M payday would have been to step into the Batsuit for aCrisis on Infinite Earthsadaptation, which could be a culmination of several standalone movies, AKA the DCEU’s new answer tothe Avengers. Ten-plus years too late, but nothing wrong with trying to get it right the second time. Rumors aside, bringing back Ben Affleck as Batman would be a huge win for WB and the DCEU.
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Affleck’s Batman has already been very well established, but getting his solo movie back on track would be a great start to the new and (hopefully) improved DCEU. The Affleck-penned story was going to pit the Dark Knight againstbig bad Deathstroke, a gutsy and excellent choice to advance Batman’s story. We got a glimpse of Joe Manganiello’s take on the mercenary in both iterations ofJustice League,and his brief time was as menacing as he is on the page.
Whoever the villain is, getting Affleck back into the DCEU fold would be an excellent start for the ten-year plan. Affleck has said he’s done with Batman, but his upcoming appearances inThe Flashand nowAquaman: The Lost Kingdomshow a potential softening of the actor’s stance.
Henry Cavill Deserves Some Great Superman Material
Speaking of bringing back familiar faces, we’d love to see the perfect actor for Superman get a quality story and script. Henry Cavill first appeared inMan of Steel, a representative take on the character, and the underappreciated director’s cutBatman v Superman Ultimate Editiongave us a little more meat on the Superman bone even though he took a backseat to the Bat. Bringing the actor back to once again lead the Justice League would be the best move.
We’re pretty far removed from his initial flight as Superman, so another solo movie would help reestablish Cavill as the Man of Steel. Plus, there’s a whole stable of bad guys to choose from – Brainiac, Metallo, (a hopefully recast) Lex Luthor, etc. Superman is too important to the DC brand to abandon, and Cavill is too good for the role to recast. Hopefully, the new DCEU gives them both another chance.
Green Lantern Is a Must for the DCEU
Precluding Green Lantern from the initialJustice Leaguerun is a head-scratcher. If they were going to try to shoehorn characters into the story with 30-second stints, another one wouldn’t have hurt. Whether it’s Hal Jordan or James Stewart, introducingthe Lantern Corpswill be essential to bringing the new DCEU to standard.
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Plus, with Superman patrolling the earth, we need the journey to space to get a glimpse of the coming enemy sinceCrisisis a story of multiple planets. Getting Green Lantern on the team is a must from so many different angles. Leaving him out this time would be a bad sign for the new plan.
Constantine Could Be DCEU’s Deadpool
The DCEU is often criticized for being dark and joyless. That’s partly what madeShazam!such a welcome addition to the franchise. To balance out the sunny side laughs of that movie would be a good anti-hero. That’s where John Constantine would come in. The Liverpool sorcerer and con man could serve in the Deadpool role for the Justice League with his foul mouth and wit while also bringing a new angle to the action with dark magic and mysticism.
Who knows how this reboot is going to go. Does Warner Bros. have a real plan this time? Signs point to yes, as the mistakes made the first time around were highly publicized and heavily debated among fans and the media. The new DCEU has great potential to bring together veteran holdovers and new faces to give the franchise the success it deserves.
