For those anxiously awaiting Darkseid’s debut on the silver screen, the reality of a Justice League sequel not seeing the light of day must be heartbreaking. Truth be told, he’s one of my favorite villains in all of fiction, and I’m still baffled as to why the studio backed his lackey, Steppenwolf. To me, it’d be like making Ubu the chief antagonist in a Batman flick.
Fortunately, there’s been a movie based on The New Gods gestating at Warner Bros. for the past year, give or take. Originally announced as being in development last March, we didn’t hear anything else until earlier today when word got out of how Mister Miracle and Big Barda will be the central characters.
Interestingly enough, sources close to We Got This Covered are now saying that WB are trying to move this picture along faster than previously thought, with the goal being to beat Marvel’s Eternals to theaters. Furthermore, the first draft of the script is said to be completed, and more concrete news is coming very soon.
In order to do accomplish this goal, the studio will indeed need to begin making major moves in the coming months. The latest rumors place Eternals as arriving in cinemas by late 2020, so the suits really must give director Ava DuVernay all she needs. Already, we have millions of moviegoers who’ve been introduced to Thanos before Darkseid, and readers of comic books know the Mad Titan to be a knockoff of the Lord of Apokolips. I’m guessing all this is in an effort to avoid the trend continuing.
One must also consider the other DC movies dropping in 2020 and the breathing room they must be afforded. Don’t forget, Birds of Prey (And The Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) releases in February, with Wonder Woman 1984 following in June. A late summer or early fall release for The New Gods may work best, but the decision obviously isn’t up to us.