The TV Addict 

Dear WB and DC,

I just read today that after years of fumbling your comic properties you’ve finally decided to get your shit together and hold a summit to figure out what the heck to do with your superheroes. It’s an admirable plan even if it’s painfully obviously that you guys are only scrambling now to get a game plan going because Marvel is kicking your ass on a whole new level (thanks to IRON MAN and THE INCREDIBLE HULK) and has their next few years of movies all worked out on an epic scale. It just makes you look incompetent and lazy, especially since only recently Marvel has started self-financing its projects and retained rights to their products, while you’ve had that luxury for a while now. But okay, there’s no sense in crying over spoiled milk. What’s done is done and what matters now is what you do next, hence the summit. In the spirit of that, I thought I’d offer some humble comments and suggestions that might aid you and your meeting.

First off, figure out what’s worth turning into a film. I hate to say it, but you guys face somewhat of a challenge in that (despite my affections for DC characters) Marvel has a deeper well of characters that are cooler and more recognizable than yours. Yes, you guys have Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman and Flash. Some might even know Green Arrow and Green Lantern. Since Batman and Superman have been done already though, that doesn’t leave you a whole lot. That means you’re going to have to dig deeper into lesser known DC characters. Make sure they are characters worthy of a film, and that could headline a good, exciting, and fun film. The non-comic lay man was mostly unfamiliar with IRON MAN, and yet the potential was there, and was realized. Result? Massive success thanks to good marketing and a good product.

Before you start going too far into the B-list though, the most important thing you have to do is make absolutely sure you do a good job making films involving you’re A-list. Though the Hulk was an exception, you only get one chance at a franchise. You blow it, you’re screwed. That’s the problem you guys are facing with Superman, which rumor has it you want to reboot a la THE INCREDIBLE HULK, even though it’s only been two years since SUPERMAN RETURNS (which in itself was sort of a reboot). So how do you ensure you don’t pooch a potential franchise?

Get filmmakers who are a good fit for the film in question. Note that I didn’t say good filmmakers (though that helps, and they shouldn’t be horrible). Bryan Singer is a good filmmaker, but he wasn’t right for Superman, even though he may have been right for X-MEN (On that note, learn from Marvel’s mistake in letting Brett Ratner anywhere near the third film in that franchise). Though Christopher Nolan seemed perhaps an unlikely candidate for a big-budget, high profile film like BATMAN BEGINS, he was a perfect choice not necessarily because of his talents (which are substantial though), but because the sensibilities that were expressed in MEMENTO and INSOMNIA indicated he’d be ideally suited for something like Batman. Marvel does this well now, especially since the debacle that was Ang Lee’s THE HULK. John Favreau seemed like an unlikely choice for IRON MAN, but the joyful adventures and fun of ELF and ZATHURA was exactly what IRON MAN needed to not become top-heavy. Same goes for Louis Leterrier. UNLEASHED and TRANSPORTER 2 were fluffy, action-packed – and most importantly – exciting films, which is exactly what a Hulk movie needs. So what’s next?

Find an appropriate balance in regards to how involved you are with a project. Even though Singer was not an appropriate choice for Superman that was a case where if you had to go with him, you should have kept a closer eye on what he was doing with the property. On the other hand, there are projects in production where you need to respect the filmmaker. I’m thinking mostly of the mess you guys made with WONDER WOMAN. I’m not sure who could have been anyone more ideally suited for adapting Wonder Woman into a film than Joss Whedon. He would have given you an excellent movie, and most importantly (to you) a successful one. Instead you and Joel Silver strung Whedon along, purportedly didn’t like his vision, then went behind his back and bought a Wonder Woman spec script from two first time writers before it was even announced that Whedon was off the project. What you guys need to learn is in some cases you need to respect the talent, especially those who are in tune with comics and what people want from a superhero film. In other words (and this may sting) you guys have no idea how to make a good superhero movie, but if you get the right filmmakers you won’t have to. Trust them, shut up, and back off.

This ties into what differentiates you guys from Marvel. Though everyone cares about money, Marvel puts the film first. They make it their mission to make a good superhero film, because they know that’s the way to success. You guys seem to only think of the money to be made first. Your repeated attempts to push and rush projects like BATMAN VERSUS SUPERMAN and JUSTICE LEAGUE prove that. Both projects have filmmakers (Wolfgang Peterson and George Miller) not at all suited for the material. Both projects reek of the mind-set of “Hey, you know what could make more money than an individual superhero movie based on our biggest properties? If we put them all in ONE MOVIE!” In other words, you can tell they’re a cash grab from a while away, especially JUSTICE LEAGUE, which is just a bad idea in every way, most of all with the mess that is the casting of it.

Just take a page from Marvel. Set up franchises with the individual Justice League members first, not the other way around. If JUSTICE LEAGUE fails, you’ll have managed to severely impede any of those characters spinning off into their own franchises. If you start with the characters you have much better chances for multiple franchises. And if one fails, a JUSTICE LEAGUE film could be a good chance to save them.

Finally, Warner Brother’s don’t forget that DC Comics’ indie-line Vertigo has no end of excellent properties that may not have name recognition, but have such brilliant concepts that they will sell the movies on their own. “Fables,” “Y: The Last Man,” “Losers,” “DMZ” and even “Sandman,” are all ripe for adaptation and should be realized into films. In fact, most of those comics have already been optioned, so it’s just a matter of green lighting them. Do that ASAP.

Hopefully you’ll take to heart some of the things I’ve said here. Admittedly, some of them may sound cruel and harsh, but I think some tough love is exactly what’s needed to help you guys get in gear. It’s all coming from a place of love (in some ways, consider this an intervention) and me wanting nothing but the best for you, and your properties.

I look forward to seeing what you guys come up with.

Yours sincerely,

theREELaddict