The dawn of a new DC universe is upon us, with James Gunn and Peter Safran Planning new film, TV and game projects . But before we get there, we have nine months of what feels like the last gasp of the DCEU, which is coming to an end, almost poetically, ten years after it debuted Man Steel in of .
First up is David F. Sandberg Shazam! Wrath of the Gods , the sequel to Shazam!(), which proved to be a modest blow, considered another corrective step in the right direction for the DC series, a third step to be exact , but who is counting? Some critics even called it the best DCEU movie to date. Theoretically, the sequel should be the opening sequence to the other three DC movies scheduled for this year, The Flash , Blue Beetle and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom . So why does it feel like the DCEU is limping toward a conclusion instead of culminating in a celebration of a decade of storytelling?
Early social media reactions to Wrath of Gods have been enthusiastic and positive Yes, while reviews are relatively positive, if softer than the original. But box office forecasts suggest a tepid opening. Of course, aware of the numbers the film is facing, Warner Bros. and New Line’s marketing of the film has turned into a desperate “come and see” plea, with TV commercials ruining the film’s big cameo, which somehow feels like Than Black Adam star Dwayne Johnson nearly reveals Henry Cavill’s sensibility during press conference on the red carpet Superman Cameo.
So, what’s in the way Wrath of the Gods Is it a lightning rod? Well, it comes down to many factors. And the sequel has no shortage of talent, casting Helen Mirren, Lucy Liu, and Rachel Ziegler as villains. They played the daughters of Atlas — Hespera, Kalypso, Anthea — characters that weren’t from the comics. This makes it harder to market and point audiences to specific comic books they can refer to and spark enthusiasm for. The second problem is that Shazam’s most iconic antagonist, Black Adam, is getting a solo movie that flopped at the box office last year and snatched away any possibility audiences had hoped for a Shazam vs. Black Adam matchup, since the movie was announced . But the biggest boulder holding back Wrath of the Titans is, with the arrival of the new DC Cinematic Universe, what are audiences asked to invest in?
Now, you could argue that the film’s merits should be seen in isolation, not based on what it’s set up for, or that there might be end credits scenes that would never be seen in another Realized in a movie. In fact, that’s what I would argue myself. Watch the movie to see the movie, not to see how well it works as a trailer. But I think if we’re being realistic, that’s not how people watch these movies, at least not entirely. A Shazam movie that would surely have a character who clashes with Black Adam or joins the Justice League is not played in the same way as audiences, and a Shazam movie that teases the return of Sivana and the Society of Evil Monsters in a movie that doesn’t seem to exist might be success. It shouldn’t be like that, but it is. Discussions on social media have come back to the same question about these pre-reboot films, “What’s the point?” The point is to see a good movie, but I don’t know if that’s enough to be a compelling take on a franchise. The argument, at least critically, though not for me personally, is that the hit rate is higher than the miss rate.
As the new co-director of DC Films, James Gunn says it’s all likely to continue in the DCU, and Shazam!, at least the first movie, without any continuity break references, it all felt a bit confusing to viewers who were told the reboot, there was a new Batman and Superman, coming. Words like “soft reboot” with The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker elements of the grandfather, can be jettisoned, and that might be the case, but it’s meaningless to the average viewer who grew up on a single continuum of MCU movies that emphasize “everything matters”, though It’s a marketing strategy. But it’s a strategy people believe in, and Warner Bros. has found that the company isn’t getting it right with their current DC films, with frequent leadership changes, the divisive nature of the films, and actors who aren’t sure what they’re going to do with these characters. With the future, and the entire Batgirl movie on hold, the current situation has taken the “well, we really don’t know if this matters” stance.
Gunn’s Announcement on Chapter 1: Gods and Monsters , DCU’s The start, certainly was exciting, and overall, left a lot of people more optimistic than ever about DC’s on-screen future beyond the Batman movies. But it does feel like the announcement is hurting movies that were already planned but weren’t part of the program. This brings to mind when 20th Century Fox released Dark Phoenix and New Mutants
After the Disney merger, everyone is already anticipating the MCU’s rebooted version of Mutants. Sure, we can hope that the quality of the DCEU movies will surpass those this year, but if the marketing for Wrath of the Gods doesn’t even make it to the Super Bowl, Is this an indication of what we can expect from the rest of 2019 Well WBD already seem to be counting their losses and really just want Michael Keaton as the bat Hero’s return could push The Flash to a billion.
How (if at all) these DCEU movies tie into Gunn and co-owner Peter Safran’s DCU is unclear, and a wait-and-see approach might be the most logical, But it doesn’t sell tickets either. Wrath of the Godswas originally scheduled for The Flash
later), which Sandberg recently cited as the reason for the costume changes in the movie, which are now only changed by magic. It’s not a big deal. But when you consider that The Flash originally leads to some of the things seen in Fury of the Gods When changing and Aquaman and The Lost Kingdom , the now axed cameos refer to these Event, it feels like the issue is indeed the content of the comic book event has been obfuscated and the page has been removed.
Similarly, it is said that the next movie The Flash will be released as a pair The conclusion of the DCEU, the establishment of the DCU. If it wasn’t followed by Blue Beetle, which should have launched a new franchise and Aquaman
sequel, which was supposed to be the second chapter of the trilogy. Oh, by the way, Jason Momoa may play different roles in the DCU, but according to Peter Safran, he won’t be playing two different characters, which contradicts the statement that Momoa will always be Aquaman. So, what we have is the end of a cinematic universe and the birth of a new one at the same time, and possibly using a clip from the ending if it’s economically feasible, which is too much of a game even for comic book lovers. complex crisis.
Great to see these 2019 DC movies do financially and critically Success, and maybe Wrath of Gods will beat the predictions and show that despite the reboot, audiences are still interested in these movies. But I think there needs to be clarity on where these franchises stand in terms of the DCU. If the plan is to end them here, within the confines of the DCEU, then I think viewers deserve a clear conclusion and meaningful transition like The Flash As a true ending and leading to a reboot, instead of the DCEU ending with an Aquaman sequel that kicks off a third installment that the studio didn’t actually intend to make. Whether you’re excited about the DCU or not, I think the actors and filmmakers who contributed to the DCEU’s decade-long story deserve at least clarity and nobility when it comes to telling the final chapter. 1235314176
