THR

Ben Affleck on ‘Air,’ New CEO Gig and Those Memes: “I Am Who I Am”

You’re launching this company at a time when the movie business is changing.
When The Way Back came out, I knew. It came out the weekend they shut the theaters down with COVID. But that’s not an excuse. Because I knew as it was coming out, just the tracking, I was like, “OK, here’s a movie about a guy, son dies, gets divorced, alcoholic. Nobody’s going to go to the theater to see this fucking movie. They’re just not.” I felt it. Succession is on. Ozark. Narcos. Game of Thrones. You’re not competing with [1980s crime drama] Simon & Simon on an 11-inch black-and-white TV. There’s really beautiful stuff being made. My daughter is 17. She lives her life largely in opposition to the work her parents have spent their lives dedicated to, where she’ll say things like, “I’m not sure film is really … Do you think it’s a genuine art form?” I like the fact that she has this silver rapier tongue. But anyway, I went into it going, “OK, these movies aren’t fucking working anymore. And these are the ones I like.”

As opposed to —
The Justice League experience, the fact that those stories became somewhat repetitive to me and less interesting. Yeah, I did finally figure out how to play that character [Batman], and I nailed it in The Flash. For the five minutes I’m there, it’s really great. A lot of it’s just tone. You’ve got to figure out, what’s your version of the person? Who is the guy that fits what you can do? I tried to fit myself into a Batman. And by the way, I like a lot of the stuff we did, especially the first one [Batman v Superman].

But not Justice League. What went wrong there?
Justice League … You could teach a seminar on all the reasons why this is how not to do it. Ranging from production to bad decisions to horrible personal tragedy, and just ending with the most monstrous taste in my mouth. The genius, and the silver lining, is that Zack Snyder eventually went to AT&T and was like, “Look, I can get you four hours of content.” And it’s principally just all the slow motion that he shot in black-and-white. And one day of shooting with me and him. He was like, “Do you want to come shoot in my backyard?” I was like, “I think there are unions, Zack. I think we have to make a deal.” But I went and did it. And now [Zack Snyder’s Justice League] is my highest-rated movie on IMDb.

Isn’t that because Zack Snyder’s fans are so intense online?
Say what you want, it is my highest-rated career movie. I’ve never had one that went from nadir to pinnacle. Retroactively, it’s a hit. All of a sudden I was getting congratulated for the bomb I’m in. But I was going to direct a Batman, and [Justice League] made me go, “I’m out. I never want to do any of this again. I’m not suited.” That was the worst experience I’ve ever seen in a business which is full of some shitty experiences. It broke my heart. There was an idea of someone [Joss Whedon] coming in, like, “I’ll rescue you and we’ll do 60 days of shooting and I’ll write a whole thing around what you have. I’ve got the secret.” And it wasn’t the secret. That was hard. And I started to drink too much. I was back at the hotel in London, it was either that or jump out the window. And I just thought, “This isn’t the life I want. My kids aren’t here. I’m miserable.” You want to go to work and find something interesting to hang onto, rather than just wearing a rubber suit, and most of it you’re just standing against the computer screen going, “If this nuclear waste gets loose, we’ll …” That’s fine. I don’t condescend to that or put it down, but I got to a point where I found it creatively not satisfying. Also just, you’re sweaty and exhausted. And I thought, “I don’t want to participate in this in any way. And I don’t want to squander any more of my life, of which I have a limited amount.”

So if DC came to you now and said, “Do you want to direct something?”
I would not direct something for the [James] Gunn DC. Absolutely not. I have nothing against James Gunn. Nice guy, sure he’s going to do a great job. I just wouldn’t want to go in and direct in the way they’re doing that. I’m not interested in that.

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/feature/ben-affleck-air-production-company-grammys-memes-justice-league-1235353301/

Variety: Dwayne Johnson Weighs In on Henry Cavill’s DC Exit After ‘Black Adam’ Brought Superman Back: We ‘Put Our Best Foot Forward’
Variety‘s senior culture and events editor Marc Malkin caught up with Johnson and asked about Cavill’s Superman being dropped from the DC Universe despite his highly-touted comeback in Johnson’s “Black Adam.”
“All that I can do, and all that we could do when we were making ‘Black Adam,’ was to put our best foot forward and surround ourselves with the best people and deliver the best movie we could,” Johnson said. “Our audience score was in the 90s. Critics took a couple shots, but that’s just the business of it.”
“It’s almost like when you have a pro football team and your quarterback wins championships and your head coach wins championships and then a new owner comes in and says, ‘Not my coach, not my quarterback. I’m going to go with somebody new.'”
Johnson is of course referring to new DC Studios bosses James Gunn and Peter Safran, who were announced as the new architects of the DC Universe just a few days after “Black Adam” opened in theaters last October.

More drama, because of S!2’s low ratings and BO numbers.

Movieweb: Shazam! Fury of the Gods Receives High Praise from James Gunn
According to early reactions, Shazam! Fury of the Gods is a lot of fun, with great action and charming, likable characters. Critics have praised the film's humor, action, and overall fun factor, with some noting that it surpasses its predecessor in terms of scope and stakes.
However, the success of Shazam! Fury of the Gods at the box office will likely determine the future of the franchise. It remains to be seen whether there will be a Shazam 3. Co-head of DC Studios, James Gunn, has also offered high praise for the film. In a tweet, Gunn called the movie a "complete blast" and singled out Zachary Levi, Rachel Zegler, and David F. Sandberg for their work on the film.

B+ CinemaScore
90% Google Users
6.6/10 IMDb

Metacritic
47 MetaScore
5.7 User Score

Rotten Tomatoes
51% All Critics
21% Top Critics
87% Verrified Audience
83% All Audience

THR: Tom Cruise Has Seen ‘The Flash’ … and He Loved It (Exclusive)
The upcoming superhero movie The Flash has been done and locked for several months now as it awaits its June 16 release. It has many fans inside the studio, including new DC co-head James Gunn, who called it “probably one of the greatest superhero movies ever made.”
Now, it has a fan outside the studio walls: actor, superstar and cinema-saver Tom Cruise.
Sources tell The Hollywood Reporter that Cruise has seen the movie and loved it so much that he cold-called the movie’s director, Andy Muschietti, to rave about it.

David F. Sandberg, S!2’s director:
On Rotten Tomatoes I just got my lowest critic score and my highest audience score on the same film 🤷‍ I wasn’t expecting a repeat of the first movie critically but I was still a little surprised because I think it’s a good film. Oh well.
As I’ve been saying for a while now I’m very eager to go back to horror (as well as trying some new things). After six years of Shazam I’m definitely done with superheroes for now.
Just to be clear, I don’t regret even for a second making the Shazam movies. I’ve learned so much and gotten to work with some truly amazing people. Will forever be grateful that I got to direct two of these! They’ve been very challenging but valuable experiences.
One thing I’ve really been looking forward to is disconnecting from the superhero discourse online. A lot of that stresses me out so much and it will be nice not having to think about that anymore.

On Sunday-morning, S!2’s domestic OW projection was $30.5M. That’s lower than the projected $35M ($85M WW) by the trades. On Monday, the OW turned out to be even lower, $30.1M ($65M WW). S!1’s OW was $53.5M in 2019 (+inflation $62,961,476).

Variety: Zachary Levi Agrees Many Zack Snyder Fans Are Happy ‘Shazam 2’ Failed, Says the Sequel’s Marketing Was ‘The Biggest Issue’
“There is no denying that at the moment there are many Snyder fans who are happy for the failure of your film and many of them wish that everything that is to come fails just for not continuing with the films of their director,” one fan wrote to Levi on Twitter.
“This is also true,” Levi responded. “Sad, but true. How much that actually affects the box office is anyone’s guess. But I think the biggest issue we’re having is marketing. This is a perfect family movie, and yet a lot of families aren’t aware of that. Which is just a shame.”

The Wrap How Dwayne Johnson Kneecapped ‘Black Adam’ and ‘Shazam 2’ While Trying to Take Over DC | Exclusive
Johnson did plenty of work in public to undermine “Shazam,” chiefly by promoting a face-off between Black Adam and Superman instead of the more canonical link between the hero Zachary Levi played and the former pro wrestler’s own character. Privately, he vetoed a planned post-credits scene in “Black Adam,” which would have seen Shazam recruited by Aldis Hodge’s Hawkman, and other costumed heroes, into the Justice Society of America, TheWrap can report exclusively, thanks to disclosures by two high-level Hollywood insiders.
New DC Studios co-chief and “Shazam” producer Peter Safran resurfaced a version of the post-credits sequence Johnson vetoed, and it now exists as a mid-credits cookie in “Fury of the Gods.” But Johnson nixed the use of “Black Adam” actors and the scene now plays out with Jennifer Holland and Steve Agee from “Suicide Squad” and “Peacemaker.”

The Wrap: Zachary Levi Weighs In on Dwayne Johnson’s Nixing of ‘Black Adam’ Post-Credit Scene: ‘The Truth Shall Set You Free’
“Shazam! Fury of the Gods” star Zachary Levi has weighed in on The Wrap’s exclusive reporting of “Black Adam” heel Dwayne Johnson’s nixing of the post-credit scene saying, “The truth shall set you free.”
On Tuesday afternoon, Levi responded on his Instagram story.

Koimoi: Shazam! Fury Of The Gods’ Fame Zachary Levi Reveals DC “Tried Desperately To Get Henry Cavill In The 1st Movie” Amid The Film’s Cold Box Office Reception
Zachary Levi said, “We, for years, have been doing everything we can to fight for you, the fans. Yes, even you fans that don’t like me. All of you fans who love Henry Cavill, we tried desperately to get Henry Cavill in the first movie. He wasn’t a headless Superman because we wanted him to be a headless Superman. We were thwarted. All of these hardworking people were thwarted. We were not allowed to have that happen, okay.” The Shazam 2 star further shared that he too wanted to do the crossovers of DCU characters but everything doesn’t always go as planned.
He said, “Listen guys, I am a comic nerd and I’ve been growing up with this stuff. I love all this stuff. I want to blow all of your minds with all the crossovers and all the goods. And trust me, it bummed me out greatly when we couldn’t get Henry Cavill.” The snippet of his has been going viral on Twitter, here check it out.

So? Who vetoed HC’s appearance in S!1? TB, WH, DJ? The truth shall set you free, remember?

@Cashmere said:

BTW, if memory serves… DFS said that he got permission to shoot in the school cafeteria during a school holiday. When we checked the Canadian school holidays, HC was still busy. Was it during MI6 or TW? To remove HC’ stache would have cost a lot of money. WB wouldn’t do that for a cameo. WB really wanted S!1’s PB to remain low.

1. S!1’s principal photography started in Canada on January 29, 2018, and wrapped on May 11, 2018.
   
2. MI6’s principal photography officially began on April 8, 2017, and wrapped on March 25, 2018. HC shaved March 21, 2018
3. S!1’s additional photography took place [for three weeks] in Toronto between November and December 2018.
4. TW’s principal photography for the first season began on October 31, 2018, and wrapped in May 2019.

THR: ‘Shazam! Fury of the Gods’ Director David F. Sandberg Talks Wonder Woman Cameo, the Marketing Swerve and Those Credit Scenes
Sandberg is also clarifying the timing of the mid-credit scene since it includes Emilia Harcout (Jennifer Holland) and John Economos (Steve Agee) from James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker. With Gunn now the co-CEO of DC Studios alongside Fury of the Gods producer Peter Safran, some viewers might be thinking that they made a late addition to the film in order to connect Shazam (Zachary Levi) to Gunn’s new DCU slate, but the scene was actually shot long before Gunn and Safran took the reins of DC.
“There were supposed to be characters from [Black Adam’s] Justice Society, but that fell apart three days before we were going to roll cameras,” Sandberg shares. “So, Peter Safran, who produced this movie and Peacemaker, made some calls, and thankfully, Jen Holland and Steve Agee were able to come by on very short notice.”

ComicBookMovie: DC Studios Boss James Gunn Hits Back At Fan Who Says "Stop Putting Your Wife In Every DC Project"
JG: The only DC movie I’ve ever cast my wife in was #TheSuicideSquad. I had nothing to do with the casting of any other movie - anything else was shot a year or so ago while I was deep in 'Vol 3.' But I know some of you are deeply in need of reasons to hate.

Wiki: GOTG3 principal photography began on November 8, 2021 and wrapped on May 6, 2022.

Pre-production & filming of BA & GOTG3

1. By July 2020, the filming of BA was expected to begin in early 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia.
2. 07/2020 – Noah Centineo was cast as Atom Smasher
3. 09/2020 – Aldis Hodge was cast as Hawkman
4. 10/2020 – Sarah Shahi was cast as Adrianna Tomaz
5. 12/2020 – Quintessa Swindell was cast as Cyclone
6. 02/2021 – Marwan Kenzari joined the cast
7. 03/2021 – Mid-March the construction of the sets began
8. 03/2021 – End of March Pierce Brosnan was cast as Kent Nelson / Doctor Strange
9. 04/2021 – Principal photography began at Trilith Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, and wrapped by August 15, 2021.
10. 04/2021 – James Cusati-Moyer, Bodhi Sabongui, Mo Amer, and Uli Latukefu joined the cast
11. By April 2021, Pre-production work creating the designs and visuals for GOTG3 began.
12. 05/2021 – S!2 principal photography began in Atlanta, Georgia, and concluded on August 31, 2021.
13. By June 2021, James Gunn began storyboarding, with filming later revealed to begin in November 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia for an expected end around April 2022.
14. By August 2021, JG and Marvel Studios began meeting with actors for the role of Adam Warlock
15. 10/2021 – Will Poulter was cast as Adam Warlock and JG said "dozens of roles" had already been cast.
16. 10/2021 – Chris Pratt began rehearsals and camera tests
17. 11/2021 – A production meeting was held shortly before the start of filming
18. 05/2022 – BA reshoot started and ended the next month.

The Direct: James Gunn Confirms Peacemaker Character Will Return In Upcoming DC Movie [January 17, 2022]
While guesting on TV’s Top 5 podcast with The Hollywood Reporter, Peacemaker writer-director James Gunn was asked if he was basically building his own Peacemaker-verse within the DCEU.
In response, the director confirms that DC "can use these characters," and one of them, "which people have kind of figured out," is already set to go on to be featured in an unspecified upcoming DCEU film.
"It is part of the DCU, I mean they can use these characters... I mean one of these characters, which people have kind of figured out, one of these characters is used in a future big DC movie that's from here. So we are connected to all of this... who knows what role these characters are going to play in the future? I mean no one knew who the Guardians of the Galaxy were, and then all of a sudden they're massive players in [Avengers:] Infinity War and [Avengers:] Endgame. So who knows what's going to happen with Peacemaker in ten years, five years, or whatever."
Not too long ago, it was rumored that Jennifer Holland's character from Peacemaker, Emilia Harcourt, was going to factor into Dwayne Johnson's Black Adam in some fashion. The size of Harcourt's role is unclear, but based on Gunn's words, it's a safe bet that Holland's Harcourt will appear in Black Adam.

Oh, PS likes to cast or “put” those he knows in “projects”, doesn’t he?

The Nerds Of Color: There is no relation between Rizwan Manji‘s character in this film [S!2], and his Peacemaker character, Jamil
“When we cast him, we hadn’t seen Peacemaker yet. It hadn’t come out yet. But Peter was like, ‘Hey I just worked with this guy on Peacemaker, who’s really funny. He should be the museum guy.’ And I was like, ‘But if he’s in Peacemaker, it’s the same universe.’ And Peter said, ‘Oh! It’s a tiny role. It won’t matter.’ And then when I saw Peacemaker, [Rizwan] was in the intro, messing around. So I was like, ‘What are you talking about? he’s right there!’ But I mean, it’s just… his twin brother who works in Greece at a museum,” joked Sandberg.

DFS (July 29, 2022): Yes that's Rizwan. Peter Safran recommended him for a part after working with him on Peacemaker. I said "but that's the same universe". He said "he's barely in Peacemaker". Little did I know Rizwan is even dancing in the credits! Could be same character 🤷‍ Never named in Shazam 2
JG (July 30, 2022): I think of him as Jamil’s more successful brother!

Comicbook: Shazam! Fury of the Gods Almost Had Superman and Batman Cameos (Exclusive)
ComicBook.com's Brandon Davis recently had a chat with Shazam!: Fury of the Gods director David F. Sandberg, and he revealed that Batman and Superman almost made an appearance in the sequel.
"Yeah. I mean, we get around it a little bit because we have a big dome surrounding, a big force field dome surrounding. Stole that from The Simpsons," Sandberg told us. "No, but I did early on think like we should have a scene, at least on a news report or something, where you can see from far away something like Superman trying to get in or Batman standing outside, pounding the dome or something. That was dropped pretty quickly, because that also opens up a whole nother can of worms because then you really start thinking about it. Well, yeah, clearly they are here, so what's going on?"

@Cashmere said:

They don’t believe JG. They call him… professional liar?

JG (Dec 15, 2022): Met with Ben yesterday precisely because he wanted to direct & we want him to direct; we just have to find the right project.

So if DC came to you now and said, “Do you want to direct something?
BA (March 16, 2023): I would not direct something for the [James] Gunn DC. Absolutely not. I have nothing against James Gunn. Nice guy, sure he’s going to do a great job. I just wouldn’t want to go in and direct in the way they’re doing that. I’m not interested in that.

@Triksy said:

More drama, because of S!2’s low ratings and BO numbers.

Thanks for putting everything in one post, on one thread. You forgot what DJ said (check the MOS thread) and the pre-production & filming timeline part. Geeks put each quote in a different thread. But put them in your post without my comments.

James Gunn, who called it “probably one of the greatest superhero movies ever made.”

JG also praised S!2. We all know how that ended.

On Sunday-morning, S!2’s domestic OW projection was $30.5M. That’s lower than the projected $35M ($85M WW) by the trades. On Monday, the OW turned out to be even lower, $30.1M ($65M WW). S!1’s OW was $53.5M in 2019 (+inflation $62,961,476).

BA and S!2 flopped really badly and the male leads decided to humilate themselves publickly.

So? Who vetoed HC’s appearance in S!1? TB, WH, DJ? The truth shall set you free, remember?

Or maybe HC didn’t feel like doing it. He was busy with other stuff. But it looks like ZL wants to exonerate himself and protect someone… likely a suit.

Anyway… tell the whole truth or shut the f*ck up. We’re not interested in half-truths.

BTW, if memory serves… DFS said that he got permission to shoot in the school cafeteria during a school holiday. When we checked the Canadian school holidays, HC was still busy. Was it during MI6 or TW? To remove HC’ stache would have cost a lot of money. WB wouldn’t do that for a cameo. WB really wanted S!1’s PB to remain low.

1. S!1’s principal photography started in Canada on January 29, 2018, and wrapped on May 11, 2018.
   
2. MI6’s principal photography officially began on April 8, 2017, and wrapped on March 25, 2018. HC shaved ….
3. S!1’s additional photography took place [for three weeks] in Toronto between November and December 2018.
4. TW’s principal photography for the first season began on October 31, 2018, and wrapped in May 2019.

“There were supposed to be characters from [Black Adam’s] Justice Society, but that fell apart three days before we were going to roll cameras,” Sandberg shares. “So, Peter Safran, who produced this movie and Peacemaker, made some calls, and thankfully, Jen Holland and Steve Agee were able to come by on very short notice.”

Oh, my… thankfully JG’s umemployed wife was able to come by on very short notice. Please! Of course she could. Does she have any project that isn’t her husband’s or of one of her husband’s “friends”?

ComicBookMovie: DC Studios Boss James Gunn Hits Back At Fan Who Says "Stop Putting Your Wife In Every DC Project"
JG: The only DC movie I’ve ever cast my wife in was #TheSuicideSquad. I had nothing to do with the casting of any other movie - anything else was shot a year or so ago while I was deep in 'Vol 3.' But I know some of you are deeply in need of reasons to hate.

Besides developing a … creepy attraction for little kids, JG seems to have developped an eagernes to lie… some sort of amnesia and… a reading comprehension problem.

The poster didn’t write cast or film. That poster wrote put and project. There is no casting. These idiots just put their family and friends in projects. JG put his wife in the TSS film and in the PM series. Films and series are both considered projects of a film studio.

Wiki: GOTG3 principal photography began on November 8, 2021 and wrapped on May 6, 2022.

The Direct: James Gunn Confirms Peacemaker Character Will Return In Upcoming DC Movie [January 17, 2022]
While guesting on TV’s Top 5 podcast with The Hollywood Reporter, Peacemaker writer-director James Gunn was asked if he was basically building his own Peacemaker-verse within the DCEU.

JG was deep in GOTG3, but he had time to be on a podcast. A phone call to his “friend” to put his wife in BA or in any other cameo would just take a few minutes. When BA’s real casting (you know… auditions and not nepotism) was happening, GOTG3’s pre-production had not really begun. JG had plenty of time to convince his “friend” that his wife’s character should be DC’s Nick Fury.

Pre-production & filming of BA & GOTG3

1. By July 2020, the filming of BA was expected to begin in early 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia.
2. 07/2020 – Noah Centineo was cast as Atom Smasher
3. 09/2020 – Aldis Hodge was cast as Hawkman
4. 10/2020 – Sarah Shahi was cast as Adrianna Tomaz
5. 12/2020 – Quintessa Swindell was cast as Cyclone
6. 02/2021 – Marwan Kenzari joined the cast
7. 03/2021 – Mid-March the construction of the sets began
8. 03/2021 – End of March Pierce Brosnan was cast as Kent Nelson / Doctor Strange
9. 04/2021 – Principal photography began at Trilith Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, and wrapped by August 15, 2021.
10. 04/2021 – James Cusati-Moyer, Bodhi Sabongui, Mo Amer, and Uli Latukefu joined the cast
11. By April 2021, Pre-production work creating the designs and visuals for GOTG3 began.
12. 05/2021 – S!2 principal photography began in Atlanta, Georgia, and concluded on August 31, 2021.
13. By June 2021, James Gunn began storyboarding, with filming later revealed to begin in November 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia for an expected end around April 2022.
14. By August 2021, JG and Marvel Studios began meeting with actors for the role of Adam Warlock
15. 10/2021 – Will Poulter was cast as Adam Warlock and JG said "dozens of roles" had already been cast.
16. 10/2021 – Chris Pratt began rehearsals and camera tests
17. 11/2021 – A production meeting was held shortly before the start of filming
18. 05/2022 – BA reshoot started and ended the next month.

So if DC came to you now and said, “Do you want to direct something?
BA (March 16, 2023): I would not direct something for the [James] Gunn DC. Absolutely not. I have nothing against James Gunn. Nice guy, sure he’s going to do a great job. I just wouldn’t want to go in and direct in the way they’re doing that. I’m not interested in that.

Polygon

Jonathan Majors dropped from several projects following domestic violence allegations

Actor Jonathan Majors, known for his roles in Creed III, HBO’s Lovecraft Country, and Marvel Studios’ Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, is being removed from projects after his arrest in March on assault charges. Majors is set to appear in New York Supreme Court in Manhattan on May 8.

Majors was arrested on charges of strangulation, assault, and harassment on March 26. Shortly after Majors’ arrest, his lawyer released a statement claiming that the actor was innocent and that Majors was actually the “victim of an altercation with a woman he knows.”

Majors’ crisis publicist (who is also the husband of his attorney) released text messages from the alleged victim in hopes that they would clear up Majors’ involvement. That defense seemed to backfire; the texts, some said, read like they were written by a victim of abuse.

After these details came to light, several productions and agencies dropped Majors. Majors’ publicists, Lede Company and Management 360, reportedly parted ways with the actor, though the talent agency WME still represents him at the time of publication. Majors has also stepped down from the board of the Gotham Film and Media Institute and the Sidney Poitier Initiative. And he has been dropped from a number of advertising campaigns, as well as the upcoming movie The Man in My Basement. An untitled Otis Redding biopic that Majors was reportedly considering has also parted ways with the actor.

According to a report from Variety, “multiple alleged abuse victims of Majors have come forward following his March arrest and are cooperating with the Manhattan district attorney’s office” in its case against Majors. Among these alleged victims is someone who apparently worked on Marvel’s Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, in which Majors portrayed Kang, the movie’s principal villain.

Marvel remains in business with Majors, as of publication time, with production for Avengers: The Kang Dynasty reportedly beginning next spring. The actor is deeply connected to the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s current slate of films; he appeared in the first season of Loki as a character named He Who Remains, and was set up to be a Thanos-sized threat going forward.

At the end of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Majors was shown to play even more roles, with thousands of time-traveling Kangs and Kang variants appearing in post-credits scenes. Kang is an integral villain to the MCU’s current story arc, which culminates in Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars, where Majors’ villain will likely help reset the MCU for a brighter future.

The potential of recasting the role presents Marvel with a challenge: Loki season 2, expected to include Majors in a fairly prominent role, is already in the can. The news may even impact Disney’s VOD slate, as the company looks for the right time to release Quantumania on Disney Plus amid Majors’ legal troubles.

As Hollywood reacts to the news erupting around Majors, the actor’s representatives still attempt to counter it with new statements.

“Jonathan Majors is innocent and has not abused anyone,” his attorney, Priya Chaudhry, wrote in an email blast to press on April 19. “We have provided irrefutable evidence to the district attorney that the charges are false. We are confident that he will be fully exonerated.”

https://www.polygon.com/23691310/jonathan-majors-domestic-violence-allegations-kang-mcu-recast

Trailer The Marvels – Captain Marvel, Ms. Marvel and Monica Rambeau return in Marvel Studios' #TheMarvels, only in theaters November 10.

TraIler Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse – One Spider-Man wants to change his own destiny. Miles Morales returns for the next Spider-Man movie, exclusively in theaters June 2.

Boxoffice Pro predicts that Fast X will open between $65M-$75M and will have a DBO between $146M-$186. I though this film would be the biggest film this year. It looks like Mario may keep the crown. Will Mermaid or MI7 take it?

Midgard Times: ‘Tron: Ares’ is currently scheduled to begin filming on August 16 in Vancouver, Canada, and will take exactly four months to officially wrap up on December 16, 2023. Joachim Ronning will be directing the film based on a script written by Jesse Wigatow. The film is currently cast with casting directors Corinne Clark and Jennifer Page.

CBR: Fantastic Four: Adam Driver Reportedly in Final Talks to Join the MCU
According to reputable scooper Daniel Richtman, Driver is currently finalizing a deal with Marvel Studios to play the Fantastic Four's Reed Richards.

@Cashmere said:

You forgot what DJ said (check the MOS thread) and the pre-production & filming timeline part. But put them in your post without my comments.

Done.

The S!1 cameo part won’t make sense without what you wrote.

When we checked the Canadian school holidays, HC was still busy. Was it during MI6 or TW?

I don’t remember. HC shaved March 21, 2018

@Triksy said:

Or they “leak” stories so JG can confirm them. He just confirmed the latest leak. Although, many already knew or suspected he’d do both things.

The son of gun tried to steal ZS’ moment with that. Another b*tch trait. ZS’ Darkseid announcement was for charity. Still, the b*tch couldn’t stand it. He had to let people know that SM is his now. And like ZS, he needed a sad story too. The only difference is that ZS’ sad story isn’t used for pitiful sympathy, like he decided to use his daddy issues. Who understands perverts? His father probably knew he’ll be a pedophile. Who can understand adults who think that child abuse is funny?

So if DC came to you now and said, “Do you want to direct something?
BA (March 16, 2023): I would not direct something for the [James] Gunn DC. Absolutely not. I have nothing against James Gunn. Nice guy, sure he’s going to do a great job. I just wouldn’t want to go in and direct in the way they’re doing that. I’m not interested in that.

BA is like, “I aint your wife. I don’t have to fake liking your pedo arse for jobs.”

Polygon

Jonathan Majors dropped from several projects following domestic violence allegations

Remember when the cocky MCU fans kept saying that scandals, low ratings and flops are a DC thing? Look at what’s happening to the MCU now. This Kang scandal is going to cost Disney. Ant-M3 and several D+ series flopped. Predictions put GOTG3’s OW somewhere between $110M-$135M. It’s said that Disney is so desperate that it gave the foreign press gifts in exchange for good early reviews. Super GOTG3 fans get to attend a free screening. Hopefully they’ll praise the film and back the likely fake good reviews from the foreign press.

I don’t know why people care about the early reviews. The studios choose members of the press that will likely give the film a positive early review. WW84 and S!2 are good examples of lots of positive early reviews that eventually turned into a rotten RT score.

CBR: Fantastic Four: Adam Driver Reportedly in Final Talks to Join the MCU
According to reputable scooper Daniel Richtman, Driver is currently finalizing a deal with Marvel Studios to play the Fantastic Four's Reed Richards.

Adam Driver? Really? Am I the only one who doesn’t like any of the latest casting?

I don’t remember. HC shaved March 21, 2018

HC should make a vid like that again. We need reassurance that he’s still THE Ken doll. The Ken doll of Ken dolls.

@Cashmere said:

Is laughable that some want MK’s BM to be the main BM in the DCU. MK’s BM looks outdated and out of place.

BM is stupid when he’s young. He doesn’t have any powers. Now he’s a grandpa.

Anyway… tell the whole truth or shut the f*ck up. We’re not interested in half-truths.

It’s easy to tell others the truth will set you free.

Mario crossed the $1B mark. This wacky film beat Sonic ($405,421,518) and Uncharted ($400,689,914). Perhaps video game adaptations should be animated films.

Variety: As of Sunday [04/30], after 26 days of release [04/05], the animated video game adaptation, from Universal, Illumination and Nintendo, has grossed $490 million in North America and $532 million internationallly. It’s only the fifth movie of pandemic times to join the $1 billion club, following “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” “Top Gun: Maverick,” “Jurassic World Dominion” and “Avatar: The Way of Water.”

@Cashmere said:

Oh, my… thankfully JG’s umemployed wife was able to come by on very short notice. Please! Of course she could. Does she have any project that isn’t her husband’s or of one of her husband’s “friends”?

JG’s wife is in GOTG3. Shocked?

Poster: So you are still play favorites, ugh?

JG: Yes I have favorite professional actors I’ve worked with over the years, people whose voices and styles I understand intimately and who understand my writing intimately as well - who I don’t have to explain my process to all over again. That’s how this job works.

It seems like the people who understand JG’s work are only his family, friends and friend of a friend.

@Sue-Yin said:

Adam Driver? Really? Am I the only one who doesn’t like any of the latest casting?

I’m tired of the whole thing.

@Triksy said:

Mario crossed the $1B mark. This wacky film beat Sonic ($405,421,518) and Uncharted ($400,689,914).

While Dungeons & Dragons flopped ($150M PB – $$195,396,478 WW). I hear Chris Pine got paid $12M.

JG’s wife is in GOTG3. Shocked?

I’ll bet she’s playing a variant of agent Harcourt. She’ll be the one to connect DCU with MCU, mark my words.

JG: Yes I have favorite professional actors I’ve worked with over the years, people whose voices and styles I understand intimately and who understand my writing intimately as well - who I don’t have to explain my process to all over again. That’s how this job works.

I understand what JG’s arrogant arse is saying. He wants to make his life easy. Who doesn’t like that? But IMO, that may not be good for the film. It is definitely not good for the other actors and actresses out there.

I think that everybody should have equal chance to get cast, especially in big budget adaptations like these. Everybody should audition. The talent who looks the part and can convincingly act the part should get the role. Even a small role in a DCU or MCU film will look good on your CV and get you exposure. If the directors of these films keep giving the same group of people these roles, 1) nobody else will learn how to work with the director, 2) the director won’t know who else understands his work., 3) the audience may get annoyed if they keep seeing the same faces together in different and/or similar films. All these crappy films already look the same.

You can work with the same lead (e.g. Chris Pratt), but everybody else should be new. Also, unless someone has shown that they can put bums in seats, they won’t/can’t keep getting major roles. Word is that Margot Robbie will be Sue Storm in F4. WTH? All her crappy films flopped and she’s already freaking HQ and Barbie. Why can’t some other actress be Sue Storm?

The Little Mermaid | Official Trailer (Walt Disney Studios) – in theaters May 26, 2023

“The Little Mermaid” is the beloved story of Ariel, a beautiful and spirited young mermaid with a thirst for adventure. The youngest of King Triton’s daughters and the most defiant, Ariel longs to find out more about the world beyond the sea and, while visiting the surface, falls for the dashing Prince Eric. While mermaids are forbidden to interact with humans, Ariel must follow her heart. She makes a deal with the evil sea witch, Ursula, which gives her a chance to experience life on land but ultimately places her life – and her father’s crown – in jeopardy. The film stars singer and actress Halle Bailey (“grown-ish”) as Ariel; Jonah Hauer-King (“A Dog’s Way Home”) as Prince Eric; Tony Award® winner Daveed Diggs (“Hamilton”) as the voice of Sebastian; Awkwafina (“Raya and the Last Dragon”) as the voice of Scuttle; Jacob Tremblay (“Luca”) as the voice of Flounder; Noma Dumezweni (“Mary Poppins Returns”) as Queen Selina; Art Malik (“Homeland”) as Sir Grimsby; with Oscar® winner Javier Bardem (“No Country for Old Men”) as King Triton; and two-time Academy Award® nominee Melissa McCarthy (“Can You Ever Forgive Me?” “Bridesmaids”) as Ursula.

“The Little Mermaid” is directed by Oscar® nominee Rob Marshall (“Chicago,” “Mary Poppins Returns”) with a screenplay by two-time Oscar nominee David Magee (“Life of Pi,” “Finding Neverland”). The songs feature music from multiple Academy Award® winner Alan Menken (“Beauty and the Beast,” “Aladdin”) and lyrics by Howard Ashman, and new lyrics by three-time Tony Award® winner Lin-Manuel Miranda. The film is produced by two-time Emmy® winner Marc Platt (“Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert,” “Grease Live!”), Miranda, two-time Emmy winner John DeLuca (“Tony Bennett: An American Classic”), and Rob Marshall, with Jeffrey Silver (“The Lion King”) serving as executive producer.

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts | Official Trailer (Paramount Pictures) – in theaters June 9, 2023

Returning to the action and spectacle that have captured moviegoers around the world, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts will take audiences on a ‘90s globetrotting adventure with the Autobots and introduce a whole new faction of Transformers – the Maximals – to join them as allies in the existing battle for earth. Directed by Steven Caple Jr. and starring Anthony Ramos and Dominique Fishback …

Oppenheimer | New Trailer (Universal Studios) – in theaters July 21, 2023

Written and directed by Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer is an IMAX®-shot epic thriller that thrusts audiences into the pulse-pounding paradox of the enigmatic man who must risk destroying the world in order to save it.

The film stars Cillian Murphy as J. Robert Oppenheimer and Emily Blunt as his wife, biologist and botanist Katherine “Kitty” Oppenheimer.

The film is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer by Kai Bird and the late Martin J. Sherwin. The film is produced by Emma Thomas, Atlas Entertainment’s Charles Roven and Christopher Nolan.

Oppenheimer is filmed in a combination of IMAX® 65mm and 65mm large-format film photography including, for the first time ever, sections in IMAX® black and white analogue photography.

EW

Haunted Mansion director teases Jared Leto's 'menacing and terrifying' Hatbox Ghost

Speaking to EW the filmmaker raved about the actor’s eerily convincing performance; bringing the Disneyland character alive on screen.

"It's very surprising. You'd be shocked to know who it was until you're told," filmmaker Justin Simien … exclusively tells EW of Leto's metamorphosis into the Hatbox Ghost …

"The character itself, it's part digital, part physical performance. We're trying to go for something scary that feels like it could exist physically in the real world, on the ride, but pushes the scare a lot further than the ride does. He knocked it out of the park. He's very menacing and terrifying."

Haunted Mansion | Official Trailer (Walt Disney Studios) – in theaters July 28, 2023

Directed by award-winning filmmaker Justin Simien, the film features an all-star ensemble cast including LaKeith Stanfield, Tiffany Haddish, Owen Wilson, Danny DeVito, Rosario Dawson, Chase W. Dillon and Dan Levy, with Jamie Lee Curtis and Jared Leto as The Hatbox Ghost.

Director Simien says, “As a lifelong fan of the Haunted Mansion attraction, I’m beyond excited to share the teaser trailer for our new film adaptation featuring an incredible cast. Our team has worked tirelessly to create a scary, funny and cinematic otherworldly adventure for both new and die-hard fans to enjoy! I can’t wait for audiences to experience this big screen version of the iconic Disney attraction.”

Inspired by the classic theme park attraction, “Haunted Mansion” is about a woman and her son who enlist a motley crew of so-called spiritual experts to help rid their home of supernatural squatters. The film’s producers are Dan Lin and Jonathan Eirich, with Nick Reynolds and Tom Peitzman serving as executive producers.

@Sue-Yin said:

While Dungeons & Dragons flopped ($150M PB – $$195,396,478 WW). I hear Chris Pine got paid $12M.

GOTG3’s BO is behind GOTG2’s. With a $250M PB + $100M promo, will it reach $700M to BE. Is CB movie fatigue real?

@Triksy said:

The Little Mermaid | Official Trailer (Walt Disney Studios) – in theaters May 26, 2023

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts | Official Trailer (Paramount Pictures) – in theaters June 9, 2023

Oppenheimer | New Trailer (Universal Studios) – in theaters July 21, 2023

Haunted Mansion | Official Trailer (Walt Disney Studios) – in theaters July 28, 2023

I don’t care for Little Mermaid, but I’m excited for Oppenheimer and Transformers. BTW, What was the point of casting JL? The Hatbox Ghost doesn’t look or sound like him. But I’m ready to be haunted. Heck, my dreams were haunted by JL with an ugly grill in his mouth. Let’s see if the creep can top that.

GOTG3’s BO is behind GOTG2’s. With a $250M PB + $100M promo, will it reach $700M to BE. Is CB movie fatigue real?

CB movie fatigue is real. CB geeks are in denial, but they aren’t the ones coughing $200M/$250M to make those films. Disney and WBD are the ones that have to do that.

Disney is either paying the trades and outlets to give GOTG3’s failure to exceed GOTG2’s BO numbers a positive spin (“it’s doing better than expected”) or the authors of the articles are CB geeks desperately looking for excuses for the failure.

Why did anybody expect GOTG3 to do worst than its doing? There is no reason for that. The rule is that a sequel should have 1) similar or better critics and audience score than the previous installment and 2) have the same or better BO numbers than the previous installment.

GOTG1 ($170M PB – 4.5x – $770,882,395 (+$982,867,238)), an unknown group of heroes at the time, have amazing BO numbers. GOTG2 ($200M – 4.3x – $869,087,963 (+$1,070,178,012)) did better than GOGT1. Both films have solid critics and audience score.

So, what’s this BS that “GOTG3 is doing better than expected”? The audience did get burned by crap like Thor4, Doc-S2 and Ant-M3, but the solid critics and audience score should have erased their doubts. Still, GOTG3 may not even reach GOTG1’s BO numbers, according to BOPro.

IMO, films with solid critics and audience score will just slow down the fatigue while crappy films will speed it up. Disney should take a break after the two Avengers films. WBD should rethink its upcoming Gunn-verse.

@Triksy said:

JG: Yes I have favorite professional actors I’ve worked with over the years, people whose voices and styles I understand intimately and who understand my writing intimately as well - who I don’t have to explain my process to all over again. That’s how this job works.

It seems like the people who understand JG’s work are only his family, friends and friend of a friend.

JG is old enough to be my... grandfather. So he should know a few of the things that I’m about to write.

One, JG is the co-CEO of DCS now. He kept all his projects… even those in the ZS-verse… and canceled everything else, except the characters with films being released this year. It’s understandable to not say those characters are canceled, because you don’t want people to say that it is pointless to watch them.

Two, now that JG is the co-CEO of DCS, he should try his best to stay neutral, but he didn’t. Besides keeping his projects, he also broadcast that he’ll bring the GOTG cast to the DCU. Why is this kind of weird stuff allowed in the film industry? Imagine there’s a promotion and your degree/diploma/experience makes you the perfect candidate, but you know that your employer will give it to a family member, a friend or a friend of a friend. How would you feel?

Three, I hear that directors casting the same people has been done forever. Many bad/questionable things were allowed in the past. That doesn’t mean that they should be allowed now.

Four, I hear that some other directors work with the same people too. Those directors aren’t the co-CEO of a major division of a major studio. They aren’t one of the directors part of a mega franchise that has been dominating the film industry and the online chatter for the last ten+ years. They aren’t the director of a film in two rival mega franchises. So… the audience is aware of who’s who. When you get tired of the MCU, you want to see other faces in the DCU films. Talking about helping the CBMF (comic book movie fatigue) settle in faster by casting the same people in both.

Back in the days, we criticized the casting of the same actors for DC and Marvel roles. Zachary Levi, Djimon Hounsou, Willem Dafoe… Hey, if they can be in both verse, so can HC. But nobody knew… or really cared how those actors got the job. Now… you have a CEO broadcasting that he’ll bring his MCU friends over to the DCU. Since when is a CEO allowed to openly show favoritism and nepotism? JG is the one who made people aware. Now… all eyes are on him. Many of those eyes are not his fans anymore or never were.

@Sue-Yin said:

The son of gun tried to steal ZS’ moment with that. Another b*tch trait. ZS’ Darkseid announcement was for charity. Still, the b*tch couldn’t stand it.

Is like Snow White with a cat feels threatened by his “pal”.

Am I the only one who doesn’t like any of the latest casting?

Nope. I don’t like the casting either. The actor they chose for Hercules is so wrong for the role. And Jonathan Majors as Kang? Nope.

@Triksy said:

Trailer The Marvels – Captain Marvel, Ms. Marvel and Monica Rambeau return in Marvel Studios' #TheMarvels, only in theaters November 10.

TraIler Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse – One Spider-Man wants to change his own destiny. Miles Morales returns for the next Spider-Man movie, exclusively in theaters June 2.

The Little Mermaid | Official Trailer (Walt Disney Studios) – in theaters May 26, 2023

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts | Official Trailer (Paramount Pictures) – in theaters June 9, 2023

Oppenheimer | New Trailer (Universal Studios) – in theaters July 21, 2023

Haunted Mansion | Official Trailer (Walt Disney Studios) – in theaters July 28, 2023

I don’t care for Little Mermaid, but I’m excited for Oppenheimer and Transformers. BTW, What was the point of casting JL? The Hatbox Ghost doesn’t look or sound like him. But I’m ready to be haunted.

Mermaid? I’m on the fence. That story is awful. I hope they have changed it. I’m not interested in Spider-verse. Marvels look annoying, but I’ll watch it. Another bad superheroine film. Hey… girl power. Oppenheimer and Haunted M look interesting. I can’t believe I want to watch a Transformers film… again.

CB movie fatigue is real.

So, what’s this BS that “GOTG3 is doing better than expected”? The audience did get burned by crap like Thor4, Doc-S2 and Ant-M3, but the solid critics and audience score should have erased their doubts. Still, GOTG3 may not even reach GOTG1’s BO numbers, according to BOPro.

Is difficult to say if it’s just CBMF. It could be JG’s actions too. He pissed off many people with his disgusting tweets and the cancellation of the ZS-verse. Some conservatives support Chris Pratt while some won’t because of JG. ZS stans, who are also MCU fans… some don’t see why an MCU film should suffer for something that happened at DC while some won’t watch anything made by JG.

A special thanks to this Sophie Holland person for the final straw that broke the camel’s back. From now on, me and my family will watch NX content somewhere on the internet.

DEADLINE: It sounded like she really put herself through the ringer to capture the part…

SH: That’s what you want from your star, isn’t it? You want her to want to go the extra mile because you lead from the front. It’s called Wednesday. She’s the star. You want somebody who’s all in and invested. We did a co-cast with John Papsidera on Wednesday and he was the one who found Jenna and he handled the whole process beautifully.

Is this woman taking a jab at someone? She should tell that to the TW dumbarse writerss. It’s called The Witcher, not Princess Ciri or Mage Yenefer.

DEADLINE: She has also talked about how she changed some of the script because she didn’t like how it portrayed her character. Is that a step too far from an actor in your mind, or fair enough?

SH: I don’t remember anything that wasn’t in the script being on screen, but I wasn’t on set and I hope she felt supported and able to make the character everything that felt right to her. You want it to be a journey.

Again, tell that to the clueless TW writers. It’s difficult to make complete and utter BS feel right when you know that there’s a perfectly well written story in the books. You have to change that crap. But how many times can you keep doing that? You’re paid to act, not write.

DEADLINE: You worked on You season four but the fifth season is heading back to the U.S. so I guess you’ll be off that? Another of your series that seems to have cultivated a strong audience is Shadow and Bone on Netflix. Are you expecting a third season of that one?

SH: I was only on You for one season, that’s right. It was a great experience…as for Shadow And Bone, we’re really hoping for a third season. It seems to have a huge fan base. It’s a fresh, up-and-coming cast and the story is very faithful to the books, which is refreshing. It’s all about that first month’s performance on Netflix, I guess, so we’ll find out soon if it’s being recommissioned. It’s a tricky time, as you noted, so we’ll see.

Yeah, tell that to the TW writers too. Whoa, it seems like this woman really gave this interview to indirectly throw shade at the TW dumbarse writers. Yes, it’s refreshing to stay faithful to the books, especially when you don’t know how to write a story that makes sense. Those dumbarse writers couldn’t write their clueless arses out of a freaking paper bag.

BTW, it’s all about that first month’s performance on Netflix for other shows, but not for TW, right? S&B is faithful to the books and has nice critics and audience RT scores. Still, NX is always hesitant to renew it. The same for Sandman, which also has nice critics and audience RT scores. But NX isn’t hesitant to give crap like TW a season 4 and 5 while 3 isn’t even out. NX gives TW another spin-off after TW:BO flopped and was bashed by critics and audience.

There were rumors that LSH and her husband split. Some said she fell for a TW writer while some said its a cast member. I say, forget that. The old hag is probably sleeping with NX higher-ups or she has some dirt on them. TW seems to be the only IP that gets this special treatment. Or is this NX way to tell the TW book and game geeks to go F themselves? NX will continue financing LSH’s crappy fan fiction, as the geeks call it, and spin-offs whether they like it or not.

Well, NX has managed to anger those who’s favorite show got canceled too. Their show’s canceled, but NX gives TW another spin-off after TW:BO flopped and was bashed by critics and audience. Very sus. Why is NX so sure that an expensive show like TW will do well? Well, there’s no independent party to check if the hv-numbers that NX publishes are right. NX can publish high hv-numbers to pretend everything’s fine.

I’m not a TW book or game geek, but I like other shows. I won’t help finance this weird game that NX is playing. NX won’t get my and my family’s money anymore. Keep canceling good stuff and finance crap.

DEADLINE: Were you surprised to hear that Henry Cavill was leaving?

SH: I probably won’t comment on that one. I’d love to, but I won’t.

On the one hand, she wants everybody to know that it’s her choice not to comment. Nobody told her to keep her pie hole shut. On the other hand, she can’t comment on HC leaving TW. What she wants to say may not be appreciated. So she found another way to say these without upsetting the TW fools:

1. It’s called Wednesday. She’s the star.
2. I hope she felt supported and able to make the character [change the script] everything that felt right to her.
3. … the story is very faithful to the books, which is refreshing.

I didn’’t know the incompetent writers that NX keeps hiring had to be schooled by a teenager. Unbelievable! This is freaking hilarious and beyond embarrassing.

Variety

Jenna Ortega Changed ‘Wednesday’ Scripts Without Telling Writers Because ‘Everything Did Not Make Sense’: ‘I Became Almost Unprofessional’

“When I read the entire series, I realized, ‘Oh, this is for younger audiences,'” Ortega said. “When I first signed onto the show, I didn’t have all the scripts. I thought it was going to be a lot darker. It wasn’t… I didn’t know what the tone was, or what the score would sound like.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever had to put my foot down more on a set in a way that I had to on ‘Wednesday,'” she continued. “Everything that Wednesday does, everything I had to play, did not make sense for her character at all. Her being in a love triangle? It made no sense. There was a line about a dress she has to wear for a school dance and she says, ‘Oh my god I love it. Ugh, I can’t believe I said that. I literally hate myself.’ I had to go, ‘No.’ There were times on that set where I even became almost unprofessional in a sense where I just started changing lines. The script supervisor thought I was going with something and then I had to sit down with the writers, and they’d be like, ‘Wait, what happened to the scene?’ And I’d have to go and explain why I couldn’t go do certain things.”

Ortega clearly wanted to make Wednesday more three-dimensional than how the character read on the page. She didn’t want to play a Wednesday who lacked growth and was constantly monotonous, morbid and droll. For Ortega, that approach wasn’t going to work for a teenager.

“I grew very, very protective of her,” Ortega said. “You can’t lead a story and have no emotional arc because then it’s boring and nobody likes you. When you are little and say very morbid, offensive stuff, it’s funny and endearing. But then you become a teenager and it’s nasty and you know it. There’s less of an excuse.”

Interview Magazine

Jenna Ortega and Christina Ricci Have a Cathartic Conversation About Wednesday

[…]

RICCI: Were there specific things that you wanted to do to reinterpret the character?

ORTEGA: Honestly, it was more difficult than I was anticipating because everything that you did is so flawless.

RICCI: [Laughs] It’s a completely different thing.

ORTEGA: Yes, very different, but I’m just saying you are who people see as Wednesday, and that’s just the truth. I feel like the script was very reminiscent of ’90s Wednesday. It was really important to me that I wasn’t doing a knockoff of your performance, and it was different. Another thing is every time we’ve seen Wednesday, she’s been 5 years old, 10 years old. So when someone is saying really dark, twisted things out of a place of pure honesty and innocence, that naive aspect of a child, it’s a bit different when you get older and become a teenager because then you just sound like a bitch. You don’t want her to be nasty.

RICCI: That happened to me when we came back to do the second Addams Family. The note back from rehearsals was now that she’s a teenager, it just sounds nasty and bratty. I wanted to ask you, because I found with a character like this, sometimes when they’re written in such an extreme way, it can be difficult to move a traditional narrative along because the emotional reactions aren’t where people expect them to be—especially when you’re dealing with different directors and different people’s takes on such an extreme character. A lot of times with television, you find the character during the first season, and that must have been so hard with a character like this.

ORTEGA: Yeah, it was very stressful. I’m so glad you mentioned the multiple directors thing because Tim didn’t shoot all of the episodes. We were going from Tim to another director, back to Tim, to another director. I felt like everybody wanted different things from her. I remember Tim did not want me to have any expression or emotion at all. He wanted a flat surface, which I understand. It’s funny and great except when you’re trying to move a plot along, and Wednesday is in every scene. There were a lot of battles like that because I felt like people didn’t always trust me when I was creating my path in terms of, “Okay, this is her arc. This is where she gets emotional.” And then also, we jump into the first episode and so much is happening. You have to introduce the whole story. Meanwhile, I’m still finding my footing, and then it’s the cello lessons and the archery lessons and this and that.

RICCI: That becomes so overwhelming.

ORTEGA: I would call my parents every night in a panic because I felt like it was different from any job I had ever done before where I typically have that time to sit into the character. I got out to Romania and we started training and shooting immediately. We didn’t really have time for rehearsals. I remember it being very stressful and confusing. I did the best I could, but that’s probably the most overwhelming job I’ve ever had.

RICCI: When something is high concept, but other people don’t agree with the concept or the same expression of the concept, it can be so disorienting. I still don’t know how to manage that. Did you find a way to protect yourself from the things that could knock you off center?

ORTEGA: To be completely honest, no, at least not in the beginning. There have never been so many cooks in the kitchen. I was completely lost and confused. Typically I have no problem using my voice, but when you’re in it—I just remember feeling defeated after the first month. So I think something really wonderful that has come out of the show is that I can use my voice in a much stronger way than I ever have. I’ve been so much better about being honest about my opinions and thoughts, which I’m really grateful for.

RICCI: Trial by fire.

ORTEGA: Yeah. It’s like a fight, and you get to a point where, when you love and respect a character enough, all you want to do is protect them. Another way they pitched the show to me was, “Oh, we’re trying to humanize her and make her so that she’s still relatable. But this isn’t like some cartoon.” But it kind of is. I felt like sometimes in the attempt to make her a human girl, they were trying to make her any other teenage girl. I remember Tim being really wonderful about things like that and calling me to his trailer in the mornings and saying, “What are you uncomfortable saying? What do you want to say?” When you have supportive collaborators like Tim, it makes it a lot easier. There were a couple people like that on set who were my rocks, for sure.

[…]

Boxoffice Pro predicts that Fast X will open between $65M-$75M and will have a DBO between $146M-$186. I though this film would be the biggest film this year. It looks like Mario may keep the crown. Will Mermaid or MI7 take it?

The F&F franchise is too ridiculous.

Variety: “Fast X,” […], continued to show signs of running on fumes, at least in the U.S. It’s estimated to bring in about $23 million in its second weekend and $28.7 million over the four-day holiday after launching to a soft $67 million. Stateside, the film has generated a disappointing $113.6 million. But Dom and his road crew are getting a much warmer reception overseas, with “Fast X” expected to cross the $500 million mark at the global box office this weekend, making it the third-highest grosser of the year. It needs to keep making money and lots of it. The latest chapter cost a knee-weakening $340 million to produce.

Add $100+M promo to that. I don’t know why VD wants so many people in the film. He’s adding new people and bringing back old people. I hear DJ’s back. I couldn’t believe it. He had such a big mouth and now he crawled back with his tail between his legs to the franchise that launched his acting career. What a joke. He’s the one who made the feud public. He’s the one that kept running his mouth and called certain F&F people candy arses. He’s the one that publicly refused VD’s cordial invitation to come back.

Indian Express: I told [Diesel] directly that I would not be returning to the franchise. I was firm yet cordial with my words and said that I would always be supportive of the cast and always root for the franchise to be successful, but that there was no chance I would return,” he said.

Who’s the candy arse now? BA flopping really humbled DJ. It really showed him that he’s not a big draw without other popular actors. VD, on the other hand, is the draw of the F&F franchise.

JG is old enough to be my... grandfather. So he should know a few of the things that I’m about to write.

He could be. He’ll turn 57 on August 5th and he still behaves like a little boy who has just discovered he can post stuff online. He can’t live without tweeting. How did he survive before Twitter existed?

Is like Snow White with a cat feels threatened by his “pal”.

JG is like old women who have cats as their companion. They sit with a cat on their lap, looking through the window for something to complain. As a young person, you’re kind of afraid to walk by their house. JG is a variant of that. He sits with a cat on his lap, looking on his PC screen for something to post. He ignores his young bride to the point that she has to lie next to the fireplace for some warmth.

Mermaid? I’m on the fence. That story is awful. I hope they have changed it.

I hear they changed it and it’s doing very well.

Variety: Mermaid [$250M PB] is on track to debut to a massive $118 million over the four-day holiday, with $96 million of that coming over the three-day frame. It ranks as the fifth highest Memorial Day opening in history.

Some conservatives support Chris Pratt while some won’t because of JG.

We must support Chris. We can’t let the lefties push him out of Hollywood.

Never really understood the CP drama. But nothing’s happening. So let’s talk about him. Why do they want him out of Hollywood? Some don’t like how he treats his wife. How does he treat her?

@Sue-Yin said:

The rule is that a sequel should have 1) similar or better critics and audience score than the previous installment and 2) have the same or better BO numbers than the previous installment.

GOTG3 is supposedly the best of the trilogy, but the other two have better critics scores. GOTG3’s Top Critics RT score is the only one in the 60s (so far).

CinemaS – RT AllC – RT TopC – RT AudS – MetaC – MetaAud – IMDB – Google – Vol
A – 82% (370) – 67% (76) – 93% (025K+) – 64 (62) – 8.0 (0,598) – 8.2/10 – 95% – GOTG3
A – 85% (426) – 72% (83) – 87% (100K+) – 67 (48) – 7.8 (2,140) – 7.6/10 – 87% – GOTG2
A – 92% (338) – 87% (75) – 92% (250K+) – 76 (53) – 8.2 (3,555) – 8.0/10 – 88% – GOTG1

GOTG1 ($170M PB – 4.5x – $770,882,395 (+$982,867,238)), an unknown group of heroes at the time, have amazing BO numbers. GOTG2 ($200M – 4.3x – $869,087,963 (+$1,070,178,012)) did better than GOGT1. Both films have solid critics and audience score.

Is JG pulling a DJ with the G3 numbers?

JG: GotGVol3 has passed the $800 million dollar mark - that’s more than Vol 1 & Vol 2 excluding Russia - AND we’re still going strong, number four at the box office over a month in. BUT all of that pales in comparison to how much the film resonates with audiences all over the world, how much it means to you, and all the kind messages I’ve received from you about the film. Thank you!

According to TN, G3 was released in Russia and it grossed $5,697,304 from 310 screens. According to TN, G1 grossed $38,111,566 (+$48,837,688) from 98 screens back in 2014. There’s no need to exclude Russia.

Without Russia, G2 grossed $841,206,359 ($869,087,963 – $27,881,604). Right now, G3’s WW gross is $807,021,512.

G3 is doing fine on its own, but not when you compare it to the other installments with inflation. We’re not going back to 1956 when films didn’t have competition. We’re just going back to 2014 and 2017.

Vol. – Year – PB – Theaters – Domestic Opening Weekend (DOW) – Russia – China – Total Domestic Gross (TDG) – Worldwide Gross (WWWG)
G3 – 2023 – $250M – 4,450 – $118,414,021 (+$118,414,021) – $05,697,304 (+$005,697,304) – $88,520,000 (+$088,520,000) – $336,521,512 (+$336,521,512) – $807,021,512 (+$0,807,021,512)  
G2 – 2017 – $200M – 4,347 – $146,510,104 (+$181,322,391) – $27,881,604 (+$034,506,556) – $99,300,000 (+$122,894,687) – $389,813,101 (+$482,436,650) – $869,087,963 (+$1,075,592,084) 
G1 – 2014 – $170M – 4,080 – $094,320,883 (+$120,866,560) – $38,111,566 (+$048,837,688) – $86,346,368 (+$110,647,697) – $333,714,112 (+$427,634,640) – $770,882,395 (+$0,987,839,601) 

I didn’’t know the incompetent writers that NX keeps hiring had to be schooled by a teenager. Unbelievable! This is freaking hilarious and beyond embarrassing.

I’m a bigger fan of JO now.

I don’t know why VD wants so many people in the film. He’s adding new people and bringing back old people. I hear DJ’s back. I couldn’t believe it. He had such a big mouth and now he crawled back with his tail between his legs to the franchise that launched his acting career.

Wrong time to rejoin the F&F franchise. FX is doing poorly in the BO. At this rate, it won’t reach $1B. I wouldn’t do another Hobbs film, if I was DJ.

I hear they changed it and it’s doing very well.

Mermaid was doing fine domestically, but very poorly internationally. It won’t reach $1B.

Why is NX so sure that an expensive show like TW will do well?

Inspired by your little rant.

Netflix Equips The Witcher With $319 Million Budget

Netflix has revealed that it spent $318.7 million on making the first two seasons of The Witcher and the prequel to the sword and sorcery series starring a silver-haired Henry Cavill as the eponymous hero.

According to the streaming giant, 76 million households watched at least two minutes of The Witcher season one in its first four weeks, surpassing even the mighty Mandalorian on Disney+. Until the release of Bridgerton and Squid Game, The Witcher was Netflix's most-watched original series launch, with 541 million hours viewed in its first 28 days.

It still ranks as the ninth most popular English-language show on Netflix and spawned a second season which launched in 2021. Although it wasn't quite as popular it was still watched for 484 million hours in its first four weeks.

Budgets of television shows are usually a closely-guarded secret as studios tend to absorb the cost of individual programmes in their overall expenses. However, the big exceptions are production companies based in Britain, like the ones behind the first two seasons of The Witcher and its prequel.

Studios tend to set up separate companies in Britain to make different shows, and they even do this for different seasons of the same show. The companies have to file publicly-available financial statements showing everything from the headcount and salaries to the total cost of the production. There is good reason why studios are prepared to put up with this level of transparency.

British production companies benefit from the Television Tax Relief scheme which allows studios to claim a cash reimbursement of up to 25% of the money they spend in the country.

At least 10% of the core costs of the production need to relate to activities in Britain and The Witcher smashed through this threshold thanks in part to London-based visual effects firm Framestore which created the mesmerizing effects in the series.

To qualify for the tax credit, productions must also pass a test which allocates points to factors such as the language of the broadcast, the nationality of key members of the crew and the author of the subject matter. Handily, the terms of the test were written before Britain left the European Union so the same number of points are awarded for productions which are made by Europeans and based on material written by Europeans as ones made by a British crew and based on material written by a British citizen.

The Polish origins of The Witcher's author helped it pass the test and enabled the first season to claim the cash reimbursement even though it was filmed outside Britain. It was primarily shot in Hungary, Spain and Poland […]

Filming of the second season was largely confined to Britain due to the difficulty of international travel during the pandemic. The production spanned 15 locations in the country and was based at Arborfield Film Studios around 40 miles to the west of London.

The series was also shot at Bourne Wood in south-east England […]. Perhaps the most spectacular setting was the Yorkshire Dales National Park […]

The cost of the travel had a magic touch as a key condition of getting the cash reimbursement is that the production must spend at least $1.2 million (£1 million) per broadcast hour. Both seasons of The Witcher passed this with flying colors.

UK production companies usually have code names so that they don’t raise attention when filing for permits to shoot off-site. The Netflix subsidiary behind season one of The Witcher was called Hocus Pocus Productions in a nod to the spells at the heart of the story. Its financial statements show that since it was founded in 2018, its costs have come to a staggering $92.1 million meaning that the first season spent approximately $11.5 million for each of the eight hours that were broadcast.

The tax reimbursement offset the total costs by $7.1 million and the financial statements confirm that the credit "is based on relievable losses arising as the result of high-end television tax relief legislation."

The reimbursement soared to $36.5 million for season two which was made by a Netflix subsidiary called Thetford Productions. The reimbursement increased in line with a rise in spending as the cost of making the second season almost doubled to $176.3 million with each hour broadcast costing an average of $22 million. This brings the total budget of seasons one and two to $268.4 million but it doesn't stop there.

One of the biggest single expenses of the second season was the $16.6 million of salaries paid to the workforce which peaked at 143 staff. It isn't clear how much Cavill received but he wasn't just doing it for the money.

Although The Witcher's most famous name is moving on, its ranks are growing. Season three was also made by Hocus Pocus Productions but work on it didn't begin until early 2022 and the financial statements aren't available for that period yet.

In December Netflix released The Witcher: Blood Origin prequel […] and received largely negatively reviews due to the characters, writing, story and lack of faithfulness to the source material. Nevertheless, it was far from cut-price.

Blood Origin was also made by a British company - this time called Ripper Productions - and its financial statements for the year to September 30 2021 show that its costs came to $50.3 million (£37.3 million) with $10 million (£7.4 million) coming in from the reimbursement. At only two and a half hours long, its costs came to a staggering $20 million per hour and this is likely to rise as it doesn't even include the cost of post-production on Blood Origin which began in November 2021.

This brings Netflix's spending so far on The Witcher to $318.7 million and it is still surging.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/carolinereid/2023/06/02/netflix-equips-the-witcher-with-319-million-budget/?sh=e5ff496144c4

Another WBD epic disaster.

David Saslav: It's the best superhero movie I've ever seen.

James Gunn: I will say here that Flash is probably one of the greatest superhero movies ever made.

THR

‘The Flash’ Box Office Flameout: David Zaslav’s Regime Suffers First Major Miss

The Flash was slapped with a B CinemaScore, which is really the equivalent of a C or worse when it comes to all-audience event pics. Exit scores on PostTrak were also unusually bad, with only 58 percent of ticket buyers saying they would recommend the film, […].

Like audiences, critics disagreed with Zaslav and Gunn’s assessment, resulting in a lukewarm Tomatometer score of 66 percent on Rotten Tomatoes.

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/the-flash-flameout-box-office-flameout-david-zaslav-1235518567/

1. The Mary Sue – 'The Flash' Is Not Good Enough To Justify All the Praise
2. GameSpot – The Flash Review - Fast-Paced Fun At First, But Runs Out Of Steam
3. Consequence – The Flash Can’t Outrun Its Baggage or Its Competition: Review
4. With Ashley And Company – The Flash Movie Review: Michael Keaton's Batman Can't Save This Disaster
5. Paste Magazine – The Flash Review: Looper, Looney Tunes, and Superheroes Collide
6. South China Morning Post – The Flash: DC’s multiverse crossover movie lacks Spider-Man’s nostalgia
7. The Guardian – The Flash review – Ezra Miller’s doppelganger-superhero is a gurning, smirking mess
8. The Daily Beast – 'The Flash' Review: DC Can't Outrun Ezra Miller's Transgressions
9. Variety – ‘The Flash’ Review: Ezra Miller Is on a Bender of High Anxiety in a Movie That Starts Strong and Grows Overwrought
10. IndieWire – 'The Flash' Review: DC's Trip Into the Movie Multiverse Is Wild, Weird, and Ultimately Wearying
11. Collider – 'The Flash' Review: A Solid Multiverse Film but a Poor Time Travel Story
12. The Independent – The Flash review: Muddled, poignant and – because of Ezra Miller – morally tricky
13. The Verge – The Flash's meta-ness is its only trick, and its undoing
14. The Wrap – 'The Flash' Review: A Vague, Confusing Trip to the Multiverse
15. The Playlist – 'The Flash' Review: Barry Allen Is Barely The Lead In A Hollow Movie Overfilled With Fan Service
16. GamesRadar – The Flash review: "Ambitious, fun, messy"
17. Slant Magazine – The Flash Review: A Smart Take on Time Travel, Undone by Desperate Fan Service
18. World of Reel – 'The Flash' is Actually Pretty Terrible
19. The Times – The Flash review — a great big multiverse misadventure
20. GameSpot – The Flash Review - Fast-Paced Fun At First, But Runs Out Of Steam
21. Attractions Magazine 'The Flash' might not live up to the hype, but it's still loads of fun
22. Three If By Space – Review: “The Flash” Is A Quickly Forgettable Superhero Film
23. Digital Spy – The Flash doesn't quite live up to the early hype
24. Bloomberg – Ezra Miller Is a Disappointing Flash in the Latest DC Multiverse Movie
25. Nerdist – THE FLASH Drags as a Mediocre Comedy Before Briefly Taking Off as a Great Drama
26. Bounding Into Comics – 'The Flash' Review: An Unfunny, CGI Monstrosity Of A Superhero Film
27. Inverse – THE FLASH IS THE FINAL NAIL IN THE DCEU'S COFFIN (It’s been a long, troubled wait for The Flash. It wasn’t worth it.)
28. In Session Film – Movie Review: ‘The Flash’ Speeds Towards Comic Book Movies’ Worst Tendencies (THE FLASH isn't the worst a comic book movie can be, but it's not far off.)
29. The Daily Beast – The Endless Parade of Cameos in 'The Flash' Doesn't Save the Movie
30. The Telegraph – How The Flash became the most chaotic superhero movie ever made
31. FanBolt – 'The Flash' Movie Review: A CGI Disaster with a Lackluster Script
32. Dexerto – The Flash review: Pacing issues slow speedster’s standalone movie
33. We Got This Covered – Review: 'The Flash' Has Its Moments, but Is Far From the Game-Changer That Was Promised
34. SF Chronicle Datebook – Review: ‘The Flash’ is a long, pointless movie with too much Ezra Miller
35. The Outerhaven – 'The Flash' Movie Review – A Solid But Forgettable Multiverse Adventure
36. Mashable – 'The Flash' review: It sucks (Ezra Miller, Michael Keaton, and Ezra Miller team up for another DC misfire.)
37. Firstpost – The Flash movie review: Ezra Millers superhero actioner by DC is both fun and flawed
38. Mid-Day – 'The Flash' movie review: A fan service that’s entertaining but not altogether satisfying
39. Los Angeles Times – 'The Flash' review: Ezra Miller! Michael Keaton! Bad movie!
40. Observer – 'The Flash' Review: Not Bad As Comedy, Not Good As Superhero Epic
41. NPR – Review: 'The Flash' keeps the jokes coming fast, but slow-walks its characters
42. The Hindu – ‘The Flash’ movie review: Imperfect yet scintillating spectacle to end the DCEU storyline
43. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette – Review: Keaton as Batman can't save 'The Flash,' a film that runs nowhere fast
44. Pajiba – Spoilers: 'The Flash' Is Not Only Bad, It Fails Batman
45. IGN – The Flash Just Isn’t a Good Endpoint for the DCEU (The Flash is an awkward end to an awkward franchise, and a disappointing bookend to Man of Steel.)
46. The Ringer – ‘The Flash’ Is the Depressing Culmination of the Great IP Experiment
47. Ars Technica – Review: The Flash isn’t a terrible film—just a forgettable one (There's nothing here we haven't seen many, many times before—and frankly done better.)
48. National Review – The Flash: Adding Insult to Injury ('The Flash' is an aesthetically ugly, poorly cast film that is inconsistent on its own philosophical terms.)
49. Screen Rant – The Flash Review: DC's Middling Multiverse Movie Can't Outrun The Ezra Miller Factor: (The Flash is a passable multiverse superhero movie, but no amount of DC cameos can make audiences forget the awful off-screen actions of...)

CinemaS – RT AC – RT TC – RT VA – RT AA – MetaCS – MetaAS – IMDb – Google         
B – 66% (318) – 52% (58) – 84% (2,5k) – 80% (25k) – 56 (54) – 5.9 (253) – 7.3/10 – 86%     

Comicbookmovie.com

THE FLASH's CinemaScore Has Been Revealed (And It's Tied For Worst DCEU Movie To Date)

The Flash, a blockbuster David Zaslav and James Gunn have hailed as "the greatest superhero movie ever," has finally arrived in theaters.

Initial box office estimates suggested the DC Comics adaptation would open with a massive $140 million, though current signs point to it being lucky to make half of that in North America. Now, word of mouth could be about to take a massive hit.

While we've seen The Flash dip to 66% on Rotten Tomatoes, regular moviegoers were given the chance to weigh in yesterday and a CinemaScore has since been generated.

Despite not necessarily being as important to a movie's opening weekend chances as a Rotten Tomatoes score, this grade offers an idea of what people are thinking and, typically, a bad grade results in a lower-than-expected debut and a massive drop when the second weekend rolls around.

As you can see below, The Flash has been awarded a "B."

That means it's tied with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice as the worst-rated DCEU release.

The other DCEU CinemaScores are Man of Steel (A-), Batman V Superman (B), Suicide Squad (B+), Wonder Woman (A), Justice League (B+), Aquaman (A-), Shazam! (A), Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey (B+), Wonder Woman 1984 (B+), The Suicide Squad (B+), Black Adam (B+), and Shazam! Fury of the Gods (B+).

A Wonder Woman
A Shazam!

A- Man of Steel
A- Aquaman

B+ Suicide Squad
B+ Justice League
B+ Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey
B+ Wonder Woman 1984
B+ The Suicide Squad
B+ Black Adam
B+ Shazam! Fury of the Gods

B Batman V Superman
B The Flash

"Far from the greatest superhero movie ever made and not quite among the worst," we said in our review, "The Flash is still another mediocre effort from the DCEU with appalling VFX and a messy story that the excellent Michael Keaton and Sasha Calle alone are unable to save."

https://comicbookmovie.com/the-flash/the-flashs-cinemascore-has-been-revealed-and-its-tied-for-worst-dceu-movie-to-date-a203870

Comicbookmovie.com

THE FLASH Box Office Tracking Now Points To A Disappointing $70 Million Opening Weekend

When early tracking for The Flash first found its way online, it pointed to a massive $115 million - $140 million opening weekend for the long-delayed DC Comics movie. While it was more of an early guestimate than actual tracking data, it appears Warner Bros.' aggressive marketing campaign for "the best superhero movie ever made" had paid off.

Well, the movie has actually hit tracking boards today [May 26, 2023] and it's currently targeting a soft $70 million opening.

https://comicbookmovie.com/the-flash/the-flash-box-office-tracking-now-points-to-a-140-million-disappointing-70-million-opening-weekend-a203467

TN
$055,043,679 DOW
$073,300,000 IOW +
$128,343,679 WWOW

Forbes

Warner Bros. Shares Down After ‘The Flash’ Underperforms

Shares for Warner Bros. Discovery fell nearly 2% to $12.58 Tuesday morning, shortly after the market opened.

The Flash—projected to earn an estimated $70 million in its opening weekend—brought in $55.1 million in domestic sales and another $75 million from 78 markets internationally, according to Box Office Mojo.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush/2023/06/20/warner-bros-shares-down-after-the-flash-underperforms/?sh=57b449263bf2

Variety

‘The Flash’ Box Office ‘Disaster’ Exposes DC’s $1.1 Billion Problem for Warner Bros.

“The Flash” [PB $220M] is the second of four mega-budgeted DC adaptations the studio is set to release this year, starting with “Shazam! Fury of the Gods” [PB $125M] in March, and followed by “Blue Beetle” and “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” in August and December.

Indeed, things have not been going well. The production budgets and likely marketing spends for these four films will cost between $1.1 billion and $1.2 billion in total, according to experts outside the studio. But “Shazam! 2” has already bombed, earning a feeble $133 million globally. And “The Flash” just opened to a mere $55 million in the U.S. and Canada, grossing $135.7 million worldwide as of June 19 — well under expectations, and nowhere near what a film of this caliber and cost needs to approach breaking even.

“The movie should be opening at $120 million domestic,” says an industry veteran who’s worked on many major campaigns. “This is an unmitigated disaster.”

https://variety.com/2023/film/news/the-flash-box-office-dc-blue-beetle-aquaman-1235650170/

THR

‘The Flash’ Box Office Flameout: David Zaslav’s Regime Suffers First Major Miss

By late April, all indications pointed to The Flash opening to $100 million or more domestically. That’s when Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav took the stage at CinemaCon in Las Vegas, triumphantly telling theater owners it was the best superhero pic he’s ever seen.

The powerful executive could have easily kept a poker face and distanced himself from The Flash considering it was made by the previous regime. Instead, Zaslav bet on it as if it were his own. That included arranging for Tom Cruise — who was still basking in the afterglow of Top Gun: Maverick — to watch the movie, with his positive reaction becoming a talking point on the press tour. Zaslav’s newly installed DC Studios co-chief and top lieutenant James Gunn also trumpeted The Flash, although he tempered his remarks, saying in January it is “probably one of the greatest superhero movies ever made.” Whatever the wording, expectations skyrocketed.

But in a stunning turn, The Flash, one of the most anticipated films on the 2023 summer calendar, was a major box office miss in its launch. The tentpole, starring Ezra Miller in the titular role, opened to a dismal $55 million over the June 16-18 weekend, on par with past DC bomb Watchmen ($55.2 million) and not far ahead of infamous DC stumble Green Lantern ($53.5 million), not adjusted for inflation.

“It is unfathomable to me why Zas and James Gunn promise how wonderful any picture or new plan will be months into the future. The public doesn’t care and isn’t aware of their prognostications,” one veteran studio executive tells The Hollywood Reporter, noting that such forecasts don’t sway the share price or potential buyers. “Let the product talk.”

And talk The Flash did, albeit not in a healthy way as it opened in cinemas around the globe. Things went from bad to worse as poor word-of-mouth spread.

Based on Friday traffic, The Flash was expected to earn $58 million for the three-day weekend and $70 million for the four-day Juneteenth holiday weekend, according to Saturday morning estimates issued by Warners. But grosses were downgraded on Sunday morning and again on Monday after traffic fell off more than expected. By Sunday, Warners released a four-day estimated gross of $64.2 million, including $55.7 million for the three days. The final weekend numbers that came out Tuesday were even lower — $55 million for the three days and $61.2 million for the four (the three-day number is considered the official opening gross).

The story looked much different in February when the first trailer debuted to fanfare. “The Flash looked like it had so much potential following its Super Bowl trailer. Hopes were very high. Instead, it is more DC Comics mediocrity,” says Wall Street analyst Eric Handler. “Zaslav could have easily swept it under the rug since he inherited it.”

Considering Zaslav and Gunn’s confidence, many were surprised when The Flash officially came on tracking three weeks ahead of its debut to an underwhelming forecast of $70 million. They assumed tracking services, and Warner Bros., were being conservative. If only that were true.

Box office pundits believe Miller’s woes may have turned off some moviegoers, but not enough to inflict the sort of damage that was wrought. “No one would care if Miller promoted the picture; he isn’t a movie star and has no following,” says another source.

Often, a Hollywood event pic that finds itself in trouble domestically can make up ground overseas. In this case, there’s no such assurances. The Flash, which opened day-and-date in almost every major market, bowed to a muted $75 million internationally. Notes an insider close to the film, “When a movie doesn’t work, it just doesn’t work.”

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/the-flash-flameout-box-office-flameout-david-zaslav-1235518567/

WBD has reached a new low. The stench of desperation is all over what James Gunn considers probably one of the greatest superhero movies ever made. So embarrassing. Even free tickets couldn’t help the best superhero movie [David Zaslav has] ever seen from having a massive 72.5% second weekend BO drop. They even added 22 theaters.

TN – BOM
$55,043,679 – $55,043,679 – #1 – 4,234
$15,142,575 – $15,142,575 – #3 – 4,256

Fandango

Wanna go to the movies? Buy one ticket to #TheFlash on Fandango, get one FREE. Use code THEFLASH at checkout. While supplies last! fandan.co/TheFlash

The Direct

The Flash Movie Suffers Worst Drop In DC History (Box Office)

As shared by box office expert Luiz Fernando, The Flash suffered a massive drop at the domestic box office in its second weekend, grossing an estimated $15.3 million after an already disappointing $55 million opening weekend.

The massive decline means The Flash faced the biggest second-weekend box office drop in DC history with 72.5%, beating out the previous record of 71.5%, which was set by The Suicide Squad during the height of the pandemic.

The biggest second-weekend drops for DC movies at the domestic box office can be seen below:

1. 72.5% The Flash
2. 71.5% The Suicide Squad
3. 69.7% Jonah Hex
4. 69.1% Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
5. 69.0% Shazam: Fury of the Gods

Even going beyond that, The Flash suffered the third-worst second-weekend drop in superhero movie history at the domestic box office,

The worst drops for superhero movies domestically are listed below:

1. 78.0% Steel [$16M PB]
2. 73.0% Morbius [$75M PB]
3. 72.5% The Flash [$220M PB]
4. 71.5% X-Men: Dark Phoenix [$200M PB]
   71.5% The Suicide Squad [$185M PB]
   
5. 70.7% Hellboy II: The Golden Army [$82.5M PB]
6. 69.7% Jonah Hex [$47M PB]
   69.7% Hulk [$137M PB]
   
7. 69.1% Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice [$263M PB]
8. 69.0% Elektra [$65M PB]
   69.0% Shazam: Fury of the Gods [$125M PB]
   

The Flash currently has a domestic total of $87.6 million and is said to be eyeing a total U.S. run of around $110-120 million on an insane budget of $220 million, not including marketing and other major costs.

The total will likely leave The Flash as the ninth-highest-grossing of the 13 DCEU movies at the domestic box office when all is said and done:

1. $412.6 million Wonder Woman
2. $335.0 million Aquaman
   
3. $330.3 million Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
4. $325.0 million Suicide Squad
5. $291.0 million Man of Steel
6. $229.0 million Justice League
   
7. $168.2 million Black Adam
8. $140.4 million Shazam
9. $115.0 millionThe Flash - $110-120 million (estimated)
10. $084.2 million Birds of Prey
11. $057.6 million Shazam! Fury of the Gods
12. $055.8 million The Suicide Squad
13. $046.8 million Wonder Woman 1984

Adjusted for inflation:

1. $511.9M Wonder Woman
2. $418.5M Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
3. $411.8M Suicide Squad
4. $405.7M Aquaman
5. $379.9M Man of Steel
6. $284.1M Justice League
7. $174.8M Black Adam
8. $167.0M Shazam
9. $115.0M The Flash - $110-120M (estimated)
10. $098.9M Birds of Prey (start pandemic)
11. $062.6M The Suicide Squad (D&D)
12. $057.6M Shazam! Fury of the Gods
13. $055.0M Wonder Woman 1984 (D&D)

https://thedirect.com/article/the-flash-movie-box-office-dc-drop

Deadline

‘Elemental’ Shows Spark Overseas, ‘The Flash’ Crosses $200M WW; ‘Little Mermaid’ Nears $500M & China Is ‘Lost In The Stars’ – International Box Office

Last weekend’s leader, The Flash, which had initially come in lower than projections, added $26.6M in 78 offshore markets this weekend, dropping by 59%.The Warner Bros/DC deep universe title now counts an international running cume of $123.3M for $211M worldwide.

https://deadline.com/2023/06/elemental-the-flash-little-mermaid-lost-in-the-stars-china-global-international-box-office-1235424087/

Comingsoon.net

The Flash May Lose WB $200 Million After Box Office Flop

According to Luiz Fernando, the film is estimated to earn $280-310 million globally in its theatrical run. When pitted against The Flash’s $200-220 million production budget, $150 million in marketing, and the fact that studios don’t take all of their box office haul, the movie may lose $200 million for Warner Bros. Fernando believes they may have lost less money by releasing it on Max or not releasing it at all.

https://www.comingsoon.net/movies/news/1299743-the-flash-may-lose-wb-200-million-after-box-office-flop

Forbes

‘The Flash’ On Target For Disastrous $300 Million Global Total

And that’s probably the best-case outcome for the studio’s seventh sub-$400 million DC shared superhero universe of films.

After its second weekend of release, The Flash counts only $211 million in receipts. It needs approximately $650+ million to cover costs (to oversimplify, studios get slightly less than half of the box office gross), a figure it has no hope of reaching. Indeed and shocking as it sounds, The Flash will be lucky to earn half of that number.

The Flash will add another roughly $30 million domestically and about $40 million internationally, with a final cume in the range of $275 million to $300 million. I’m expecting it to sit right around $285 million, give or take a couple of million bucks.

There’s no way to sugarcoat this. It’s worse than even the worst worse-case scenario pundits thought possible for a tentpole summer release with such a large budget, strong test screening scores, and the appearance of two Batmans (Batmen?).

Most pundits and entertainment writers like me vastly underestimated how lethal has been the decline of the DC universe brand at the box office. Following six unprofitable sub-$400 million box office performances even for the DCEU films earning good Cinemascores and decent reviews, and in the face of tracking that showed audience interest in The Flash remaining static for weeks into the marketing, I should’ve paid more attention to that data’s importance and less to pre-release buzz and built-in summer superhero box office assumptions.

I think a lot of us also let ourselves be lulled into false senses of certainty about our predictions because of Batman.

But this means WBD and DC Studios had better be paying close attention to an enormous red flag — the Batman brand is tainted again, and audiences can no longer be counted on to deliver at least baseline blockbuster sales for Batman’s live-action appearances. We’ve been in this place once before, of course, with 1997’s Batman & Robin, so it looks like someone has now set an unfortunate Batman movie record.

At this point, there’s no good argument to retain any part of the DCEU for the live action cinematic future. […] but when audiences are shrugging off Batman, you’ve broken your brand.

I still think there’s value in the idea of licensing a specific set slate of DCEU “Snyderverse” projects for animation on Netflix, an idea dismissed as somehow insane and impossible despite the fact WBD is licensing material and shows to Netflix now and also have DC projects developed for other streamers to license and air.

But other than that, the DCEU seems to have run its course and lost the mainstream public. DC as a large cinematic brand has been tainted by years of failed projects, seven of them in a row now. Only Batman’s brand and the closely related Joker brand retained solid mainstream trust and turnout. Now, however, I fear the DCEU’s last several flops may have finally undermined even Batman and Joker as “sure things.”

Too much time, money, effort, and good will have been wasted in course correction after course correction for the DCEU, with diminishing returns.

The Batman succeeded because it was kept separated from the DCEU and it reminded audiences of a Batman they widely loved and showed up to see in The Dark Knight Trilogy. And Joker likewise reminded them of a Batman world, approach to storytelling, and a Joker they widely loved and showed up for in The Dark Knight.

When audiences keep telling you what they want, listen to them, believe them, and give it to them. WB has consistently had problems remembering learned lessons and applying them correctly to their DC properties.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/markhughes/2023/06/27/the-flash-on-target-for-disastrous-300-million-global-total/?sh=db465a418308

Gamesradar

Christian Bale refused to make a Batman cameo in The Flash

Warning: Spoilers for The Flash ahead!

The Direct

Kevin Smith says in a TikTok clip: "I think there’s a world where they hadn’t shot that until, like, fucking two weeks ago. It feels like they were like ‘It could be anybody,’ and I’m sure they were asking Christian Bale for, like, months and months hoping that he’d break down, and he was like ‘No.’ So they’re like ‘Alright, let’s pivot, let’s do another Batman.’ And they just grabbed George Clooney."

Smith responded on Twitter: It was just conjecture, not inside information.

After Barry Allen single-handedly destroys the time-space continuum (albeit with good intentions), he seemingly puts everything back together... or so we think.

At the very end of the film, Bruce Wayne comes to visit Barry. But instead of [Ben] Affleck, [George] Clooney appears, and Barry is baffled. According to Comic Book Movie, the plan was for Bale to walk out of the car at the end – not Clooney.

It's unclear why Bale, who played the caped crusader in three films, refused to reprise the role – but we don't blame him. "If Chris [Nolan] came to me and said, 'I've got a new story,' I'd be interested. But other than that, I don't think so," the actor previously told Inverse.

https://www.gamesradar.com/christian-bale-batman-cameo-the-flash/

@Sue-Yin said:

Remember when the cocky MCU fans kept saying that scandals, low ratings and flops are a DC thing? Look at what’s happening to the MCU now. This Kang scandal is going to cost Disney.

More scandal. Tenoch Huerta… the actor that plays Namor in BlackP2… is accused of being a violent sexual predator. WTH is wrong with these men?

I don’t know why people care about the early reviews. The studios choose members of the press that will likely give the film a positive early review. WW84 and S!2 are good examples of lots of positive early reviews that eventually turned into a rotten RT score.

The early reviews for TF were good too. So… there’s something very sus about early reviews.

Indiana Jones 5 (IJ5) has 66% AC and 55% TC on RT. That’s not from early reviews, though. Like Michael Keaton, Harrison Ford shouldn’t have reprised their iconic role. The talk is that IJ5 will flop too. And guess who was promoting it… TC! What has gotten in to him? BTW, geeks aren’t talking about MI7. Weird. Five/four weeks before MI6, SHM was red hot. Geeks were talking about the bathroom fight, HC loading his arms and the HALO jump ad nauseam.

BTW, it’s all about that first month’s performance on Netflix for other shows, but not for TW, right? S&B is faithful to the books and has nice critics and audience RT scores. Still, NX is always hesitant to renew it. The same for Sandman, which also has nice critics and audience RT scores. But NX isn’t hesitant to give crap like TW a season 4 and 5 while 3 isn’t even out. NX gives TW another spin-off after TW:BO flopped and was bashed by critics and audience.

I think that… poor Sophie Holland really started something. I think NX is aware of the discussions about the bogus 28 days hv system.

Just Jared: On recasting Henry Cavill with Liam Hemsworth in The Witcher season 4…
[NX exec] Peter shared, “Henry is an extraordinary Geralt and I think Liam will continue and also be an extraordinary Geralt. There has been a legacy of of amazing, iconic characters where the actors have changed and we’re hugely optimistic about this. We will continue to honor the IP, the fans, the storytelling, all the way through.”
On why certain shows are canceled (despite some being in Netflix’s “top 10″ list consistently)
About numerous cancellations, he shared, “I think you will hear this from many folks, but the cancellations are the hardest part of this job and when I think about the work that both the creators and all the people at Netflix put into them, we care passionately about them, and it’s not something that we take lightly. It’s just a frustrating part of the job that’s been a part of our business forever, so this isn’t a new experience to have cancellations, and hopefully we can continue to bring in shows that continue.”
He added, “I think the Top 10 is a useful tool for people to find shows, discover shows, talk about shows and also helps you for viewing. The Top 10 really serves in that way, and I think that’s something that speaks to the popularity in that moment, and I think that’s what it’s really about in that moment. And then when we have to make our decisions, it’s about the long term and the longer term viewing. We always are looking at many variables, too. The Top 10 is just one variable in that.”

Of course… Now they look at other variables. Very sus, NX. And the following is even more sus.

NX quickly changed their hv system to create the… illusion of transparency. They added what we have been doing since they started publishing hv numbers. They added duration of the title and view… just like we do… by dividing the hv with the duration. Very lazy, NX. We still don’t know how many subs really watched a title. And instead of 28 days (one month sub), NX wants you to stay sub for three months (91 days) to support a title. To hell with that. I don’t trust NX’s hv and other… variables. Also… many successful titles disappeared from the Weekly Top 10 after their 28 days.

JLo’s The Mother is a good example. It ended #6 on the Top 10 Most Watched, but it was only six weeks in the Weekly Top 10. 91 days is 13 weeks. We only get hv and view numbers (hv&v numbers) when a title is in the Weekly Top 10. So… we won’t have all TW’s or any tittle’s hv&v numbers. Interesting and… again… very sus.

After all these sudden… weird changes, I doubt anybody will believe TW’s or any title’s hv&v numbers. Sophie Holland, NX exec Peter and the… bizarre 2 season renewal of a very expensive… crappy show that lost hv&v while NX gained subs… really made people aware that something’s wrong… and… NX kind of confirmed it with all these sus quick changes to kind of… hide(?)… the hv&v numbers before the very expensive TW is released(?).

It’d be freaking hilarious if NX damaged the credibility of their hv&v system just to show the TW book and game geeks that they will stand behind their incompetent writers.

I’m not a TW book or game geek, but I like other shows. I won’t help finance this weird game that NX is playing.

I won’t sub for ST5. That’s the last season. HV&V won’t matter. I’ll sub one month for Wednesday, Sandman and S&B… if NX renews it. I’ll stay sub for three months if there’s an EH3 and HC’s in it. That’s it. NX has money to waste on crap. I don’t have money to waste on NX.

On the one hand, she wants everybody to know that it’s her choice not to comment. Nobody told her to keep her pie hole shut.

No, nobody told her. But they might have told her to say something nice about LSH on Twitter. Damage control?

I didn’’t know the incompetent writers that NX keeps hiring had to be schooled by a teenager. Unbelievable! This is freaking hilarious and beyond embarrassing.

Love JO. The writers’ strike is called… Netflix strike? NX hires incompetent writers so it doesn’t have to give them… residual?

Who’s the candy arse now? BA flopping really humbled DJ. It really showed him that he’s not a big draw without other popular actors. VD, on the other hand, is the draw of the F&F franchise.

I didn’t believe the geeks’ boycott talk, but I think I do now that TF flopped too.

They said they’d boycott BA, because they didn’t want an anti-hero in the center of the DC-verse. So… BA flopped. DJ has his big mouth and his wrestling-like BS… hierarchy of power is about to change… to thank for that because the geeks did like him.

They said they’d boycott every CBM that WBD releases. So far, two CBM have been released and both flopped big time. There was no massive controversy surrounding S!2’s leads. Unlike S!2, it was clear that TF would be part of the new DCU. Heck, it was said that the script for TF2 was already written. It didn’t help.

The geeks don’t seem to want… or they aren’t waiting for a reboot. WBD revealed the new SM and LL to deflect from the epic TF disaster and embarrassment… and… I saw just a few comments that the new SM film will be an expensive CW show. Heck, the geeks said more about the Craven trailer and they don’t care for Sony’s Spidey villain-verse without Spidey. They continue to talk about Spider-V, NWH, Deadpool3, the upcoming F4, X-Men and Spider-M4.

This isn’t the MCU fandom. This is the very… divisive DC fandom. But now they seem to agree to boycott DC. The BO numbers don’t lie. This isn’t streaming. You can’t change or hide the numbers. Let’s see what Blue Beetle’s BO will be.

Never really understood the CP drama. But nothing’s happening. So let’s talk about him. Why do they want him out of Hollywood?

He seems to support guns, hunting but is against LGBTQ+.

@Triksy said:

According to TN, G3 was released in Russia and it grossed $5,697,304 from 310 screens. According to TN, G1 grossed $38,111,566 (+$48,837,688) from 98 screens back in 2014. There’s no need to exclude Russia.

Saint James Gunn is caught lying again. I though he never lies to the fans. Weird that his minions never corrects him. I guess they’re too far up his arse.

Without Russia, G2 grossed $841,206,359 ($869,087,963 – $27,881,604). Right now, G3’s WW gross is $807,021,512.

When you wrote that, you should have taken G3’s $5,697,304 Russia gross from G2’s $27,881,604 Russia gross.

$846,903,663 G2’s WW gross ($27,881,604 – $5,697,304)
$807,021,512 G3’s WW gross (right now $825,575,704)

We’re not going back to 1956 when films didn’t have competition.

Who wanted to go back to 1956 and why?

Wrong time to rejoin the F&F franchise. FX is doing poorly in the BO. At this rate, it won’t reach $1B. I wouldn’t do another Hobbs film, if I was DJ.

Some think VD must be blaming Jason Momoa for FX’s poor BO numbers. Some say that AM was JM’s only success. Yes… he was in it. But IMO, AM’ success was thanks to JW.

David Saslav: It's the best superhero movie I've ever seen.

James Gunn: I will say here that Flash is probably one of the greatest superhero movies ever made.

That will haunt those two flaccid old dicks.

Seriously, who or… what did they give their arses to to become the head of a film studio? I wouldn’t let those two maggots-for-brains idiots be the head of a preschool LEGO project team.

@Cashmere said:

After all these sudden… weird changes, I doubt anybody will believe TW’s or any title’s hv&v numbers.

There’s Nielsen. Although, it only collects US views and it puts all the seasons together. Not very handy. Perhaps Samba will publish something. There’s also Flixpatrol. For now, though, those interested in TW S03’s numbers will have to do with what NX makes public.

TW S03 started really bad when you compare it with S02, which was bad when you compare it with S01. When S01 and S02 were released, NX had 167.1M and 221.8M subs, respectively. S03 was released at the end of Q2 2023. So the amount of subs aren’t known yet. Although, Q1 2023 ended with 232.5M subs.

S02 – 142,430,000 – 08E – 454m – #1 – 221.8M-Q4 – 12/17/2021 Friday
S03 – 073,000,000 – 05E – 289m – #1 – ????.?M-Q2 – 06/29/2023 Thursday

S02 was released on a Friday while S03 was released on a Thursday. Also, S03 only released 5 of the 8 eps. Let’s calculate.

S03 has a 4-day opening weekend (OW), but it’s shorter (63.66% of S02’s duration). It’s not fair to say it should have a 142,430,000 hv OW. It should at least have 63.66% of that.

So, at 289 minutes long, S03 should have ended with at least 90,670,000 hv if it had a 3-day OW like S02. S03’s 4-day 73,000,000 hv is way too low. A 3-day OW would be even lower and NX may have over 10M more subs now.

The bad news doesn’t stop there either. S01 was in the Weekly Top 10 the week before and the week S02 premiered. So far, there’s little interest in (re-)watching S01 and no interest in (re-)watching S02.

14,180,000 – S01 – #06 – Week before S02 premiered
49,180,000 – S01 – #02 – S02 released on Friday

17,200,000 – S01 – #10 – S03 released on Thursday

Indiana Jones 5 (IJ5) has 66% AC and 55% TC on RT. That’s not from early reviews, though. Like Michael Keaton, Harrison Ford shouldn’t have reprised their iconic role. The talk is that IJ5 will flop too.

It opened with only $60M while the previous one, IJ4, opened over a S100M.

When you wrote that, you should have taken G3’s $5,697,304 Russia gross from G2’s $27,881,604 Russia gross.

$846,903,663 G2’s WW gross ($27,881,604 – $5,697,304)
$807,021,512 G3’s WW gross (right now $825,575,704)

I left it in, because a JG minion said that JG said that it was released illegally in Russia. Then, why are they reporting numbers? Why didn’t Disney sue them or publicly distance themselves from it? Well, I left it in and GOTG3 ($824,417,184) still hasn’t reached GOTG2’s BO ($846,903,663) sans inflation (+$1,075,592,084).

Who wanted to go back to 1956 and why?

I think a JG minion. He was against adjusting the numbers for inflation. He asked if we should compare 1956’s Ten Commandments with 2014’s Exodus: Gods And Kings etc. According to him, those old films made a lot, because there was no competition.

That will haunt those two flaccid old dicks.

You can have a potty mouth, you know that?

Animated Times: James Gunn Might Eat His Own Words As His “one of the greatest Superhero movies” ‘The Flash’ May Become the Worst DCU Movie of All Time

Last weekend, TF lost over 1,500 theaters.

Seriously, who or… what did they give their arses to to become the head of a film studio? I wouldn’t let those two maggots-for-brains idiots be the head of a preschool LEGO project team.

When you’re desperate to save money, you can hire any brainless, tacky person, who doesn’t care about a brand’s prestige or it’s reputation, as head of the company.

CBR: Can Warner Bros. Afford James Gunn's New DC Universe?
The two previous DC films, Black Adam and Shazam!: Fury of the Gods, failed to attract enough audiences to the theater. Recent movies by WB Discovery showcase that the studio is reeling. Along with trying to auction off music publishing owned by the studio, possibly including its own studio fanfare from Casablanca, CEO David Zaslav is slashing Turner Classic Movies. Beloved directors Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese and others complained about the shortsightedness of this move. Similarly, despite HBO being WBD's truly successful brand, Zaslav seems to concede defeat in the so-called Streaming Wars. He's licensing original series from the former HBO Max to rival Netflix. Not only that, last year's content purge, including the cancelation of Batgirl, may come under Justice Department scrutiny. With the new DCU only just starting, will Gunn and co-CEO Peter Safran find themselves without the support of the regime that brought them in to save the brand?
For all his public-facing comments, David Zaslav is no studio mogul. Rather, he's a programmer who made his bones by creating lowest-common-denominator reality TV, according to The Hollywood Reporter. His only successful strategy thus far has been trashing iconic Warner Bros. brands to save a few bucks. For that, he's been paid nearly $500 million over the past two years, or the sum that WB Discovery is trying to get for the studio's music publishing rights. It's clear he and his entire team are in over their heads. Gunn and Safran may be in trouble, and it wouldn't be the first time WB blamed artists for their corporate failures.