James Gunn calls out latest DC Studios The Batman reporting as “entirely untrue”
James Gunn's new job co-running DC Studios appears to include playing "Rumor Whac-A-Mole" on an increasingly regular basis
Aux News James Gunn
Hollywood executives, as a rule, aren’t the most communicative of people. It’s one of the things that makes James Gunn, so recently installed in his new position as co-head of Warner Bros. Discovery’s DC Studios, refreshing: Gunn’s a guy who’s always prided himself on transparency, talking plainly, often on social media, with fans about his stances on his films, characters, comic book opinions, etc.
Said transparency does, though, appear to be contributing in part to the ongoing weirdness surrounding DC at the moment, as Gunn has once again spoken up to call out recent reporting on the studio’s plans—credited to “A well-placed source” by Variety—that suggested that Matt Reeves and Robert Pattinson’s version of Batman might soon be incorporated into the wider DC movie universe. It’s “entirely untrue,” in Gunn’s phrasing.
Which is all well and good—that’d be a pretty wild tweak to make, to our minds—but it’s also not the first back-and-forth that Gunn and his studio (which he now co-runs with Aquaman producer Peter Safran) have had over the last few weeks. It comes, after all, in the wake of the confusion surrounding who did or did not walk away from the table in the conversation around Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman 3, which saw multiple version of the story of the film’s abandonment leak out over the course of a week. There’s clearly some kind of communication issue at or around DC Studios at the moment; someone is telling vetted industry publications like Variety and THR this stuff, forcing Gunn to quash the rumors and suggestions back down on what’s becoming a weirdly regular basis.
All of this is, of course, amplified mightily by the confusion and interest surrounding Gunn’s takeover at DC; the movie-going public has never gotten to watch, in basically real-time, as a bunch of movie execs try to steer a multi-billion-dollar film franchise in an entirely new direction, like some sort of big ol’ boat (that may or may not have Henry Cavill in it). So questions about what Gunn and Safran are planning are obviously rampant right now. For now, Variety has updated its story to log Gunn’s disavowal of the Bat-Pats rumors.
73 Comments
James needs to tell his boss to put the word out: STFU.
It’s honestly quite refreshing that Gunn seems to be cutting through the bullshit wherever possible.
It’s nice, but he’s probably going to need to learn to just ignore a lot of this stuff eventually. There’s about a million websites out there dedicated to generating click-baity articles about any comic book movie news. Or at least that’s what Google has led me to believe by the way it keeps trying to show me articles about such things.
I mean…. to me it’s just a different kind of executive grift. He’s the goodest Good Cop we’ve seen out of there, but at the end of the day ACAB, know what I mean, Vern?
Quite possibly, but I am so used to the typical executive spiel that a guy coming out and saying “yeah that’s bullshit” is almost revolutionary
The Batman was not an entirely successful movie but it definitely whet my appetite for sequels. The main problem for me was that it relied too much on familiarity with the characters in prior iterations and didn’t really stand on its own in terms of character development. But if that particular take on the Batman universe were expanded and it was done well, I’d be very down for it. Trying to integrate it into all the other crap would be a REALLY ridiculous exercise.
“and didn’t really stand on its own in terms of character development”The whole movie is about Batman learning that “I Am Vengeance” isn’t going to be enough if he actually wants to save Gotham.
If “more character development” means yet another goddamn Thomas and Martha Wayne death scene adaptation then I’m happy leaving the character undeveloped.
I agree. We know this character in and out after a zillion movies and comic books. It’s ok to acknowledge that and move on.
It remains an extremely good thing that Marvel did that with the Tom Holland Spider-Man rather than yet again rehashing the origin story, and it is also good that The Batman skipped it as well.
“The spider’s dead, Ned.”
I agree with the captain. This might be the first Batman movie to actually have character development.
Maybe this is a safe place for this, I completely agree. I’ll go as far as saying I don’t even think it’s as good as Batman Begins.Since The Batman and The Dark Knight both use The Long Halloween that are both too similar. It’s way too dour and serious. And tries too hard at the whole “real world aesthetic” except for when it drops it to make a “joke” work. And the way people talk about how Gotham is designed even though it’s almost exactly Manhattan. It’s fine but the way people talk about it on the internet makes it seems like it’s a an all timer.
I mean, Batman Begins is a pretty high bar, TBH
The Dark Knight was not as good as Batman Begins.
It might be nitpicky, but Batman just hanging out with national guard at the end was the line too far for me. Have Bruce Wayne pay for some rescue company or something as his way of realizing he can help without punching. They also could have just as easily done that whole end scene without the flooding of a massive city. Psychos shooting up an arena can be achieved in lots of regular ways. Now the sequel either has to address the fallout of the entire city flooding due to terrorism or it’s left being a weird handwave.
“The main problem for me was that it relied too much on familiarity with the characters in prior iterations”
My main issue with any superhero movie is they tend to do the opposite and explain everything to us we already know.
I just didn’t think the plot was very good and the Riddler’s whole ending plan in the arena was nonsense. Also it was overlong and mumbly. I literally had to switch from my surround sound setup to earbuds to hear the dialog, I don’t have to do that with any other movie or tv show.
I appreciated it for not being Snyderverse Batman, but all in all it’s pretty weak.
That’s a good way to put it.
It was definitely long – the film could have been trimmed by 30 minutes without affecting the central plotline, and, as much as I enjoyed Colin Farrell’s performance, it feels like the Penguin was in the movie solely to set up the spin-off. If you cut that entire character and handed all his lines to other characters, no one would have noticed.I liked the movie for the most part, but there was just something about it that seemed off. Like, when Alfred wakes up in the hospital after nearly dying, and Bruce’s first words to him are: “You lied to me.” Seriously – the closest thing you have to a father, who’s loved and cared for you your entire life, and that’s the best you can do? In a movie like this you really need to care about the protagonist, and I didn’t really care one way or the other about Bruce the Emotionally Confused Vigilante Detective.
Yeah I’m with you on the Penguin and I’ll add that Bruce punching his way into the Iceberg not once but(iirc) twice was just silly as hell. Like, when Batman shows up to talk to someone, they walk in the room and he’s suddenly there, he doesn’t punch his way past a bunch of goons for no real good reason.“In a movie like this you really need to care about the protagonist, and I didn’t really care one way or the other about Bruce the Emotionally Confused Vigilante Detective.”Yup
That was one thing I noticed about ‘The Batman’ in contrast to previous movies: it’s the most grounded version of the character, and I mean that literally. You see him walk from place to place. You hear him slowly come down the stairs in the train station scene, ride his motorbike out of Gotham after a night of vigilantism, knock on the front door of the Iceberg Lounge. Even Nolan’s “realistic” Batman films had him appearing and disappearing with near-supernatural ability, but Bruce in this one has to schlep.
Yeah and that’s lame.Also he rides the motorcycle down the stairs to get it back to the cave, I assume he drags it back up the stairs when he wants to use it again?
You’re right. It was confusing for audiences. They should have made an origin story so we’d know what all this hubbub is about this Bat thing.
My main problem with The Batman was too many cell phone and screen shots.
I thought I liked dark and gritty, but this movie proved to me that you can go too far with it. I don’t think I want a Batman as realistic as this one was, Joss Whedon’s JL had its problems, but I really did like the version of Batman he gave us in that movie, more of that please.
“someone is telling vetted industry publications like Variety and THR this stuff…”Yes, because fact-checking and due dilligence in entertainment journalism is just so robust and consistent these days, right? This can’t possibly be a made-up, imagined or dishonest but uninvestigated source, could it?
Variety and THR generally don’t fall for that kind of crap — and cut off sources that try it. That’s why they’re Variety and THR.
I’ll put Variety’s record against a corp spinning about it’s products any day
Squashing rumors about comic book movies is a full time job in itself. Brie Larson quit/was fired half a dozen times between Captain Marvel and Endgame. Youtube accounts with 300 subscribers know someone who works on the set of Fantastic Four that swear Topher Grace’s Venom is going to appear.If Gunn keeps refuting things, ComicBookResources will have to double their staff just to keep making up enough stuff to generate clicks..
Samuel L. Jackson even made up a fake spoiler about Captain Marvel just because he was so sick of being asked about it.
That’s SO Samuel!
In Larson’s case, she had entire hate campaigns formed against her from a certain group. People were going out of their way to make up narratives against her. I think that same crowd is pushing for her to be removed from the MCU via Rogue stealing her powers permanently.
I would’ve been really happy if Tom Hardy’s Venom ate Topher Graces’ in No Way Home though.
In Larson’s case, she had entire hate campaigns formed against her from a certain group
I remember the outraged “how can a WOMAN be Captain Marvel?!!” posts. Not just showing ignorance about Captain Marvel being a woman in the comics, but indicating that the real question was “how can a woman be a captain???”
“I like my heroes to be white, male, and dressed in skin-tight costumes. Not that there’s anything homoerotic about that – I’m all man, baby – but when I see a woman on screen it makes me retch!!!”
I thought the vast majority of the hate campaigns against her came after her comments in some interview (something about being sick of white men running everything and being the only interviewers she gets?? Aka something totally reasonable that was easily twisted into people screeching “brie larson said white men shouldn’t be allowed to watch superhero movies!!!!!!!”) that really triggered vast swathes of nerdy white men. I don’t remember there being backlash to her before that. I mean, I’m sure a lot of the gigantic backlash there was probably just people waiting for an excuse to be able to loudly complain about her, but I don’t remember the problem people had with her being that they wanted Captain Marvel to be a man.
I didn’t like Captain Marvel much, but it’s pretty clear that’s down to the atrocious writing. She’s fine in the other movies where she appears. I’d watch a Captain Marvel 2 if they make one.Also their choice of girl power 90s song for the big final fight was all wrong. They should have used Boss’ IDGAF. A whole song consisting of the F word counts as 1 F word for ratings purposes, right? It’d be silly to go up to an R for one track.
Her second film comes out next year I think. The first one definitely was a case of last minute script considering she filmed her Endgame scenes a good while before Captain Marvel had a finalized script.
And yes, the music was the most jarring part of the film for me. “I’m Just a Girl” didn’t really fit the scene but I can’t really think of another song from the 90’s that would fit the same empowerment angle.
Tom Cruise as Iron Man WILL happen
There is no back and forth or confusion about the wonder woman story. Litlerally every piece of information that has come out about it gels with every prior piece of information. You guys are just being willfully obtuse.
You need some nice gel to soothe out the willful obtuscity.
Fuck it. Let’s bring in Pattinson’s Batman into the DCU. But also, let’s keep Batfleck as well. And maybe toss a shit ton of money at Chistian Bale while we’re at it. It’ll be DC’s answer to Into The Spiderverse! There’s no WAY it could fail!!/s
Narrated by Michael Keaton.
MK: Am I the Vulture guy in this one?Agent: No.MK: So they’re going to cancel it after I bust my ass then?A: Maaaaaaaaaaaaaybe.
The Flash – assuming it’ll ever see the light of day, and i’m dubious – already IS dc’s Spiderverse. No “/s” needed.
How can it be The Batman when there’s so many Batmen running around? Why don’t they just make it Some Batmen or Twelve Angry Batmen or Mo’ Betta Batmen?
(skip to about 5:00, or don’t because the rest is fun too)
someone is telling vetted industry publications like Variety and THR this stuff
Someone has lost battles inside Warner Brothers and is trying to get the public to get wound up about shit in the hopes that the suits make the rumor reality as a result.“We should incorporate Matt Reeves’ Batman into the new DCEU?”
“We’re not doing that, it’s dumb.”
“… let’s see what you say when Twitter loves my idea!”
Exactly. We know there are execs there that was loyal to the old guard like Walter Hamada, and they must be pretty pissed at the new heads.
Alright I guess. But why wouldn’t they use Pattinson’s Batman in a new universe? The movie is solid and has no ties to the old DCEU.
I’ve always thought of solo-Batman as basically being a different character from the Justice League Batman who hangs out with Superman and is always fighting alien and extra-dimensional threats.Battinson is a pretty good version of the Batman who stops a guy from getting mugged in a Gotham subway station. That universe just doesn’t gel with the Batman who shoots Darkseid with a Radion bullet. It wouldn’t make sense to integrate Battinson so that he’s the one growling straight lines at Aquaman.
Apparently the director (Reeves?) doesn’t want to. He was asked and refused.
He said them ‘Nay!’
Why isn’t Gunn commenting on the widespread and very credible rumor that the next Batman will be about Boss Biggis and his quest to destroy all of Gotham’s toilets??
That rumor didn’t make any sense, so I’m glad it’s false. It’s just not even remotely a tone or setting match for Gunn’s planned DCEU.
It’s about time for a hip teen Batman who cracks wise and skateboards and dances to tiktok on dubstep.
Batman Gleams The Cube
My whole life I’ve been jealous of his subterranean bedroom. I saw the movie when I was like 13 or so and never got over that bedroom.
The Cube being the new shape-based villain who does shape-based crimes, like stealing the Gotham town square. Her secret identity is tortured box factory engineer Polly Hedron.
I like this idea. It could work for Batman, Dick Tracy, or Odd Squad.
Take your star, you magnificent bastard.
And give me a nice schmear of surfer.
can we talk about something else please
Batgirl?
Birdgirl?
I can’t believe he looks in the mirror and says “Yeah, alright.”
What is wrong with you people? The Batman was so terrible, it’s on my never-watch-again-because-it’s-such-an-excruciatingly-bad-movie list.An incredibly dull, stupefyingly grim movie where hardly anything happens. Other than Bats acting like Judge Dredd as he metes out punishment. All “squeezed” into a 2-hour movie that had a butt-aching 3-hour running time.The only reason it vacuumed so much money is because viewers were starved for another Bat-flick and you have to make do with what you got. Still an incredibly awful movie.
Here’s an idea: what if DC just DIDN’T WORRY ABOUT IT. All the DC films people have actually liked – Shazam, Joker, Gunn’s Suicide Squad, The Batman – have either existed in a vacuum from the DCEU or been sufficiently standalone that it doesn’t even matter. Like, yeah, the presence of Margo Robbie’s Harley in Gunn’s film kind of ties it to the Justice League films through 2 degrees of separation, but that doesn’t really MATTER. It’s like how Judie Dench was in the first couple Daniel Craig Bond movies but those aren’t canon with the Brosnan movies (probably).Marvel has made the idea of a shared universe work in the comics since basically the beginning. DC’s team-up books, by contrast, have mostly kind of just been fun cash grabs. Gotham doesn’t need Metropolis to exist, and many of DC’s most famous stories work a lot BETTER if independent of the rest of the universe.
Where do we start placing bets on whether or not Ezra Miller’s Flash gets canned?
Sometimes you should just go with the rumors.
I like the movie, however; I found it overrated.