It hasn’t been a nice yr for DC films. I imply, perhaps you liked Shazam! Fury of the Gods, or The Flash, or Blue Beetle, or all of them. (I believed The Flash was principally enjoyable till the ultimate 20 minutes or so.) But it’s exhausting to argue that 2023 has represented a inventive peak for the studio. (It objectively was not the business peak for the studio. That a lot is definite.)
The films DC has launched in the final 18 months or so haven’t had a lot in frequent with one another, even when they’ve all shared a cinematic universe — besides, maybe, a fixation on huge cameos to assist bolster their profile and buzz. (I suppose what follows now could be thought-about spoilers for these films. Beware, in case you might have been saving Black Adam to look at over the 2023 vacation season for some cause.)
Henry Cavill’s Superman (and Viola Davis’ Amanda Waller) popped up in Black Adam. The Flash had a cavalcade of DC visitor stars, each residing and lifeless, concluding with the stunning return of George Clooney’s Bruce Wayne. Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman performed a comedian reduction cameo in Fury of the Gods. Really solely final summer time’s Blue Beetle didn’t have one of these “shocking” returns or teases, which could be a signal that new DC co-CEO James Gunn is taking a extra lively position in the studio’s productions.
I say that as a result of over on Threads, Gunn not too long ago revealed that he considers cameos — “Cameo Porn,” he calls it — “one of the worst elements of recent superhero films.”
“If a character is in film, they have to have a reason to be there story-wise,” he added.
READ MORE: The Best DC Comics Movie Posters
Asked to make clear his stance on disliking cameos whereas working for a firm whose enterprise mannequin is constructed on the thought of characters from one franchises showing in one other, he defined “I don’t mind actual cameos – if it’s a glimpse or a moment, an Easter egg. What bothers me is when they mangle an elegant story by shoehorning characters in – they aren’t there because the story calls for it, but for some other reason.”
So perhaps don’t anticipate to see the brand new Batman, whoever that winds up being, in Gunn’s Superman: Legacy when it opens in theaters on July 11, 2025. We even have Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom coming later this month; it is going to be fascinating to see whether or not every other DC alums seem there, regardless of Gunn’s distaste for cameos.
The Biggest DC Movie Bombs
These films might have featured some of the largest superheroes in historical past, however they had been additionally huge flops.
Discussion about this post