Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman have long been one of the holy trinities of comic-book heroes.
Not taking away from anything Marvel’s accomplished and its core group (Spider-Man, Hulk, Captain America, etc), but for many, the DC heroes were their entry way into comics which should make entertainment franchises around them simple.
Right?
That’s rhetorical.
We all know the problems that AT&T (NYSE:T) had during its run as parent company to the Warner Bros. (NASDAQ:NASDAQ:WBD) portfolio. They are well documented and investors have long felt that a change was needed. However now that the change has happened, where does that leave them?
Basically right back where they started…between a rock and a hard place.
Well at least now it is a different kind of “rock.”
First as always, some background.
While Marvel and Disney have flourished with the creation of its Cinematic Universe, DC’s Connected Universe has floundered.
It’s not really a mystery why.
Marvel’s films carry a different tone that are action-heavy, but still maintain the emotional heft that creates a connection between the characters and the audience. Whereas DC’s films are substantially darker and both its humor and emotion seemed forced. More importantly the films have been all over the place with no real direction.
Fans notice these things.
And it looks like new Warner Bros. Discovery head David Zaslav has picked up on it as well given some of his recent comments at the recent RBC media conference.
“DC is hugely undervalued asset,” he said. “But Marvel is a connected universe. It has a ‘bible.’ The key was having one person following everything. All of Marvel is one place”
I’ll touch more on that and what he’s doing about it in a bit, but to put it into perspective for readers…that stark difference between brands was firmly on display this past weekend when Disney/Marvel opened Wakanda Forever, its Black Panther sequel.
The movie, which had the delicate task of re-directing the franchise following the heartbreaking death of its beloved star Chadwick Boseman, was well-received and pulled in strong numbers – continuing to keep Marvel’s momentum going.
DC has not had an easy time duplicating that success – and that’s with a fervent fanbase that for some reason keeps giving them second and third chances.
To be fair DC has had its moments – the original Wonder Woman with Gal Gadot and the original Aquaman with Jason Momoa were standouts and a prime example of what these films SHOULD be like. Granted Wonder Woman followed that with the train-wreck that was its WW84 sequel and Aquaman’s sequel has been treading water while it works out its Amber Heard and Ezra Miller situations.
One step forward, two steps back.
Really though what we’ve learned is that while Superman and Batman are pillars of DC, the company can stand on the shoulders of other characters… again, much like Marvel’s done with IP like Guardians of the Galaxy and the aforementioned Black Panther.
That brings us to the present and Black Adam.
The much anticipated film starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson opened last month and many were worried about its success given the critics were not favorable in their reviews.
Granted with Johnson as your lead, it doesn’t matter what the critics think.
Note to all Hollywood executives and shareholders – stop doubting Johnson. Just stop… we’ve seen it across the board and all he does is deliver. This was also a passion project of sorts for the former wrestler as he’s been hyping this film long before the sets were even built.
It paid off.
The film earned $67 million its opening weekend in the states and double that when international totals are added into the mix. It then continued to do well into the weekday frames adding significantly to its totals. It now stands tall with over $350 million globally.
The twist here though is that the Black Adam character is actually a villain and being played by one of the most universally well-liked actors of our time in Johnson.
Seriously, under-estimate the man at your own peril.
Not only does he lend credibility to a brand in desperate need of it, but he is smart enough to realize this is a rising tide situation where a Marvel win benefits DC. After Wakanda walked over its competition, Johnson sent out a congratulatory message over his sizable social media.
WBD has made mistakes in the past, but even they were not foolish enough to fail to understand the gift they are being given here. Johnson is an outlier – a bankable star with a reputation for being a workhorse and somehow now yet apart of a Marvel brand.
He also has ideas.
It has been reported Johnson has been quietly pitching a Black Adam vs. Superman type movie, which would likely be a lot more well-received than when the Man of Steel battled Batman in the ill-conceived Superman Vs. Batman: Dawn of Justice which was originally designed to restart the connected universe.
In either case using Johnson to help reboot the Superman franchise versus going with another origin story approach would be just the type of thing DC should be exploring… and it looks like that will be the case given Henry Cavill’s recent announcement that he’ll once again be donning the cape.
And that’s a relief.
While Cavill’s Superman movies didn’t always light the box office on fire, he’s familiar with the role and audiences are familiar with him – meaning we don’t need ANOTHER origins story film around a character that audiences literally grew up with.
We know about the destruction of Krypton, the government experiment that made Captain America, the sad fates that befall the Wayne family, Uncle Ben and countless others – they can only be retold so many times.
Where are the new stories?
Those are what Marvel is doing so well – they give you an origin story and then they move forward.
Investors have long seen DC fall into the same trap and then just when they think the company has righted the ship, the bottom falls out again.
I.e. Wonder Women vs. Wonder Woman 1984.
Again it’s all part of that “bible” Zaslav mentioned in his speech.
Black Adam though is giving DC a do-over and Johnson’s not the only name helping with the re-brand.
Zaslav recently announced James Gunn and Peter Safran will take over as the heads of DC Studios and it is a welcome reveal for fans.
Gunn, the mastermind behind Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy brand, has been building good will with the fandom community for years. They know him, they like him and most importantly they respect him. They will give him the time he needs to do what is effectively a re-build of the DC Universe while navigating what has already been shot or shooting.
The irony here is that WBD has Disney to thank for Gunn’s availability.
Back during the height of “me to,” Gunn was taken to task for comments he made in his younger days. Comments that he owned, accepted and apologized for multiple times. Despite that and having the unwavering support of his casts, crews and audiences, Disney still showed him the door… allowing him to accept entry to the DC realm.
Eventually Disney made things right and brought Gunn back to finish the Guardians trilogy, but in the time between he had really made his mark on DC between Suicide Squad and its Peacemaker spin-off.
This was the next logical move.
The roster of IP that DC has is too rich and respected to languish the way it had been and having someone like Gunn be given the keys to the kingdom is impactful.
While Black Adam was in play long before Zaslav took over, he’s here now and he sees the value Johnson, Gunn and Safrin bring to the table. With him at the helm and Johnson in the fold, DC is now seemingly all-in on its super-heroes and that should be a welcomed relief to investors.
To be clear, this wont be an overnight fix, but it’s a step in the right direction that sends the right (Bat) signal that help is on the way.
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