Fortune favors the bold, and nothing says "bold" like building an entire cinematic universe, complete with tie-ins, crossovers, and TV spin-offs. While Marvel has had a bit of a head start, DC isn't far behind. In a recent interview with The New York Times, DC Film executive Walter Hamada revealed that the studio isn't just thinking about films, but also TV spinoffs, attempting to leverage HBO Max as their exclusive platform of choice.
While it took Marvel some time to fully commit to TV series as a viable extension of the MCU, DC is already setting its sights on serialized content. During the New York Times profile, Hamada remarked: “With every movie that we’re looking at now, we are thinking, ‘What’s the potential [HBO] Max spinoff?'"
Those aren't idle words either. TV shows based on The Batman and Suicide Squad are already in production. Not only that, but DC Film is also pledging to debut two DC films on HBO Max each year, on top of their plans to have up to four films in theaters every year starting in 2022. If Hamada's vision for DC movies comes to pass, the studio is looking at a release schedule more ambitious than even Marvel's output.
Of course, the question becomes whether or not the DC Universe can even sustain that many projects at such a breakneck pace, on top of the previous DC films and the ongoing TV projects on channels like the CW. Hamada's answer lies in an old comic book device: the Multiverse.
The simple explanation is that going forward, there are two DC universes. One of which contains Henry Cavill's Superman, and Ben Affleck's Batman, and anything else DC sees fit to cordon off. The other will feature new versions of characters like Robert Pattinson's version of Batman and all of the other new projects that are on the docket for production. In theory, this will allow the studio to hold onto actors like Gal Gadot and franchises like Suicide Squad while introducing new versions of characters that didn't go over well the first time around.
It's admittedly a risky proposition, relying on the audience to suspend their disbelief to levels not typically asked by big-budget films, but Hamada is confident they can pull it off. "I don’t think anyone else has ever attempted this, but audiences are sophisticated enough to understand it. If we make good movies, they will go with it.”
Hamada is likely right: whether or not the multiverse concept translates to the silver screen will largely depend on execution. Whether or not DC can pull it off will have to be seen when these new projects start rolling out in 2022.
Source: The New York Times