How The DCEU Is Treating Its Cinematic Universe Model After Wonder Woman

The Marvel Cinematic Universe changed the superhero game with its creation of connected, live-action worlds, and other franchises have started to catch on. However, as other companies have proven less successful at establishing cohesion compared to the MCU, they have instead opted to branch out and try new things. One of the chief examples of that idea is DC, and following Wonder Woman's widespread acclaim, it sounds like the DCEU (while still very much a cinematic universe) will soon place less emphasis on shared narrative threads between films. DC Entertainment President Diane Nelson explained:

Our intention, certainly, moving forward is using the continuity to help make sure nothing is diverging in a way that doesn't make sense, but there's no insistence upon an overall storyline or interconnectivity in that universe.

Wonder Woman's success made it abundantly clear: a well-made standalone story can still sell tickets. The decision doesn't necessarily mean that DC is opting to turn the DCEU into a series of full-blown independent franchises -- that responsibility falls to the other, currently unnamed DC film banner. However, what it does mean is that future DC movies will have more in common with Wonder Woman than The Avengers with regards to continuity. Ben Affleck's Bruce Wayne could still show up in a future Superman movie, or Ezra Miller's Barry Allen could pop up in an Aquaman film, but DC won't become too focused on weaving plot threads between these franchises.

Perhaps the best example from Wonder Woman comes through its tenuous (but still very much present) connection to other members of the DCEU. Although Batman doesn't appear in-person, the film makes an explicit reference to Bruce Wayne and his company by having his men deliver a package to Diana in Paris. He's out there; he's just not vital to this story.

Such a creative decision actually mirrors ideas that have been working in the pages of DC Comics for the last year. Upon the launch of the DC Rebirth line of stories, the comic book giant reduced the continuity between its different titles to focus on telling unique stories that work for each hero -- with the occasional crossover thrown in for good measure.

One of the biggest hopes with this creative push is that it will embolden directors to go all in on the DCEU and apply their own artistic mark to their films. Elsewhere in her conversation with Vulture about the shift, Diane Nelson continued:

Moving forward, you'll see the DC movie universe being a universe, but one that comes from the heart of the filmmaker who's creating them.

That filmmaker-driven approach is already something that makes DC considerably different from other superhero franchises. Only recently, Nightwing movie director Chris McKay touted DC Entertainment's willingness to take a more auteur-focused method, highlighting the A-list names that have signed on to DC projects. It makes sense in the long run; reduced emphasis on continuity increases creative freedom, and increased creative freedom brings in some of Hollywood's biggest names.

The DCEU will press forward with its biggest film yet when Justice League debuts on November 17, but looking beyond that, it sounds like we can look forward to far more insulated projects for the foreseeable future. If you're in the market for more up-to-date information on all of the most highly-anticipated films of the next year, then take a look at our 2017 movie premiere guide and our 2018 movie premiere guide.

Read more >> Why Aquaman's Willem Dafoe Liked Working With James Wan

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Why Aquaman's Willem Dafoe Liked Working With James Wan

The DC Extended Universe is a funny place. Because while new movies are being announced at blinding speeds, there aren't a ton of concrete release dates or a schedule locked down. That is, except for the shared universe's next two installments. Because after Zack Snyder's Justice League hits theaters in November, James Wan's Aquaman will be the next down the pipeline. The film has been shooting for a few months, and some actors have been nearly the end of their time onset. Willem Dafoe recently wrapped his role in the blockbuster, and took the time to praise Wan's skill and vision as a director.

James Wan's great. He's great. I mean, because of the underwater [aspect of the movie] it's very complicated technically. But you see it in his films, he's very detail-oriented. He figures the cut. He's very precise. He's a real gifted filmmaker.

Willem Dafoe seems to really think highly of James Wan, which hopefully is a testament to the director's vision for Aquaman. After all, he's got a big task ahead of him.

Willem Dafoe's comments to Playlist seemingly confirms what audiences have thought about James Wan's work as a director for years. Anyone who has seen Wan's horror films like the Inception and Conjuring franchises can see that his vision is focused and deliberate. Those films and their respective creatures have a visual style that is unlike any other, and now it sounds like DC has given him free reign to explore with Aquaman.

Everyone involved in Aquaman have spoken to how technically complicated the shooting process is. Because the majority of the film is set underwater, the cast isn't able to use space and walk around as they normally would. Instead, there are rigging systems to ensure that they appear to be floating. This makes even the smallest scene a technical hurdle, and should translate onto film very interestingly.

The illusion of floating underwater will also need a crap ton of visual effects. Each strand of hair and article of clothing must be in constant weightless motion, so the artists doing the CGI will have hours and hours of labor on their hands. All of this once again revolves around the specificity and detail-oriented nature of James Wan's filmmaking, and how all the moving pieces must assemble in order for Aquaman to function visually.

Considering just how many credits Willem Dafoe has on his resume, the high praise for James Wan speaks volumes. Dafoe has worked with the best in the business; so if he believes that Wan is gifted, then he must have really won over the Oscar nominated actor.

Aquaman will dive into theaters on December 21, 2018, but both the title character and Willem Dafoe's Nuidis Vulko are also set to appear in Justice League on November 17th. In the meantime, check out our 2017 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

Read more >> A Major Arrow Villain Is Returning For The Big Superhero Crossover, But Not How We Expected

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A Major Arrow Villain Is Returning For The Big Superhero Crossover, But Not How We Expected

The annual Arrow-verse crossover will be bigger than ever this year, and it will take our heroes somewhere they've never gone before. Although the crossover is still a couple of months away, we're already getting some intriguing details about what's to come. One of the biggest villains of Arrow is going to return to the action in the crossover in a very unexpected way. Yes, Season 5 supervillain Prometheus will appear in the 2017 superhero crossover, but he won't be the same Prometheus as we came to know.

The Prometheus who will appear in the crossover will be the Prometheus of Earth-X, and he'll be fittingly known as Prometheus-X. His return was technically teased when the first teaser image was released, as somebody who looks an awful lot like Prometheus could be seen facing off against the good guys with the likes of Dark Arrow, Dark Flash, and Overgirl. What the image didn't reveal was that the man under the Prometheus mask won't be the Adrian Chase of Arrow Season 5.

There are reportedly no plans for Josh Segarra to reprise his role as Adrian Chase in the Arrow-verse, according to EW, which means that somebody else is under the mask as the Prometheus of Earth-X. The big question is whether Prometheus-X is the Earth-X counterpart of an existing Arrow-verse character or we'll get a newcomer who just so happens to go by the same name as an Arrow supervillain.

The absence of Josh Segarra is unfortunate for those of us who came to love his particular brand of crazy as Adrian Chase, especially since the journey to Earth-X meant that he could reprise his role without Arrow making leaps of logic to somehow resurrect Prometheus after he shot himself in the head in the Season 5 finale. There's also been the theory that Adrian had a twin brother, as he did in certain DC Comics stories. It wouldn't be the first time Arrow brought an actor back to play a never-before-mentioned twin.

Without Josh Segarra on board, there are plenty of candidates for Prometheus-X, and some are more off-the-wall than others. The Prometheus in the crossover teaser image is pretty clearly a man, so we can rule out the ladies of Arrow as Prometheus-X. Arrow toyed with making Quentin believe he was Prometheus whenever he blacked out drunk; perhaps the Quentin of Earth-X really did became the bow-toting baddie. Then again, there's Roy as a possibility. The Roy of Earth-1 developed archery skills, and Prometheus-X can be seen with a quiver on his back. Colton Haynes did recently tease his return. Who knows? Maybe Prometheus-X is John Diggle. who was notably absent from the teaser image.

Admittedly, John Diggle is one of the most upstanding characters of the whole Arrow-verse, and it's hard to imagine an evil version of him. That said, the stakes would be raised on Earth-X if the good guys discovered that they would have to battle a version of their good friend Digg, and it would give David Ramsey the chance to get back in the superhero action, if his hints about what's going to happen to Earth-1 Diggle come to pass. We'll have to wait and see. No theory is necessarily too wild at this point.

The four-show crossover will span four hours on two nights, starting with Supergirl and Arrow on November 27 and The Flash and Legends of Tomorrow on November 28. Swing by our fall TV guide for your other TV dates.

Source: cinemablend

Read more >> New Justice League Storyboards Tease A Key Sequence

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New Justice League Storyboards Tease A Key Sequence

In terms of sheer scale, Zack Snyder's Justice League arguably looks like it is going to become the biggest DC movie ever. The timeline of the film looks like it will span centuries, and it will feature some absolutely insane sequences that we would've never fathomed in other eras of DC movies. One such sequence involves the introduction of Steppenwolf's Mother Boxes, and Snyder has officially revealed the storyboards for that key sequence. Take a look at the sketches below.

Although they are definitely crude, these sketches are a key look into the mind of Zack Snyder as he envisioned Justice League during the film's development. The sequence in question (which Snyder posted on his Vero account) appears to show a flashback scene in which a group of knights buries a Mother Box to keep it from falling into the wrong hands. Of course, given the fact that it looks like the red skies are heading to Earth, it appears that nothing can stay hidden very long in the DC Extended Universe.

Based on everything seen in Zack Snyder's post, it looks like this particular sequence has already shown up in some of the Justice League marketing. Here's one of the shots from the Justice League trailer that debuted at San Diego Comic-Con 2016.

 

Moreover, here's another angle from this sequence, showing the knights burying the Mother Box.

 

This does not give us much to go by as far as concrete plot details go, but Wonder Woman may help shine some light onto the nature of the scene. The recent home release for Diana Prince's first solo adventure included a bonus scene in which everyone's favorite secretary, Etta Candy, recruited Steve Trevor's surviving teammates to recover one of the artifacts after World War I bombs uncover it in the Belgian countryside. The Justice League story will revolve around the quest to find the Mother Boxes before Steppenwolf (but apparently not Darkseid) can get his hands on them, so this sequence will likely serve to set up the importance of the artifact and provide some valuable backstory as to how and why the bad guys from Apokolips choose Earth.

Although one of them was briefly seen in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, the Mother Boxes will make their official DCEU debut later this year when Justice League hits theaters on November 17. Looking beyond the highly-anticipated DC team-up film, take a look at CinemaBlend's comprehensive 2017 movie premiere guide, as well as our 2018 movie premiere guide, to see what other films are in store on the silver screen over the course of the next year.

Source: cinemablend

Read more >> How The DCEU Is Treating Its Cinematic Universe Model After Wonder Woman

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