Ava DuVernay’s New Gods and James Wan’s Aquaman spinoff The Trench are officially canceled at Warner Bros. and DC Films, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
"As part of our DC slate, some legacy development titles including New Gods and The Trench will not be moving forward," Warner Bros. and DC said in a statement to THR. "We thank our partners Ava DuVernay, Tom King, James Wan, and Peter Safran for their time and collaboration during this process and look forward to our continued partnership with them on other DC stories. The projects will remain in their skillful hands if they were to move forward in the future."
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DuVernay took to Twitter Thursday to express her disappointment with the development.
"Tom, I loved writing NEW GODS with you," DuVernay wrote. "I’m upset that the saga of Barda, Scott, Granny, Highfather, and The Furies ends this way. Diving into Kirby’s Fourth World was the adventure of a lifetime. That can’t be taken away. Thank you for your friendship. And remember... [HASH=3954]#DarkseidIs.[/HASH]"
Wan (Saw, The Conjuring), who previously directed 2018's Aquaman, was similarly slated to produce a horror-focused spinoff dubbed The Trench. The film would further explore the race of evil deepsea creatures that Aquaman battles. Wan was also collaborating with longtime production partner Peter Safran. Aquaman 2 reportedly focuses on plot elements introduced in Silver Age Black Manta comics.
Further complicating Duvernay’s New Gods film was the appearance of villain Darkseid in Zack Snyder’s Justice League. DC Films reportedly felt there wouldn’t be enough space between Justice League and New Gods, which also planned to feature Darkseid as a central antagonist.
DC’s upcoming film slate is the company’s attempt to establish a more consistent continuity between films. James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad is planned to introduce a spinoff focusing on John Cena’s Peacemaker character, while Matt Reeve’s The Batman is spawning a Gotham police department series. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer for IGN.
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"As part of our DC slate, some legacy development titles including New Gods and The Trench will not be moving forward," Warner Bros. and DC said in a statement to THR. "We thank our partners Ava DuVernay, Tom King, James Wan, and Peter Safran for their time and collaboration during this process and look forward to our continued partnership with them on other DC stories. The projects will remain in their skillful hands if they were to move forward in the future."
[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=dc-extended-universe-every-upcoming-movie&captions=true"]
DuVernay took to Twitter Thursday to express her disappointment with the development.
"Tom, I loved writing NEW GODS with you," DuVernay wrote. "I’m upset that the saga of Barda, Scott, Granny, Highfather, and The Furies ends this way. Diving into Kirby’s Fourth World was the adventure of a lifetime. That can’t be taken away. Thank you for your friendship. And remember... [HASH=3954]#DarkseidIs.[/HASH]"
King similarly expressed his dismay at the project's cancellation and appreciation for DuVernay's work. "Ava! I’m so incredibly proud of the work we did, it was such a joy seeing you bring your passion and talent to these characters," King tweeted. "I really felt Kirby’s legacy was being honored here and I wish we could’ve kept going. That one Barda/Scott scene where…damn."
While the projects are being frozen, for now, THR’s sources indicated that DC Films and Warner Bros. are leaving the door open for future adaptations. DC and WB reportedly felt the two films did not fit in DC’s next few years of superhero entries and preferred to not leave the production teams in limbo. DuVernay (Selma, Scandal) was originally brought on to collaborate with comic book writer Tom King (The Vision, Batman) on New Gods, a cast of superpowered individuals who emerged after the destruction of the classical gods. DuVernay is still currently working on DC’s Naomi series for CW. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/03/26/the-suicide-squad-official-trailer"]
Wan (Saw, The Conjuring), who previously directed 2018's Aquaman, was similarly slated to produce a horror-focused spinoff dubbed The Trench. The film would further explore the race of evil deepsea creatures that Aquaman battles. Wan was also collaborating with longtime production partner Peter Safran. Aquaman 2 reportedly focuses on plot elements introduced in Silver Age Black Manta comics.
Further complicating Duvernay’s New Gods film was the appearance of villain Darkseid in Zack Snyder’s Justice League. DC Films reportedly felt there wouldn’t be enough space between Justice League and New Gods, which also planned to feature Darkseid as a central antagonist.
DC’s upcoming film slate is the company’s attempt to establish a more consistent continuity between films. James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad is planned to introduce a spinoff focusing on John Cena’s Peacemaker character, while Matt Reeve’s The Batman is spawning a Gotham police department series. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Joseph Knoop is a writer/producer for IGN.
Continue reading...