DC Extended Universe

• 1. Introduction

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  The DC Extended Universe grossed more than $7 billion at the global box office, and several of its films still failed to break even. It was a shared universe of superhero stories, built around films from Warner Bros. Pictures and drawn from the characters of DC Comics. It also reached into comic books, short films, novels, video games and a television series. Critics and fans gave it a mixed reception. Fifteen films carried the franchise from its first frame to its last. How does a franchise earn that much money and still end in a restart? Why did its own name begin as a joke rather than a studio decision? And what became of the long list of heroes who were announced, cast and then never seen on screen?

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• 2. A Name Nobody Chose

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  Keith Staskiewicz of Entertainment Weekly coined the phrase DC Extended Universe as a joke, in an article about Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice published on the 1st of July 2015. Until then, fans and the media had been saying DC Cinematic Universe, copying the naming pattern of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Staskiewicz's wording spread through the press and among fans, who treated it as the official title.

  It was not official. In September 2017, DC told Vulture writer Abraham Riesman that the term was not used inside the company and was not considered official. Other labels kept surfacing. In 2016, during a program called DC Films Presents: Dawn of the Justice League, both Geoff Johns and Kevin Smith referred to the franchise as the Justice League Universe.

  At San Diego Comic-Con in 2018, a video banner reading "Welcome to the Worlds of DC" followed a preview of upcoming films. Some outlets decided that this was a new official name. Then, in March 2020, Jim Lee used the term DC Extended Universe at C2E2. The franchise was formally titled DC Extended Universe the following May, when the WarnerMedia streaming service HBO Max launched.

  Warner Bros. Discovery would later use a different label, the DC Universe, for its DC films and television series, and some outlets read that as a rebrand.

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• 3. Launch Attempts

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  In 2002, director Wolfgang Petersen was set to make a film that pitted Batman against Superman, working from a script by Akiva Goldsman. Warner Bros. shelved it to concentrate on separate Superman and Batman projects. In 2008, a Justice League film called Justice League: Mortal, directed by George Miller, went on indefinite hold. The cause was money. The production could not secure tax breaks for filming in Australia.

  The 2011 film Green Lantern was supposed to open a shared DC cinematic universe. It was a critical and commercial failure, and the early plans were scrapped. Its planned sequels were canceled in September 2011. The film was eventually left out of continuity and later placed in the multiverse as Earth-12, during the Arrowverse crossover event "Crisis on Infinite Earths".

  The successful attempt began with a conversation. During story discussions for The Dark Knight Rises, David S. Goyer described to Christopher Nolan how Superman could be presented in a modern context. Nolan liked the idea and pitched it to the studio. Because of the success of The Dark Knight in 2008, the studio hired Nolan to produce and Goyer to write. Zack Snyder was hired to direct in October 2010, and Henry Cavill was cast as Clark Kent in January 2011. Man of Steel opened in North America on the 14th of June 2013, intended to launch a shared universe if it worked.

  By June 2013, Warner Bros. was fast-tracking a sequel with Snyder and Goyer returning. Batman would play a main role, and the film would reboot the Batman series. Ben Affleck was cast as Bruce Wayne, and Chris Terrio was hired to rewrite Goyer's script. The release moved from July 2015 to the 6th of May 2016, to give the filmmakers "time to realize fully their vision, given the complex visual nature of the story". After another change, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice opened on the 25th of March 2016. Filming had started on the 19th of October 2013 at East Los Angeles College, with full photography running from May to December 2014 in Detroit, Illinois, New Mexico, Africa and the South Pacific.

  The film is set 18 months after Man of Steel. It introduced Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, Ezra Miller as The Flash, Jason Momoa as Aquaman and Ray Fisher as Cyborg. A slate of 11 films had been announced in 2014, but this film fell short of Warner Bros.' box office expectations and drew negative responses from fans and critics. In 2016 the studio created DC Films, led by Geoff Johns and Jon Berg, to oversee production and give the universe a cohesive creative direction. On the 28th of March 2016, Warner Bros. also posted online a brief scene, left out of theaters, that introduced Steppenwolf. He would become the main villain of the next team-up film.

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• 4. Justice League Twice

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  Filming on Justice League ran from April to October 2016 at Warner Bros. Studios, Leavesden in England, with locations around London and in Iceland. The story follows Batman and Wonder Woman as they assemble a team of metahumans to stop Steppenwolf, who is hunting for three Mother Boxes hidden across Earth. Goyer had been set to write it as part of a three-film deal, and Terrio was later revealed as the writer. The cast included J. K. Simmons as James Gordon, Amber Heard as Mera and Billy Crudup as Henry Allen. Joe Manganiello appeared as Deathstroke in a post-credits scene.

  In May 2017, Zack Snyder stepped down from the film because of his daughter's death. Joss Whedon took over post-production and wrote and directed additional scenes. He was not credited as director, but he completed enough work to receive a screenwriting credit. Justice League reached theaters worldwide on the 17th of November 2017. After its failure, Walter Hamada replaced Johns and Berg in 2018.

  Fans had other ideas. The divisive reaction to the theatrical version sparked a fan campaign for a "Snyder Cut", on the argument that his vision would fit the earlier films better. In March 2019, Snyder confirmed that his original cut existed and said the decision to release it belonged to Warner Bros. The studio stayed silent. In November, Variety reported that a release was unlikely, and a studio insider called the idea "a pipe dream".

  In May 2020, Snyder announced that HBO Max would stream his version on the 18th of March 2021. It had first been conceived as a four-part miniseries. It arrived as a four-hour film, twice the length of the theatrical version. Finishing it cost an estimated $70 million, mostly for visual effects and additional photography, and work wrapped in January 2021. Snyder said it was meant to stay out of the main DCEU continuity, in a slightly alternate universe.

  The new cut added Jared Leto's Joker, Harry Lennix as General Swanwick, who is also Martian Manhunter, and Ray Porter as Darkseid. It also added Willem Dafoe as Nuidis Vulko and Kiersey Clemons as Iris West. In March 2021, WarnerMedia CEO Ann Sarnoff reportedly considered the film "a storytelling cul-de-sac" with no sequels planned.

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• 5. Solo Heroes

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  Gal Gadot was cast as Diana Prince in December 2013, and her three-picture deal included a solo film. Michelle MacLaren was confirmed as director, then left in April 2015 over creative differences, and Patty Jenkins replaced her. Filming ran from November 2015 to May 2016 in the United Kingdom, France and Italy. Wonder Woman, set during World War I, opened on the 2nd of June 2017. Its sequel, Wonder Woman 1984, moved the story to the Cold War and pitted Diana against Maxwell Lord and Cheetah. It reached theaters and HBO Max on the same day, the 25th of December 2020. In a mid-credits scene, Lynda Carter, who played Wonder Woman on 1970s television, appeared as the Amazon warrior Asteria.

  Jason Momoa was cast as Arthur Curry in June 2014, and by August two writers, Will Beall and Kurt Johnstad, were drafting competing scripts. James Wan was hired as director the following year. Photography began in May 2017 in Queensland, Australia, and wrapped that October. Aquaman opened on the 21st of December 2018 and earned more than $1.15 billion worldwide, making it the highest-grossing DC Comics film. Critics noticed numerous inconsistencies between it and Justice League. Momoa argued that it takes place after "Zack's cut", whose ending ties directly into the film.

  In August 2014, Dwayne Johnson announced his attachment to a project about Shazam, who was formerly known as Captain Marvel. Johnson was revealed to be playing the villain Black Adam. He was later dropped from Shazam! and given a solo film instead. Zachary Levi was cast as Shazam and Asher Angel as the 14-year-old foster child Billy Batson, who becomes a hero by speaking a magic word. Shazam! opened on the 5th of April 2019. At the end, Superman makes a cameo with his face hidden, because Henry Cavill had scheduling conflicts.

  Johnson then convinced the studio to split the narrative so that Black Adam's origin could have its own film. Black Adam opened on the 21st of October 2022. It features a Justice Society of America with Aldis Hodge as Hawkman and Pierce Brosnan as Doctor Fate. Cavill returned as Superman in a mid-credits scene.

  A sequel, Shazam! Fury of the Gods, arrived on the 17th of March 2023, and James Gunn and Peter Safran said it would lead directly into The Flash.

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• 6. Misfits and Outsiders

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  Suicide Squad began as a different project. In February 2009, Warner Bros. was developing a version with Dan Lin producing and Justin Marks writing. The version that joined the universe was announced in October 2014, with David Ayer directing and writing. The cast included Will Smith, Margot Robbie, Jared Leto and Viola Davis. Principal photography ran from April to August 2015 in Toronto, and the film opened on the 5th of August 2016. In a mid-credits scene, Davis's Amanda Waller hands Bruce Wayne a dossier on future Justice League members.

  Birds of Prey took a smaller path. Christina Hodson was writing it by November 2016, and Cathy Yan was selected as director by April 2018. Robbie reprised Harley Quinn and also produced with Sue Kroll and Bryan Unkeless. It was the first theatrical R-rated film in the franchise and had a smaller budget than most. Robbie revealed its full title, Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn). The world premiere took place in London on the 29th of January 2020, and it reached North America on the 7th of February.

  The sequel took years to settle. Gavin O'Connor was hired to direct and write after Ayer dropped out, then left in October 2018 because Warner Bros. thought his script resembled Birds of Prey. In 2019, the film was retitled The Suicide Squad, with James Gunn directing from a script he wrote. Gunn chose it over several other projects the studio had, including a Superman film. Idris Elba was first hired to replace Smith as Deadshot, who dropped out over scheduling conflicts. The team then decided Elba should play a new character, so Smith could return later. The film opened in the United Kingdom on the 30th of July 2021 and in the United States on the 5th of August.

  Its story continued on television. Peacemaker, played by John Cena, got a series for HBO Max that Gunn wrote in eight episodes and directed in part. Filming began in Vancouver in January 2021. The first three episodes appeared on the 13th of January 2022, and the rest followed weekly until the 17th of February. Viola Davis, Jason Momoa and Ezra Miller made uncredited appearances, while Superman and Wonder Woman appeared through stand-ins in darkness. The series was soon renewed for a second season, with Gunn set to write and direct every episode.

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• 7. The Reset

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  A Flash film had been in development since July 2013, when Greg Berlanti was drafting a script with Geoff Johns and others. Warner Bros. announced it in October 2014, with Ezra Miller starring and a 2018 release date. Over the next years, Seth Grahame-Smith and Rick Famuyiwa each dropped out as director over creative differences with the studio. John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein were hired in March 2018, but by July 2019 they had left, and Andy Muschietti and Christina Hodson replaced them. Filming ran from April to October 2021 at Leavesden, and The Flash opened on the 16th of June 2023.

  The film uses the Speed Force to explore the multiverse. Michael Keaton returned as Batman, reprising his role from the 1989 film Batman and its 1992 sequel Batman Returns, and Sasha Calle appeared as Supergirl. Michael Shannon and Antje Traue returned as General Zod and Faora-Ul from Man of Steel. Producer Barbara Muschietti said the film "restarts" the DCEU.

  Behind the scenes, the company was changing hands. Discovery, Inc. completed its acquisition of DC and its parent company WarnerMedia in 2022, forming Warner Bros. Discovery with David Zaslav as CEO. Zaslav wanted to overhaul the DCEU and looked for a creative leader like Kevin Feige of Marvel Studios. In a late-2022 restructuring, James Gunn and Peter Safran were named co-chairmen and co-CEOs of DC Studios, the successor to DC Films. In 2023, they unveiled a slate of ten projects for the DC Universe, a soft reboot and spiritual successor.

  In January 2023, Gunn and Safran said The Flash would "reset" the continuity. It would lead into Blue Beetle, into Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, and into the new slate beginning with "Chapter One: Gods and Monsters". They described the 2025 film Superman as the "true start" of the new franchise.

  Blue Beetle, starring Xolo Maridueña, was first developed as an HBO Max exclusive before moving to theaters. It wrapped in Puerto Rico on the 18th of July 2022 and opened on the 18th of August 2023. Gunn and Safran said it would be "totally disconnected" from what came before.

  Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom became the final film when it opened on the 22nd of December 2023. It follows Arthur Curry four years after the first film, as David Kane, called Black Manta, takes up a cursed Black Trident. Arthur seeks help from his brother Orm. Momoa and his writing partner Thomas Pa'a Sibbett pitched the idea to Warner Bros. and co-wrote the first story treatment. Filming ran from June 2021 to January 2022 in the United Kingdom, Hawaii and Los Angeles.

  The franchise ended as the ninth-highest-grossing film franchise and the fifth-highest-grossing superhero film franchise. The DC Universe arrived in 2024, and some DCEU characters crossed over, with Peacemaker, Amanda Waller and Blue Beetle played by the same actors. The second season of Peacemaker takes place in the new universe.

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• 8. Films That Never Arrived

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  In August 2022, Warner Bros. Discovery canceled Batgirl, a film that was nearly finished. Joss Whedon had been hired to write and direct in March 2017 but stepped down the following February. Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah became co-directors in May 2021, and Leslie Grace was cast in the title role. Photography began in Glasgow in November 2021 and finished by the end of March 2022. After poor test screenings, the studio decided it was not big enough for theaters yet too expensive for HBO Max. In January 2023, Safran said it "would not have been able to compete in the theatrical marketplace; it was built for the small screen".

  In July 2015, Ben Affleck was negotiating to direct, produce, star in and co-write a Batman film with Geoff Johns. He was confirmed as director at San Diego Comic-Con in 2016, then stepped down in January 2017, and Matt Reeves was hired the next month. Reeves shifted the focus to a younger Batman and the noir and detective roots of the comics. Affleck eventually left entirely, Robert Pattinson took over, and the film dropped its DCEU ties. Gunn confirmed in January 2023 that Reeves' franchise would continue under the DC Elseworlds banner.

  Ava DuVernay signed on in March 2018 to direct New Gods, and Tom King later joined her to co-write it. Darkseid was planned as the main villain, with the Female Furies in the cast. DuVernay said the pandemic gave her time to dig into "the mind and musings of Jack Kirby". The project was canceled in April 2021. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Darkseid's role in Zack Snyder's Justice League was a problem, and the studio wanted time to pass before he returned.

  A Man of Steel sequel was in development by October 2014, with Henry Cavill set to return. Matthew Vaughn discussed directing it in 2017 and left in March 2019. Christopher McQuarrie said he and Cavill had pitched an idea tied to a Green Lantern Corps film, which Warner Bros. had described as "Lethal Weapon in space". In 2022, Cavill returned in Black Adam, and a Superman film was again in active development. That December, Gunn and Safran chose to develop a younger Superman for the DC Universe, and Cavill confirmed he would no longer play the role.

  Gareth Evans was attached to direct a Deathstroke film in October 2017, from a story by Joe Manganiello, who would reprise his role. Evans described it as a dark, unforgiving origin story in the style of Korean noir. In March 2021, Manganiello said it had been canceled. In February 2024, he revealed he had written a screenplay, and Jim Lee later approached him about turning his unproduced script into a graphic novel series.

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