Is it already game over for DC Studios and James Gunn? It’s a bit worrying that Zach Cregger (“Weapons”) is shopping his DC film to Skydance. I thought Gunn still had the authority to greenlight DC projects…
There’s a blurb in Puck’s latest report that Paramount Pictures co-chair Josh Greenstein recently traveled to Prague to “court” Cregger while he shoots his “Resident Evil” reboot for Sony. The particular subject being discussed was Cregger’s desire to write and direct his Gotham-set DCU movie. Greenstein said he would be more than happy to make it happen if Skydance/Paramount were to take over Warner Bros.
That’s a backhanded slap in the face to Warner Bros., James Gunn, and Peter Safran, who currently control who directs DC movies—a choice they make after developing scripts to their liking. The Cregger/Greenstein meet-up is a noticeable development, indicating that change may very well happen if, indeed, the Ellisons prevail in their bid to acquire Warner Bros.
Back in July, Cregger stated that he planned to pitch a Gotham-set DC movie to Gunn. THR later reported that the title of Cregger’s DC movie was “Henchman,” a project he’s been eager to make. It might even be based on an episode from “Batman: The Animated Series.” The story is rumored to center on a low-level henchman in Gotham who unexpectedly incapacitates Batman, finally earning the street cred he’s always wanted. Harley Quinn and Joker feature in the script, which Cregger has described as “the best thing I’ve ever written”—crafted even before his 2022 breakout hit, “Barbarian.”
It’s not like this would be an automatic greenlight in Gunn’s DCU. Maybe that’s why Cregger accepted a meeting with Greenstein. There’s a delicate dance happening behind the scenes, with DC bosses Gunn and Safran likely treading carefully around anything Batman-related, giving “The Batman” director Matt Reeves room to build out the sequel, and their own dark-night feature, “The Brave and the Bold,” currently in the works.
There’s been speculation, and fan concern, that a new Ellison-owned Warners might want a different creative direction, or view Gunn’s DCU slate as risky—especially given performance concerns—but as it stands, it’s still early days. Although Gunn might be wondering what his fate could be under Ellison’s leadership, there’s no guarantee WB will accept Skydance’s $71 billion bid to acquire the company.
Cregger is coming off “Weapons” and has “Resident Evil” coming out next year. He’s said that he would like “Henchman” to be up next, especially since his other percolating project, “The Flood,” is currently in limbo over at Netflix over theatrical concerns. This is certainly something to keep an eye on, especially since the only potential way for Cregger to make his DCU movie might be under an Ellison-reigned Warner Bros.
The judge in the antitrust suit against Paramount’s proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. has set the trial for March, rather than the November date Paramount requested. That is catastrophic for David Ellison.