DC’s Stargirl will not be renewed for a fourth season on the CW. According to a report by Deadline, the series will conclude following the Season 3 finale on December 7th, joining Nancy Drew, The Flash and Riverdale as CW network series that have been canceled since Nextstar Media Group assumed control following an acquisition in early October that saw them take ownership of 75% of the company.
The trade report indicated that the writing team of the series was tipped off at the potential for the cancellation of the series, allowing for them to craft a fitting ending for the series rather than leaving it in limbo. Geoff Johns, who created the character in 1999 and has served as the showrunner of the CW series, gave the following statement:
Stargirl has always held a special place in my heart for many reasons. With all the brewing changes at the network, we were aware this was possibly the last season, so we wrote with that in mind and have delivered what I believe to be the best season of Stargirl yet, with complete creative closure. The cast and crew are extraordinary, and I’d like to thank them for helping me bring this series to life. Brec embodied Courtney in every way possible — with grace, strength and humor — exceeding my wildest expectations. I am grateful to WBTV and The CW for giving us a home to tell this story and to honor my beloved late sister, and I’m beyond thankful to the press and fans who have always championed us for three amazing seasons. Most series never get this far. We couldn’t be more proud of our show and the fan community it’s built!
Geoff Johns
Star Brec Bassinger, who portrayed lead character Courtney Whittmore/Stargirl for three seasons also shared her thoughts on the series coming to an end.
Getting to play Stargirl and be a part of the DC Universe has been the greatest honor, and I am so grateful for every moment of it. I would like to thank our fearless leader Geoff Johns, along with WBTV, The CW, the cast and crew of Stargirl, and of course, the fans. Thank you. This show will forever live in my heart.
Welcome to the first edition of the Murphy’s Multiverse Sunday Paper, where the biggest news of the past week is brought to you all in one place. Sit back, relax, and catch up before you have to deal with whatever the upcoming week has to offer. This past week had some pretty big news across the board, so let’s break it down by subject.
Marvel Studios
The Marvel Cinematic Universe had an active news week with multiple trailer drops and marketing for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever in full swing. First, plenty of new footage and promos for Wakanda Forever have been released (check some out here and here), and critic reactions came out after press premieres this week (check out MM’s Hunter Radesi’s reaction here.) While the film does not hit theaters for another couple of weeks, you can listen to Rihanna’s first song in six years made for the film.
Marvel Studios
The first teaser trailer for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania also dropped this week, and William Jackson Harper has joined the cast. (Read more here). Marvel also released the film’s official synopsis:
“In the film, which officially kicks off phase 5 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Super-Hero partners Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) and Hope Van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly) return to continue their adventures as Ant-Man and the Wasp. Together, with Hope’s parents Hank Pym (Michael Douglas) and Janet Van Dyne (Michelle Pfeiffer), the family finds themselves exploring the Quantum Realm, interacting with strange new creatures and embarking on an adventure that will push them beyond the limits of what they thought was possible. Jonathan Majors joins the adventure as Kang. Director Peyton Reed returns to direct the film; Kevin Feige and Stephen Broussard produce.”
Marvel Studios
That didn’t stop Marvel Studios from releasing a trailer for the Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, set to hit Disney+ on November 25, 2022. It looks like Kevin Bacon will appear as himself, Cosmo the Space Dog will make her first appearance since the original Guardians of the Galaxy, and Michael Rooker will even likely make an appearance of some sort.
Marvel Studios
It was also confirmed this week that Marvel Studios is developing a WandaVision spinoff titled Vision Quest, in which we will follow Vision on his path to regaining his memories and humanity, and it’s possible the Scarlet Witch makes an appearance. (Read more here.) Speaking of WandaVision spinoffs, Agatha: Coven of Chaos has a bit of news of its own. WandaVision staff writer Megan McDonnell is among the team of writers working on the upcoming Disney+ streaming series Agatha: Coven of Chaos, (read more here) and a recent rumor suggests that the series may be adapting the Scarlet Witch-related Children’s Crusade comic book arc. (Read more here.)
We’ve also gotten a better look at Ironheart this week as set photos offer a look at Anthony Ramos’ villain the Hood (see it here), and a wrap gift teases Ironheart’s new armor’s faceplate (see it here). After not appearing in the Thunderboltspromotion at D23, Baron Zemo actor Daniel Brühl teased the return of his character (read more here), and Charlize Theron also teased Clea’s return to the MCU. (Read more here). Speaking of teases, Hugh Jackman discussed his return as Wolverine and a likely title change for Deadpool 3. (Read more here.)
Lastly, there are a few more rumors making the rounds. Blade may have found its new director in Elegance Bratton, a relatively new director. (Read more here.) Believe it or not (it is a rumor after all), Dr. Doom may not be the main villain of the upcoming Fantastic Four film (read it here), and an official Disney site listed Emilia Clarke’s character in Secret Invasion as Abigail Brand, though the Skrull possibilities are endless. (Read more here.)
Star Wars
If a new rumor proves true, Ezra Bridger, the beloved protagonist of Disney XD’s animated Star Wars: Rebels, may receive a solo live-action series after the character’s appearance in the upcoming Disney+ series Ashoka. It is unclear clear if the rumored solo series, led by actor Eman Esfandi will be a direct sequel to Rebels or not. (Read more here.)
Oscar Award-winning director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, who recently directed a couple of episodes of Ms. Marvel, has been chosen to direct what’s being described as a “secret” Star Wars film based on a script from Damon Lindelof and an as yet unnamed co-writer. Though the film is still in the early stages of development, the report indicates that it has gained steam at Lucasfilm and is among its top priorities on its theatrical slate (Read more here.) The Star Wars film is also apparently set to take place after the events of 2019’s Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, and could possibly bring back some of the sequel trilogy’s characters. (Read more here.)
Last but not least, a teaser trailer for Tales of the Jedi dropped. (Watch it here.)
DC
While Black Adam flew through its first full week in theaters with strong box office numbers, DC has a much bigger week in the news than anyone would have predicted. Of course, the Superman cameo in the film was turning heads before it was even released. However, Henry Cavill himself on Monday took to social media to confirm his return as Superman. He posted a video for his fans along with the caption, “A very small taste of what’s to come, my friends. The dawn of hope renewed. Thank you for your patience, it will be rewarded. #Superman.” (Read more and check out his full Instagram post here).
In fact, this week seemed to signal a new era for DC Entertainment on an even bigger scale, as it looks like Warner Bros. has finally found its Kevin Feige(s). In a surprising announcement, James Gunn and Peter Safran have been tapped to lead the DC’s future film, TV, and animation slates. They will act as co-chairs and co-CEOs of DC Studios, which was recently led by Walter Hamada under the title of DC Films. (Read more here.)
DC also left bits and pieces of news floating around throughout the week, though perhaps less exciting than the big hitters above. Joker: Folie à Deux, the sequel to 2019’s Joker, is reportedly set to start production soon. According to cinematographer Lawrence Sher, the film will begin filming “in five- or six-weeks’ time.” Additionally, the film will “largely be shot in sound stages in Los Angeles, as well as on location in New York, where the project is set.” (Read more here.) On the other hand, The Batman 2 won’t be headed to theaters until 2025 at the earliest. (Read more here.) However, it looks like the film will not be associated with the new DC Studios, and it is unclear if The Batman franchise will be either. (Read more here.) In other words, DC’s universe will still remain, to some extent, in its oddly organized, splintered form we all know and love.
Speaking of the Wild West of DC, there is more. The Batman universe untitled Arkham Asylum spin-off series is finally moving forward. Variety has shared that the creator of The Staircase, Antonio Campos, has joined the production as its showrunner. (Read more here.) Set photos from the filming of The Flash’s ninth and final season have seemingly confirmed that actress Javicia Leslie—who previously played an original character on Batwoman–will return to The CW as the multiversal villain Red Death, (read more here), and actor Elijah Rashad is set to join Doom Patrol’s fourth season. (Read more here.)
HBO Max is looking to redevelop its previously announced Green Lantern series. The show, which hailed from producer Greg Berlanti and writer Seth Grahame-Smith, was originally set to star Finn Wittrock (Ratched) and Jeremy Irvine (War Horse) as the respective Green Lanterns. Reportedly, the new series will instead turn the focus over to John Stewart, one of DC’s first black superheroes. (Read more here.)
In Other News
Some other news worth noting—Henry Cavill is departing The Witcher, with Liam Hemsworth to take on the role. (Read more here.) Andy Serkis apparently will not be back to direct Venom 3 and writer Kelly Marcel will helm the film instead. (Read more here.) Avatar: The Way of the Water might have a whopping 3 hours and 10 minutes run time, and House of the Dragon showrunner Ryan Condol discussed the season finale and about the direction the series will take in the future. (Read more here.)
The news not too long ago broke that Warner Bros. Discovery has found its new head(s) of the newly founded DC Studios. Walter Hamada’s former DC Films now has two co-CEOs in The Suicide Squad director James Gunn and long-time producer Peter Safran. Of course, the studio’s plans, at least what WBD CEO David Zaslav imagines, will create its own cinematic universe moving forward. So, it opens the question of what that means for other entries in the franchise such as the Joker sequel and Matt Reeve‘s The Batman franchise.
Todd Phillips‘ upcoming Joker: Folie á Deux will not be supervised by the newly formed CEO duo but rather fall under the supervision of Michael De Luca and Pam Abdy. As such, it seems very likely that this project will act independently from the other DC projects, especially as it mainly explores a unique take on a familiar character. Matt Reeves‘ The Batman universe however is the biggest question mark to date. While we just got the news that they are moving forward with an Arkham Asylum-based series, it seems that its place in the universe is still uncertain.
We might have to wait a bit before we find out any actual details on what the future of the DCEU will look like; if it’ll have that name moving forward. The Batman will likely continue given the recent success of the first film’s entry with Penguin’s spinoff already starting production. It does seem like they won’t be rebooting the entire franchise but use the current projects as a jumping-off point. Black Adam just released and various other projects are already ins some form of development. So, we’ll have to see if they are just waiting for The Flash to reboot the franchise.
DC has been desperately looking for Kevin Feige to lead their DC division to rival that of Marvel Studios. Up to this point, it didn’t seem like anyone was truly interested in the job, mostly due to the current development with Warner Bros. Discovery. Still, it seems their long search has not resulted in one but rather two new leads for the division.
James Gunn and Peter Safran have been tapped to lead the DC’s future film, TV, and animation slates. They will act as co-chairs and co-CEOs of DC Studios, which was recently led by Walter Hamada under the title of DC Films. It’s definitely a curious development and we’ll see just how big their role will be under CEO David Zaslav, who is seemingly cutting down projects left and right. For now, it seems they have a four-year deal for now.
It seems that the two have been spotted for some time on the Warners lot meeting with Warner Bors. film co-chair Michael De Luca, but most assumed it could be for future projects. As it turns out, they have some bigger projects in mind. Though Gunn‘s role as co-CEO does raise the question of what his future as a director will look like. He is returning for Peacemaker Season 2, but he may have to pull back with the new workload on his back.
The title of DC Studios will likely pull in even more comparisons to Marvel Studios, but the question remains what exactly the plans are? At the moment, the studio still has multiple projects that take place in their own dimensions within the cinematic multiverse, but there’s no clear goal or if they will try to establish a “mainline” universe as the Marvel Cinematic Universe did. For now, we’ll have to see once actual plans come together.
In 2019, HBO Max signed J.J. Abrams to a $250M deal to develop projects for the streamer. Among the highlights was the development of DC’s Justice League Dark franchise, which was to include projects such as Constantine, Madame X and Zatanna. The former two projects were recently cut from HBO Max’s budget as ongoing shifts at Warner Bros. continue to change the landscape at the streaming service. Now it seems that HBO Max has moved on from the latter as well as Zatanna is now looking for a new home.
Amongst an incredible wealth of information in a report from THR’s Borys Kit came the news that Zatanna has joined Constantine on the scrap heap at HBO Max. According to Kit, however, while the shows are dead at HBO Max, Abrams is shopping them to other networks in hopes of keeping them alive. Constantine was the furthest along of all the Justice League Dark projects, having been set to film this Fall. Set to be 8-episodes, it was going to adapt the story of John Constantine’s fateful encounter with Astra Logue. Zatanna had been in development since early 2021 with Oscar-nominated director Emerald Fennel on the script.
The moves happen as Warner Bros. and Discovery continue their merger and ahead of the two companies streaming services merging into one platform in 2023. For Abrams, it means that 3 years into his deal he has yet to deliver on the promise. In addition to the cancellation of his Justice League Dark projects, another project he developed, Demimonde, was scrapped. Abrams is set to produce the upcoming Constantine film starring Keanu Reeves and also working with Ta-Nehisi Coates on his Superman project, which is said to be set outside the DC Universe’s main continuity.
The next season of Titans looks quite promising, as the team is leaving Gotham behind and faces a new threat. Many were caught by surprise when they announced that Titus Welliver will take on the role of Lex Luthor in the next season, which opened up many new story possibilities for the HBO Max series. With a release planned for November, the DC TV show used the opportunity to show off and tease what the future has in store for the team at New York Comic-Con. There, they may have given away a little hint at a future appearance with the prop sets being showcased at its booth.
Among the many little teases of what the future has in store for the Titans series. Our very own John Sabato got a chance to visit the booth and noticed a rather interesting little set prop from the upcoming fourth season, the glasses of Clark Kent. So far, the only main Justice League member that made an appearance was Iain Glen taking on the role of Batman. Now, it seems that Clark Kent’s glasses will be sued in the fourth season, which means there’s a chance that Superman could make an appearance.
The inclusion of Superman would make sense given Lex Luthor’s role in this season. Plus, we finally get to spend some time with Connor, who is a clone of him and Lex. We haven’t gotten a chance to explore how he would react to his existence or generally what it means to have another Kryptonian in his life. Lex’s role could also add some tension between these two as Connor tries to find his own place in this world beyond just being a member of the Titans.
Even with HBO Max’s purge of its many animation offerings, it seems that one series remains strong. DC’s quicky and heavily R-rated Harley Quinn got a new season release but also has a spinoff series in some form of development. Now, it seems they have one more special to surprise us with, as HBO Max has announced that they have a new Valentine’s Day Special set for next year’s February.
The special will be titled Harley Quinn: A Very Problematic Valentine’s Day Special and has released the following logline to tease what we can expect from the project.
The special will feature Harley and Ivy celebrating their very first Valentine’s Day together, while also revealing how the rest of the ragtag crew spends the gushiest, mushiest, most romantic day of the year
The third season of Harley Quinn has seen quite a successful run with an early fourth season renewal in August. As many DC projects got scrapped left and right, it’s a showcase of just how popular the R-rated project is. There’s still no word though where the Kite Man-focused project currently stands as we haven’t heard if it survived the HBO Max purge. Given the character’s popularity, it does seem safe to say he’ll likely still be chasing his dreams.
UPDATED: Craig Zobel has been confirmed as the director for the still-untitled The Batman spinoff focused on Penguin. It seems the director has a deal with HBO after his acclaimed work on The Mare of Easttown. He won#t be filming the entire series but rather is responsible for the first two episodes. So, we might get more director confirmations in the coming months.
We’ve long waited for an update for the upcoming The Batman spinoff series focused on Colin Farrell‘s Penguin. The HBO Max series is reportedly in discussions with Mare of Easttown‘s Craig Zobel to not only direct but also executive produce the series. His work on the HBO series has put him in the spotlight and makes him a perfect choice for this further exploration of Gotham.
Supposedly the series is also eyeing to start production in early 2023, but no exact date or time window is given at the moment. The director is set to join the production, which is currently being showrun by Lauren LeFranc, best known for her work as a writer and producer on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Chuck.
Zobel has also worked on The Hunt, which was surrounded by quite a bit of controversy. It’s been a long journey for the director to make a name and leave the shadow behind from the controversies but with quite a few awards under his belt, it’ll be interesting to see what he brings to the upcoming The Batman spinoff.
The CW’s future has been a big question mark for some time. As Warner Bros. Discovery seemingly was restructuring its future projects, it was unclear just how they’d keep their CW network going. As it turned out, they simply decided to give up their majority stake in it and are focused on still producing shows for the network.
Still, quite a few of their DC shows are slowly coming to an end with the big question being if we can expect more in the future. Among them was a project spearheaded by Arrow veteran David Ramsay titled Justice U and it seems that he’s offered a little insight into where the project currently stands with TVLine.
We’re on the second draft of a script, and we just closed the deal on a writer. I’m not sure I can say her name, so I won’t, but we’re very close to submitting our second draft. It’s still in development, and we’re moving forward.
David Ramsey
So, it seems like they are still working on it and they are still in the early script phase. This isn’t the same scenario as what we saw with Powerpuff, which had an entire pilot filmed before they decided to move on from the project; with still no update on where exactly it stands currently. So, we’ll have to see until they start confirming production starts on a pilot.
Warner Bros. Discovery is going through a bit of a transitional period as of right now with many projects up in the air for now. Many were wondering if this would also affect shows like Titans, Stargirl and Doom Patrol following the plug being pulled on quite a few projects. Luckily, it seems they aren’t done with these series yet.
With recent news that the fourth season of Titans would premiere in November, Stargirl actress Brec Bassinger teased that she could be making her way to the blue-filtered world. In the past few weeks, we have seen a few rumors hint at a crossover between Geoff Johns‘ series, Titans, Stargirl, and Doom Patrol, which would all come together as a culmination of the past few years. it seems Brec has all but confirmed that.
Below you’ll see a recently shared photo of Bassinger suited up as Stargirl alongside Ryan Potter as Beast Boy, who if you look close enough can see he looks to be wearing an all-new suit and finally shed that dreaded jacket.
Details on this crossover still remain under wraps and it’s unknown just how the Titans cross paths with the citizens of Blue Valley. Seems like the Titans could meet their universe’s version of Courtney, as they head back to San Francisco considering the two shows were confirmed to be taking place on different earths within the new DC Multiverse, which was created following the events of the CW’s Crisis on Infinite Earths event.
It remains unknown just who from the Titans and Doom Patrol cast will appear and just where this crossover will even happen. Both Titans and Doom Patrol season 4 have wrapped filming with Titans set to debut sometime in November.
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