Murphy's Multiverse

Tag: DC

  • DC Universe App Going Comics Only with “Infinite” Rebrand

    DC Universe App Going Comics Only with “Infinite” Rebrand

    For a while now news had begun to trickle out confirming that one series would be moving from DC Universe to another and this once rare occurrence quickly became like second nature. Starting with Doom Patrol, a mass exodus of content from the DC streaming service was surely in the future as HBO Max continued to expand its libraries. Announced along with the Season 3 renewal of Harley Quinn, DC Universe will be rebranding its service as “DC Universe: Infinite” an entirely virtual comic libray featuring digital-first titles and exclusives digital comics for the service. The service will feature digital-first such as “DCeased- Hope At Worlds End”, “Injustice: Year Zero”, and “Harley Quinn: Black+White+Red” with 24,000+ comics ready to read amid the services the re-branding on on January 21st, 2021.

    Along with this announcement came the news that DC Universe would be dropping its scripted content, with its initial originals moving to the HBO Max streaming service, too absolutely no one’s surprise. Shows such as Doom Patrol, Harley Quinn, Titans, and Young Justice will all be returning for their next seasons at HBO Max with their previous seasons including Stargirl and Swamp-Thing streaming alongside them.

    These decisions are the best for each service, this helps DC Universe put more focus onto their comics library and work on more exclusive content for their library. With HBO Max this some much needed content for their DC library that continues to add and remove content on a monthly basis. Hopefully with this change in practice we will see staples such as Batman: The Animated Series, Justice League: The Animated Series, Justice League Unlimited, and plenty of other beloved and animated series and films that could find a permanent home at HBO Max

    DC Universe: Infinite will go live on January 21st 2021 and will automatically shift current DCU subscribers over to the new platform.

  • ‘Harley Quinn’ Renewed for a Third Season on HBO Max

    ‘Harley Quinn’ Renewed for a Third Season on HBO Max

    DC Entertainment has given us some fantastic shows. Doom Patrol is so unique that it is hard to even put into words how out-there it is. It also gave us the R-rated animated masterpiece Harley Quinn. Many of us were waiting for the third season renewal and it has finally arrived. As we guess, the renewal comes from HBO Max and not DC Entertainment. This renewal also comes with the announcement that DC Entertainment will focus primarily on comics. As such, it is now a direct competitor to Marvel Unlimited, as it’s media content will migrate to HBO Max.

    Hollywood Reporter also includes the fact that negotiations were dragged out over budgetary discussions. A major executive change also affected the show’s renewal, as the new focus on HBO had shifted. DC’s Jim Lee has also been vocal for the advantage of keeping these shows on HBO Max, as it has a stronger draw for audiences. Hopefully, the success of these shows means that they will continue expanding their DC output on the new platform. HBO Max has renewed Doom Patrol for a third season recently and Titans was going to enter production before the pandemic hit. It’s an exciting time for comic fans, we’ve been getting a lot of creative shows breaking boundaries. Harley Quinn is certailny at the forefrunt of it and I cannot wait to see what the third season will have to offer.

    Source: Hollywood Reporter, GamesRadar

  • ‘Doom Patrol’ Renewed For Season 3 at HBO Max

    Many have been wondering when Doom Patrol would return for a third season. The critically-acclaimed comic book adaptation had just ended its second season as an HBO Max Original series. Originally, it premiered as an original production for the streaming service DC Entertainment before being added to HBO Max’s line-up. After an amazing second season, it was just a question of time before it would get renewed for a third season. Thankfully, Executive Producer Jeremy Carver finally confirmed its renewal:

    On behalf of the wonderful cast, writers, and crew, we are thrilled and grateful for the opportunity to return to Doom Manor. And we are especially thankful for our partners at Berlanti Productions, Warner Bros. Television, DC Universe and, of course, HBO MAX.

    Head of Original Content Sarah Aubrey has also confirmed that the show is one of the streaming service’s most-watched Max originals. Hopefully, this creative and wacky show will see plenty more renewals in the future. It is also interesting to note that this renewal confirms that all shows are migrating to HBO Max away from DC Entertainment.

    Doom Patrol Season 1 and 2 are now streaming on HBO Max with season 3 set for a 2021 release date.

    Source: The Hollywood Reporter

  • ‘WONDER WOMAN 1984’ To Be Delayed Yet Again

    ‘WONDER WOMAN 1984’ To Be Delayed Yet Again

    Warner Bros. is reportedly delaying the much anticipated Wonder Woman sequel one more time. Originally set to hit theaters December 13, 2019, the film will is now being rescheduled for the fifth time. Christopher Nolan’s Tenet served as the studios canary in the coal mine for theatrical releases and while they haven’t publicly expressed disappointment, tentatively moving Wonder Woman 1984 to December 25, 2020 certainly gives us all the insight we need.

    The film debuted a well-received new trailer at DC’ FanDome event and has consistently been among movie goers most highly anticipated releases for 2020. Warner Bros. remains intent on giving films like Wonder Woman 1984 and Dune big, theatrical releases rather than distributing them via PVOD, but with the COVID pandemic still very much in play, there’s no telling when we might see these films.

     

    Source: WSJ

  • ‘Shazam! Fury of the Gods’ Eyeing Q1 2021 Production Start

    ‘Shazam! Fury of the Gods’ Eyeing Q1 2021 Production Start

    Unlike most superhero films, the Shazam franchise has to stick to a much stricter schedule. Its cast of main characters is very young. Every year they don’t film, they will age quite rapidly. It doesn’t make director David F. Sandberg‘s job any easier. Especially the current pandemic made this issue even more apparent. So far, we only know the title of the sequel Shazam! Fury of the Gods. There was no mention of when they would start filming and how far along the script was. Luckily, actor Zachary Levi offered an update during an interview on Dan Fogler‘s 4D Xperience.

    They announced that we were gonna do a sequel pretty much right after we premiered. They knew we were tracking well enough, they were happy enough with the numbers. So they have been steadily and earnestly working on the script for the sequel and I think Q1 of next year is the idea.

    The film is slated for November 4th, 2022. So, starting filming early next year makes sense. It gives them enough time to also take delays or reshoots into account. Shazam! is also effects-heavy, so it will give them time to get them perfect. He does also confirm that anything can change given the current situation. With the 2022 release, we also don’t know if they will jump directly into filming the third installment. It hasn’t been renewed yet but it would make sense not to waste any time. Levi did point out that this sequel was a priority for the studio, so the third Shazam! film might already be on their radar.

    Source: YouTube via Comic Book

  • ‘Titans’ Alan Ritchson Cast as Titular Lead in Amazon’s ‘Jack Reacher’

    ‘Titans’ Alan Ritchson Cast as Titular Lead in Amazon’s ‘Jack Reacher’

    Looks like that rumored Hawk and Dove spin-off won’t be happening after all. Titans star Alan Ritchson has officially been cast as the titular character of Amazon’s Jack Reacher series. It is currently set to be written by Prison Break‘s Nick Santora, who will also serve as showrunner. Author of the original books Lee Child will serve as executive Producer alongside Christopher McQuarrie, Don Granger, Scott Sullivan, and Marcy Ross. Surprisingly, we haven’t heard much of this series since it started development around a year ago. Amazon Studios Jennifer Salke teased the potential the show has for Amazon’s streaming slate.

    Lee Child’s Jack Reacher book series is a global phenomenon with one of entertainment’s most well-known heroes, and a perfect fit for Amazon Studios’ slate of bold, character-driven series.

    This isn’t the first time we’ve seen the iconic novel character adapted. Tom Cruise played the titular character back in 2012. Now Executive Producer Christopher McQuarrie directed the original film before tackling the Mission Impossible films. At the time, there was quite a bit of controversy as Cruise physically was a far departure of the character’s description in the novel. Ritchson is closer to Reacher’s height so there might be less controversy over his casting. He is a great choice for the lead role. He was a standout among Titans large casts of characters. His performance as Raphael in 2014’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was also one of the most memorable aspects of the latest film adaptation. Cannot wait to see what he brings as the lead in this series.

    Source: Collider

  • Warner Bros. CEO Committed to a Theatrical Release of ‘WONDER WOMAN 1984’

    Warner Bros. CEO Committed to a Theatrical Release of ‘WONDER WOMAN 1984’

    As studio productions restart and movie theaters start to open around in the world, the chaos of COVID-19 pandemic refuses to yield to the order trying to be reestablished. Today’s news that Robert Pattinson, the star of WB’s The Batman, tested positive just days after production got up and running again served as a stark reminder that while we’re all ready for the virus to go away, it’s not ready to relinquish its hold just yet. WB’s Tenet debuted in theaters last weekend and now, in the first intra-COVID box office battle, Disney’s Mulan will pilot a new strategy of opening in theaters where they’re open and on Disney Plus where they are not. While these two films go to bat, Wonder Woman 1984 is on deck after having shuffled its release date several times. While fans have wondered if the ongoing pandemic would push the sequel into homes given the relatively low number of open theaters. According to WarnerMedia Studios CEO Ann Sarnoff, that’s not going to be the case.

    In an interview with THR, Sarnoff indicated that the studio currently has no plans to release the Gal Gadot sequel on PVOD if theaters aren’t widely open ahead of its current October release date. When asked if the film might move to the December slot currently held by Dune if the status quo doesn’t change, Sarnoff had this to say:

     

    We are still figuring out the strategy for all of our movies. We have quite a lot done. Obviously, Wonder Woman 1984 is up next. For now, it is where it is. Like I said earlier, certain movies deserve to be on the big screen. My belief is Wonder Woman is one of those.

    And so the studio remains committed to making sure the film, which recently debuted a new trailer at FanDome, gets a wide theatrical release, allowing fans to revel in the full glory of the Patty Jenkins helmed film. How long before you’d be ready to go see it in theaters? Let us know in the Disqus comment section!

     

  • ‘Batwoman’ Season 2 Officially Started Production

    ‘Batwoman’ Season 2 Officially Started Production

    Looks like CW is slowly starting its show’s productions. In an official tweet by Batwoman‘s account, Camrus Johnson and Nicole Kang shared a video from the set confirming that production has started for the upcoming second season. This will see a massive change with Javicia Leslie taking over the lead from Ruby Rose. It is good to see that Luke Fox and Mary Hamilton will remain as part of the main cast. They will help Javicia‘s character ease into her new role as Batwoman, while they uncover what happened to Kate Kane.

    The last season ended earlier due to the pandemic. Alice poisoned her closest ally, as Mouse was just about to leave her. Hush finally made his dream come true, as Alice gave him the face he always desired. Now, he looks like Bruce Wayne. Somehow he looks nothing like Kevin Conroy, who Kate seemed to recognize during the Crisis on Infinite Earth’s crossover. We get a tie-in to Supergirl, as Kate reveals she is still in possession of kryptonite that Cara entrusted to her.

    The ending kept a lot of storylines open. It is uncertain if Alice will return, as her relationship with Kate was the main focus throughout the season. We still don’t know why exactly Bruce Wayne left Gotham behind. There is the plot thread with the death of Lucius Fox potentially leading to a bigger mystery. It will be interesting to see how they tie everything together while making way for Javicia‘s to take over as the new Batwoman.

    Source: Twitter, Deadline

  • Robert Pattinson Tests Positive for COVID on ‘The Batman’ Set

    Robert Pattinson Tests Positive for COVID on ‘The Batman’ Set

    Just a few hours ago, a crew member of DC’s The Batman had been tested positive for COVID-19. Warner Bros. was quick to put out a statement that they followed isolation protocols once it was uncovered during filming in the U.K. Now, Vanity Fair has revealed that Robert Pattinson has also been tested positive putting the film’s entire production on hold. All of us here at Murphy’s Multiverse hope that anyone affected by the virus on set will make a quick recovery soon.

    The Batman was among the few films to resume production in Europe. Alongside Jurassic World: Dominion it would be the test for Hollywood to see how the new regulations can keep people safe while filming. The film had just recently released the first trailer based on just 25% of the film’s overall production. Everything seemed to be picking up speed again but with this news, it is uncertain how this may delay the production. Of course, the health of Pattinson and anyone else that has been infected are top priority.

    Source: Variety, Vanity F

  • AT&T Won’t Sell Warner Bros. Games After All

    AT&T Won’t Sell Warner Bros. Games After All

    There was some uproar in the industry, as the parent company, AT&T was trying to sell their Warner Bros. Video-Game division. They’ve been looking into the possibility since the beginning of the year. Microsoft, Take-Two Interactive, EA, and even Activision were all potential buyers. The unit was valued at $4 billion after major releases like Mortal Kombat 11, the Lego, and the mobile game Harry Potter: Wizards Unite. Luckily, after much debate throughout the year, they have decided it wouldn’t be viable to sell.

    There are some contributing factors that Bloomberg attributes to this change in attitude. Naturally, the ongoing pandemic saw a massive spike in video-game sales making the market very lucrative. In addition, the licensing needed to sell the unit may have complicated matters that would turn the short-term profit into a legal nightmare. Also, the rumored Harry Potter game is considered a lucrative investment that could see an exponential growth of the division.

    This is a huge sigh of relief. This news follows the reveal of new DC-based games Gotham Knights and Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League. As mentioned, licensing of these games if WB Games got sold would’ve been quite chaotic. It also could’ve ended up axing various projects no matter how far in development they are, as acquisition procedures come at a high cost. It was a wise decision by AT&T not to sell, as the market is showing continuous growth especially in these trying times. Just maybe, this also sparks a new interest in developing more projects at WB Games.

     

    Source: The Information, Bloomberg