On the Oscars red carpet, Dwayne Johnson paused to consider the DC Universe revamp that derailed his plans for a Black Adam-Superman hybrid film. Cavill’s Superman was dropped from the DC Universe despite his highly anticipated return in Johnson’s “Black Adam,” according to Variety’s senior culture and events editor Marc Malkin, who spoke with Johnson about the matter.
All Johnson and his team could do when creating “Black Adam” was put their best foot forward, surround themselves with the best talent, and produce the best product they could. “The 90s were our audience grade. A few criticisms were leveled, but that is business as usual.
“It’s almost like when you have a pro football team and your quarterback wins championships and your head coach wins championships and then a new owner comes in and says, ‘Not my coach, not my quarterback. I’m going to go with somebody new.’”
Johnson is undoubtedly alluding to James Gunn and Peter Safran, the new heads of DC Studios, who were revealed to be the new designers of the DC Universe just a few days after “Black Adam” debuted in theaters last October. Johnson was setting the groundwork for his own DC Universe, where the relationship between Black Adam and Superman would be explored over the course of several movies, by bringing Cavill’s Superman back for a post-credits scene appearance. Johnson’s strategy was essentially destroyed by “Black Adam’s” underwhelming box office performance (it failed to reach the $400 million mark globally) and the hiring of Gunn and Safran.
“James Gunn and I connected, and Black Adam will not be in their first chapter of storytelling,” Johnson told fans last December. “However, DC and Seven Bucks have agreed to continue exploring the most valuable ways Black Adam can be utilized in future DC multiverse chapters.”
Johnson added, “After 15 years of relentless hard work to finally make ‘Black Adam,’ I’m very proud of the film we delivered for fans worldwide. I will always look back on the fan reaction to ‘Black Adam’ with tremendous gratitude, humility and love.”
After “Black Adam’s” opening weekend, Henry Cavill publicly announced his return as Superman on social media. Two months later, Gunn announced that Cavill would actually not be Superman in the new DC Universe as he was writing a new Man of Steel movie centered on a younger iteration of the superhero. That film, “Superman: Legacy,” is scheduled for a 2025 release date. Gunn and Safran are also developing “Supergirl: World of Tomorrow” and a Batman and Robin movie, “The Brave and the Bold,” as part of the new DC Universe.
Before “Black Adam” opened in theaters, Johnson and his producing partner Hiram Garcia gave multiple interviews to the press in which they touted Johnson’s Black Adam and Cavill’s Superman facing off on the big screen.
“We really want to craft a long-form of storytelling and show that these two characters exist in the same universe and are going to have to deal with each other often, either on the same or opposite sides,” Garcia told CinemaBlend. “Hopefully they’re going to clash at some point, but it’s not just about a ‘one fight’ situation. That was never our dream. That does not reward the fans. Fans want to feel a journey between these guys knowing that these guys exist in the same universe.”
Soucre: variety.com
