Marvel movies are good movies, and their universe creation strategy is both epic in scale, and deservedly successful. However, as Goyer says, that doesn’t mean that every other studio should necessarily try to do the same. It was a DC superhero that starred in one of the first superhero movies (Superman, 1948), and it was DC superheroes that first dominated television (Adventures Of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Lois And Clark: The New Adventures Of Superman, Smallville). In the grand scheme of things, Marvel are essentially the new kids on the live-action block – having arrived with a simple and effective concept designed to build a regular audience.
The point is, though both camps are generating superhero stories in cinema and on TV, they are very different, and therefore shouldn’t necessarily have the same objective. Marvel productions are about bold colours and patriotism. DC’s work is darker and more concerned with personal dilemma. Marvel is witty, while DC is gritty, and there is enough room for both – provided they remain tonally unique.
Marvel is appealing because it offers a vision of control. Individually, its heroes battle harbingers of chaos that arrive to threaten the status quo. Collectively, they present an image with no loose ends – everything connects and joins up together neatly, with the whole endeavour being presented to audiences with a big, brightly coloured bow. Viewers enjoy that, because it provides escapism from the daily grind. DC, on the other hand, is messy. Things go wrong, people make mistakes and sometimes things don’t end well. That’s why – despite the fantastical concept of superheroes – DC presents a more realistic, grounded view of the world. Audiences respond to that in a different way.
One is not better than the other, they are simply alternative and for that reason, it would be heartening to see DC take a different approach to their development strategy. Perhaps, with four shows in production and three in development, DC will concentrate more on TV, where they have had great success in the past – with cinematic outings fewer and further between. That certainly seems to be the case currently, with the next DC movie expected in 2016, as opposed to Marvel’s two releases per year.
Yes, they both have teams of superheroes – the Avengers and Justice League – because they are based on comic books, and that’s what the source material provides. But while Marvel’s Avengers are central to their money-making strategy, it would be refreshing to see DC make their Justice League film for the love of their own story – not as part of a world-beating plan for box-office domination. Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman are their flagship titles – all three of whom belong on the big screen. Perhaps their colleagues could establish themselves in TV instead of in their own, standalone movies. It is possible – and advisable – to do something different, and it seems that David Goyer and DC understand that – even if Warner Bros are on the fence. That being the case, trash-talk about release date clashes between Batman vs. Superman and Captain America 3 is completely pointless.
David Goyer, for his part, is focusing his attentions on Sandman, and the upcoming Constantine TV show. He has the long-view in mind and the big picture in sight. He can do this, because he has been in the game longer than most. It was back in 1998 – a full 10 years before Iron Man flung open the doors for Marvel’s beloved universe – that he wrote Nick Fury: Agent Of SHIELD. Back in those days, however, Nick Fury was played by David Hasselhoff. Look how far we’ve come.
