The DCEU has had its fair share of blunders over the years, but none of those cinematic shortcomings quite compare to the absolute butchering of some of your favorite comic book characters. We don’t know what Zack Snyder and co. were thinking, but some of these popular icons hardly embody anything remotely similar to their Bronze and Modern Age counterparts.
Perhaps it’s for the best that another creative is taking over the DC cinematic venture, not only opting to reboot the entire thing, but also repeatedly doubling down on his promise to bring a more faithful depiction to the silver screen.
Not that we’re too eager to reminisce about this faulty past, mind you, but here’s a list of some of the most important characters the DC has gotten wrong in the live-action medium, and why James Gunn would do well to pay them more heed.
10. Jimmy Olsen
Olsen is one of the most prominent characters in all Superman stories. Some might even go so far as to suggest that he’s a more crucial element than Lois Lane, so imagine our surprise and dismay when we saw his diminished role in Batman v Superman, though “diminished” is not exactly the right word for it; the man was barely there!
9. Maxwell Lord
The DCEU’s Maxwell Lord is good, but it can be better. This is another one of those characters that was unrecognizable from his comic inspiration, but to be fair, the entire Wonder Woman 1984 felt like a strange fever dream. I mean, instead of bringing on a half-crazy conman, they could opt for a more faithful depiction of the character, one that respects his profound sense of moral ambiguity. Is complexity really that much to ask for in today’s genre landscape?
8. Darkseid
People celebrate Thanos as one of the most badass supervillains in cinema right now, but he wouldn’t be able to hold a candle to Darkseid in his prime. This is what bothers us the most about Snyder’s Darkseid, because instead of giving the villain the spotlight in Justice League, the director decided to keep him in the background, instead aggrandizing the barely competent Steppenwolf, and not even doing a fine job of characterizing him in a compelling and relatable way.
7. The Flash
Grant Gustin already showed us what a great Barry Allen would look like, so it’s not exactly Ezra Miller’s fault that he couldn’t live up to that depiction, especially given the haphazard way the producers went about expanding the DCEU slate. Now, with The Flash movie also failing to rekindle interest in the Scarlet Speedster, Gunn might have to recast the hero of Central City. Besides, it’d be a good idea to let the past die as far as Miller’s version is concerned, because even if he’s a good Barry Allen, his ruined reputation will continue to haunt the character in any potential projects down the line.
6. Doctor Fate
Black Adam is a terrible movie regardless of what it does with its character ensemble, but we can never forgive Dwayne Johnson and director Jaume Collet-Serra for the way they depicted Doctor Fate, who is supposed to be the most powerful sorcerer in the DC universe. (You know, the kind that makes this video of Doctor Strange almost prophetic.) Don’t get me wrong; Pierce Brosnan still did a wonderful job of portraying him with what he had, but he just wasn’t the Doctor Fate we know from comics.
5. Harley Quinn
Margot Robbie is a brilliant actress and she certainly has that flair to bring the maniacal Harley Quinn to life in front of the cameras, but her depiction once again became a victim of poor planning and execution, and what’s now left of her legacy is a string of headache-inducing, continuity-shattering appearances that didn’t do anything to develop her character in the least. At least Gunn redeemed the character to some degree in The Suicide Squad, because her role in the original David Ayer flick and 2020’s Birds of Prey was an abysmal disservice to the Cupid of Crime.
4. The Joker
Speaking of Harley Quinn, we have to say that the DCEU’s Joker, played by Jared Leto, also failed to become a menacing presence. The infamous method actor might have actually been able to pull this off, provided that he had a decent story or script to work with, but alas, he was also sacrificed in the name of Zack Snyder’s insane, convoluted mess. What little hope left for the character was squashed completely when Joaquin Phoenix emerged as the ultimate Clown Prince in 2019’s Joker movie.
3. Lex Luthor
As the main authority on intelligence in the world of DC, Lex Luthor is supposed to be calm and calculating, with plans that can unravel the collected might of the Justice League. Which is why, we can’t begin to fathom what sort of unhinged puppet took over Jesse Eisenberg, turning him into a generic villain that goes against everything Luthor usually stands for.
2. Batman
Ben Affleck’s take on the Caped Crusader had a few highlights, but he never got the chance to truly shine or get his own proper story. At best, Snyder turned Batfleck into a supporting character, whether it be in Batman v Superman, which marked his original debut, or even Justice League, where he supposedly “led” the team against Steppenwolf. And don’t get me started on his brief appearance in The Flash. You don’t take one of the most popular superheroes in history and turn him into a glorified visual trinket. You simply don’t.
1. Superman
While we have nothing against Henry Cavill and his impeccable performance as the Man of Steel — especially considering the direction he was given — this brooding, oftentimes gloomy version of the character is a far cry from the shining beacon of hope, justice, and sturdiness we see in the comics. If James Gunn understands the Last Son of Krypton in a way the superhero’s most celebrated storytellers do, then Superman: Legacy will finally give us a version of the character we’ve been waiting for all these years.
