The formative years of the DCEU were characterized by studio interference and a clear lack of leadership, which is why the franchise had a habit of announcing countless movies before proceeding to do absolutely nothing with the majority of them.
Between Man of Steel releasing in the summer of 2013 and Aquaman‘s December 2018 bow, control of DC Films’ output was in a constant state of flux. Diane Nelson, Greg Silverman, Geoff Johns and Jon Berg were all tasked with spearheading the shared superhero universe at various points, before Walter Hamada was named as president in January 2018.
While that’s coincided with something of a renaissance for the DCEU, Hamada isn’t without his critics. Most notably, Ray Fisher has refused to return as Cyborg as long as he’s calling the shots, leading to a frantic rewrite of The Flash before it finally entered production last month. Insider Daniel Richtman, meanwhile, is now claiming that Henry Cavill also has his issues with Hamada, and blames him for leaving him out in the cold as Superman.
Matthew Vaughn and Christopher McQuarrie had both circled a potential Man of Steel sequel before Hamada was even appointed, so the lack of interest on the studio’s part was already there long before he took the job. However, the decision to recast and reboot the character without Cavill’s involvement makes it abundantly clear that the current head honcho is just as disinterested.
It must have been a real kick in the teeth for the actor to discover that the next standalone Superman blockbuster was happening with someone else in the title role, and while there are no doubt plenty of mitigating factors in play, as the man in charge, the buck stops with Hamada, so you can understand why he could be getting singled out for the blame.
