Insider Says Geoff Johns And Jon Berg Are Scapegoats For DCEU’s Recent Shortcomings

If I’ve learned anything in this life, it’s that those sitting at the top of the film industry – or any other, for that matter – will never, ever take responsibility for anything, and will instead deflect the blame onto others. Heck, after the abomination that was 2004’s Catwoman failed on every possible level, did you think any suits were heard to say, “we f—ed up, this movie was terrible,” or, was it more likely they said, “there’s obviously no public interest in this character”? You be the judge.

Anyway, I want you to keep that in the back of your mind because, as we know, there’s a lot going on behind the scenes at Warner Bros. due to Justice League not meeting financial expectations and the shortcomings of the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) as a whole. In fact, recent shakeups occurred, with Geoff Johns and Jon Berg no longer being those overseeing the DC on film brand.

Now, Berg may not possess the greatest amount of geek cred, but a fair amount of those of you reading this likely have some level of familiarity with Geoff Johns. Having contributed to DC in comics, animation, television and film, one would think that if anyone is qualified to be the DCEU’s equivalent of Kevin Feige, it’d be him. But, instead, he’s been limited to a sort of advisory role when it comes to the movies and has been reported to have become a sacrificial lamb in the midst of all this hoopla.

Here’s what a WB insider had to say to El Fanboy regarding the situation and how it’s being viewed internally:

“It’s higher up the ladder. Berg and Johns seem to be scapegoats, as all issues [with Justice League] were execs.”

“People are upset about Johns and Berg. That came out of nowhere.”

Although I’m obviously not a WB employee, I have had the honor of interviewing Johns in the past, and will say that he’s an all-around great guy. Having gotten that out in the open, I can’t help but sympathize with this statement:

“The rollover of Johns is messed up. I think it’s just a lot of us were pulling for Johns to be ELEVATED in his role [post-Justice League], and this kind of came out of nowhere. Kind of putting the blame on Johns when it really was an executive issue.”

Of course, some fans may feel that everything is still aces because, after all, there was that film slate that was shown off at a Brazilian convention over the weekend. Funny enough though, that was also touched on, as we’re told that those plans may not stick:

“It’s just marketing. It’s all booked in advance. The PR side is push-forward. They can’t go to an event like that and say ‘It’s all f*****d!’ It’s a bit of a cluster right now.”

Being a lifelong fan of the superheroes appearing in these films, I’ll remain optimistic regarding the future of the DCEU, but it’s hard to ignore all of the drama going down in Burbank. According to El Fanboy, “There’s hope that Berg could eventually lend Johns some protection at the studio, since his move seems like more a lateral one than a demotion,” so let’s hope that our boy will still enjoy a prosperous future in some fashion.