How The MCU And DCEU Are Borrowing From Each Other

The Universe Is Built Around A Darling

The MCU struck gold when it cast Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark/Iron Man. He’s become indispensible in the role and you cannot imagine anyone else taking his place. As a result, he’s made a host of cameos in other MCU films as a way of pleasing the fans and keeping everyone coming back for the next installment in the franchise. Make no mistake: everyone from the mailman to the big chief knows who the true star of the show is.

The DCEU struggled with this at first. Henry Cavill’s debut as Superman wasn’t universally accepted, so the studio thought that Ben Affleck’s Batman would do the trick, but his role was also fairly divisive. The real breakout star of this universe came in the form of Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman. It’s no coincidence that the Justice League reshoots have mostly revolved around Diana and putting more of her in the film. Also, did you hear the reception that Gadot got at the San Diego Comic-Con? No one cared that Batman was in the building; it was all about Wonder Woman.

Both franchises have successfully identified their darlings and will continue to put them at the heart and center of their universes. It’s a smart move and you can’t begrudge them for that. As long as the characters aren’t shoved into other films merely as a ploy to sell more tickets, there’s no harm in a bit more Iron Man and Wonder Woman for all of us to enjoy, right?