James Gunn‘s new DCU has yet to see the light of day — and trashing the old guard is proving brutal … both at the box office and on Twitter, where it’s all Zack Snyder all day.
First, there’s ‘Shazam 2’ – which just hit theaters this weekend and is already off to a rough start with a projected opening of $30M. domestic…one of the worst for any DC movie. remember, Zachary Levi‘s future in Gunn’s world going forward hangs in the balance … and you have to imagine that his film here (part of the former DCEU) bombardment doesn’t bode well.
There may be more growing pains for Gunn and co. before they can get to their actual new slate — which starts with “Superman: Legacy” in about two years. DC has yet to release ‘Aquaman 2’ and ‘The Flash’ … both of which were completed before Gunn came on board.
Time will tell how they fare, but so far ‘Shazam 2’ isn’t paying off. Meanwhile, Snyder fans are celebrating two year anniversary of his “Justice League” movie – the “Cheater Cut” as it is known. And yes… they are again clamoring for more ZS superhero content.
There are a few “Cheaters” trends going live with the bird app, including people calling Warner Bros release the rights to Zack’s creations for Netflix … where he is now making other films. The reason … they want their guy to continue the “Cheaterverse” with all the previous actors/heroes — like Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Crazy Gadot, Jason Momoaetc.
Of course, it probably won’t happen … but the eager fan base demands it anyway.
Zack himself makes things even more complicated … like just this week, teased a message — courtesy of one of his major DCEU villains, Darkseid. Unclear what it is … but he had the internet ablaze with speculation — so ZS isn’t really going away either, it seems.
And one last mention of Zack – where someone once again reveled in the glory days – came from BA himself … who sang the director’s praises in a new THR profile this week.
Bottom line … the DCEU has left some mighty big shoes to fill, and those shoes continue to be raised as everyone waits for Gunn and Peter Saffronvision to come to life.
Starting over, as it turns out, is a long and tedious process. Lots to clear out of the garage, and not everyone wants the leftovers on sale … as WBD is now finding out.
A super big headache, actually.
