Of course they should have kept Joss on board for Wonder Woman. I'd rather read a dogeared copy of hios script than go to the premier of the version they eventually do. But then wouldn't most movies be better if he rewrote them?

laoshi | June 24, 05:45 CET

Nay, stick with Marvel, they are so much cooler!

magnus carnage | June 24, 06:45 CET

Pretty much everything they said was the gospel truth. Preacher, Fables and Y: The Last Man are all absolutely GOLDEN properties that, with the right names attached could win Oscars by the boatload. And yes, Joss could and should be at least one of those "right names".

Haunt | June 24, 06:54 CET

I think that guy Brian K Vaughn could take a stab at Y.

The big thing that both Iron Man and Hulk had were the lead actors. I certainly don't think that either were better movies than Batman Begins. (which isn't to say I didn't love Christian Bale).

Please, don't let them cast Shia LaBeuf as Y. Please, no.

That being said, heck yeah, give Joss a superhero movie.

redeem147 | June 24, 07:08 CET

Those are all much different movies than the kind of superhero tentpole films that I think DC really needs to actually compete with Marvel on. Don't get me wrong -- Shia Lebeouf in "Y: The Last Man" could be a great movie, and could, in fact, get some nods like best screenplay (adapted, I suppose) -- but it's not a $350 millon grossing movie by any stretch.

Joss off of "Wonder Woman" resulted, within weeks, in the project being put indefinitely on the shelf. WB is managing to cock up having franchise directors and franchise stars for the two biggest comic properties ever. It's completely inexplicable that they wouldn't want to get Christian Bale and Brandon Routh for a JLA movie.

Bale/Nolan and Routh/Singer sequels are simply a must. The Goyer Green Arrow idea is a good one, because Goyer has proven the superhero chops repeatedly, and Arrow is pretty popular, at least per "Smallville" fans. "Shazam" sounds like a great idea because Captain Marvel could be made a very cool superhero movie, with a family focus, and Dwayne Johnson is the perfect star for that demographic.

KingofCretins | June 24, 07:21 CET

Please, don't let them cast Shia LaBeuf as Y. Please, no.

Agreed. He's... I want to say terrible, but I don't think that quite encompasses it.

He's like this sucking void where charisma goes to die.

crossoverman | June 24, 07:22 CET

They can give all the advice they want to DC, it won't make any difference. DC doesn't control the (non-animated) movies, Warners' does.

Mad Axe | June 24, 07:55 CET

They can give all the advice they want to DC, it won't make any difference. I think that's the point of unsolicited advice, Mad Axe, especially in the blogosphere.

Buuuut: I think that it's good that there are still people out there (and obviously here) who believe that, for example, Wonder Woman is absolutely screwed without the Jossian touch. People should be reminded of the SNAFU that is Warner Bros.

If Shia were in Y, I might have to lobotomize myself just so I wouldn't have to deal with seeing ads or hearing about it. He's okay; I didn't like Transformers, and Holes sucked but he was decent in it. I haven't seen the new Indiana Jones movie, so I can't judge, but I absolutely cannot accept that he is the new "it" guy, especially when there are so many unknown but talented actors out there. OTOH, I think I would cry more if Zac Efron were Yorick.

Does anyone else think that Summer Glau might be an awesome Snow White in a Fables movie? It would be awesome if Judi Dench agreed to be Frau Totenkinder. And Hugh Jackman would have been a great Bigby, except that he's already been Wolverine.

Poo on that unwritten rule that an actor can only be one superhero. I still say that Willem Defoe would have been a perfect Rorschach in Watchmen.

BandofBuggered | June 24, 08:04 CET

If he wasn't already all over more than one franchise now, I could see James Marsden as Hal Jordan in a GL movie. Of course, I could also buy Nathan Fillion in that role :)

KingofCretins | June 24, 08:12 CET

DC Comics didn't let Joss go, so this is just sloppy writing by the article writer. It just annoys me about the lack of research that go into this kind of pop culture rant feature. It's just pathetic really. God forbid we should let the facts play a part. The blogsophere culture of dumbing down and manipulating facts is one of my pet hates (in case anyone hasn't worked out yet).

Simon | June 24, 10:13 CET

The phrase in the blog is "not find a way to keep", so the author seems aware it wasn't Joel Silver's idea for Joss to not be there, but that he didn't do enough, or anything, to try to keep him. As the soon to be purple area of his jaw would soon attest, he did not "let" him go. That kind of "let him go", not the euphemism kind.

KingofCretins | June 24, 10:57 CET

I've never really gotten the Shia hate. I think he's funny and quirky... and yeah, not perfect for Yoick, but not abysmal either. *shrug*

As for Snow White, I've always pictured her as Jennifer Connoly.

Haunt | June 24, 11:26 CET

I'm sure I read in the trades about that particular script being jettisoned.

Simon | June 24, 11:56 CET

God forbid we should let the facts play a part. Wouldn't that take all of the fun out of ranting? I know that my righteous indignation is much more firey when it's not...right. Oh, wait. I've got that wrong. Ah, well.

I also think that Susan May Pratt would be a good Snow White. Although I'm still holding out for a movie of the book Sabriel, in which she'd be perfect.

James Marsden as Hal Jordan would work, although lately I think of the Green Lantern as in Batman DKR. In which he's old and codgery. I've never really found his character too compelling, though I've only been reading comics for a little more than a year, so I could be missing some great stuff.

As for Shia, I think part of my dislike for the guy stems from his character on Even Stevens irritating the everloving hell out of me. And I've just not seen anything of him that's impressed me to the point where I can understand where all of the hype about him is coming from.

I wish someone would decide to make a movie of The American Way, done by our own Georges Jeanty. And American Virgin might be cool, too, if someone could tighten up the plotlines.

BandofBuggered | June 24, 12:05 CET

Give Joss a superhero movie - and cast either Boreanaz or Fillion as a superhero!

angeliclestat | June 24, 13:06 CET

I actually really like Shia, and think he could absolutely pull off Yorick. In fact, the only two actors that came to mind as I read 'Y' were Shia and Nick Brendon.

A 'Preacher' movie would be immense, but the one comic above all that I cannot wait to be adapted is Warren Ellis' 'Transmetropolitan'. Partly because it's pretty much the best thing ever committed to paper, and partly cause it's just incredibly cinematic. I hear Patrick Stewart owns the movie rights! One day...

[ edited by Gil-Martin on 2008-06-24 11:51 ]

Gil-Martin | June 24, 14:51 CET

... although lately I think of the Green Lantern as in Batman DKR.

Do you mean Green Arrow BoB ? I like that take on him but then I have a real thing for aged super-heroes, they become more human to me (in fact, they deal with what we all deal with as we age but, obviously, in super amounts - if we think it's bad when our knees ache in the morning, think what it must be like to lose the power of flight) and intimations of mortality make everything more resonant.

Re: Green Lantern, surprised nobody's mentioned David Boreanaz, he did a decent job in the animated Justice League film and has the look and the "vibe" for Hal Jordan IMO.

I also don't really get the Shia hate, he's a reasonable actor and has a certain amount of presence. He could certainly play early Yorick, whether he could manage to show his changes as the story progressed i'm not so sure (but in a single film I guess that wouldn't be as big an issue).

I think Warner/DC's problem is arguably a complaint from the comics of a few years ago - they're too slow to move, too big, too lumbering. They need to get on a roll like Marvel have and get more of their stuff out there, they need to "rationalise" what they do have (i.e. use the same bloody actors in the JLA film as are already established in their own movies) and they really need to let David Goyer (& Ryan Reynolds) do 'The Flash'.

As for 'Wonderwoman', Joss won't go back to that I don't think - reading between the lines I get the sense of deep discontent at the amount of time he effectively wasted on that project. Course, he's a pro who knows the score and it seemed to end without much animosity so a sweet enough deal and enough control might tempt him.

Saje | June 24, 16:34 CET

And Hugh Jackman would have been a great Bigby, except that he's already been Wolverine.

Poo on that unwritten rule that an actor can only be one superhero.

But he did Van Helsing - Ok, very bad exemple. :)

About Joss doing a Super hero movie: I'm just waiting some Doctor starts to sing...

Just for a side note. Here, in Brazil the guy who dubbed David in "Buffy" and "Angel" was the same dubber of Green Lantern in the cartoon "Justice League" and JLU - Huuuge coincidence ahn?

Brasilian Chaos Man | June 24, 18:01 CET

BandofBuggered, as far as Shia as an actor, yeah there's Holes, Transformers, & Indy 4, but have you guys seen Disturbia? I think that's when he hit cult status. This movie came between Holes & Transformers... sort of like a "good-bye" to Disney and a "hello" to Blockbusters. I liked it, by the way. It's worth it if you just watch the first 20 minutes. Of course, maybe I connected to the film in some way.

And, personally, I think he's doing a marvelous job at transitioning from teenager into adult roles. He could have ended up like Lindsay Lohan or Brittany Spears, right? And what happened to my fav Haley Joel from the Sixth Sense? I haven't seen him since Second-hand Lions. Both Haley & Shia I'd like to see make it in the "real world". Good actors.

korkster | June 24, 21:10 CET

Do you mean Green Arrow BoB ? Dammit, Dammit, Dammit! How is it you foil me so often, Saje? I'm getting this feeling that you purposefully wait until I've posted something in a haze of sleepiness and painkillers. ;)

Oh yeah...Green Lantern is that guy with the ring, right? He's pretty cool from what I've read of him in comics (very little due to my small background). Yeah, DB would be good, but I'm very biased.

I haven't gotten around to seeing Disturbia, korkster; I've heard some very bad reviews from people which made me not super-interested in watching it. I'll probably give it a try eventually. As for Haley Joel Osment, he had some issues with DUIs and stuff last I heard of him. And his poor sister's stuck on the Disney Channel.

And BCM, I don't really consider Van Helsing to be a superhero movie per se. I think it falls under a totally different mythology (vampires, et al). Then again, I totally consider Buffy a superhero. Meh, I'm getting myself confused!!

BandofBuggered | June 25, 01:05 CET

They just need to get Morgan Freeman to sign on for the lead.

barboo | June 25, 01:19 CET

Well they'd be fools not to anyway. It just wouldn't be the same without Morgan Freeman.

Dammit, Dammit, Dammit! How is it you foil me so often, Saje?

Actually, though I thought you meant Arrow it was also partly a genuine question BoB cos it's been a while since i've read it and I was starting to second guess myself, like, "Is Green Lantern in it too ? Is this what going mad feels like ?" ;).

Saje | June 25, 01:51 CET

Is this what going mad feels like? No, I believe that the full-page image of Superman looking like Fabio with the horse and the rainbow behind him. ;)

You'd think I'd remember that it was Green Arrow though, especially since he shot an arrow at Supes. Maybe it's time to reread. And maybe I'll give V for Vendetta another shot.

BandofBuggered | June 25, 02:25 CET

I'd give my eyeteeth to see a big-screen, massive-budget version of "Kingdom Come". But it ain't gonna happen, even if Alex Ross and Mark Waid were willing. Hell, I'm still waiting for "Death: The Time of Your Life" and "The Sandman". (But I'm not holding my breath while I wait, y'understand...)

Rowan Hawthorn | June 25, 03:43 CET

DC could use Whedon more, but Marvel has been a lot more successful in the movie realm and for his own personal success I'd like to see him there. That said, DC (and Warner) need to step it up with more superhero movies. Bring on Green Lantern and The Flash, and if they HAVE to do Wonder Woman, the only way it'd work is with Joss.

[ edited by archon on 2008-06-25 01:29 ]

archon | June 25, 04:29 CET

My problem is, I don't like Marvel comics much, compared to DC. But they definitely have been taking the right approach to their movies, and I wish to hell DC/Warner would take a frikkin' lesson from that.

Rowan Hawthorn | June 25, 06:51 CET

In a perfect world they'd somehow find a way to reproduce their animated success in live action because they're absolutely kicking Marvel's arse in that arena, the DCAU is head and shoulders above (largely thanks to Bruce Timm and the rest of that team).

Saje | June 25, 12:14 CET

Saje, no argument there; I haven't seen that much of the others, but the animated "Batman" was so much better than most of the movies (and *all* of the live-action TV series) that it's not even funny.

Rowan Hawthorn | June 25, 14:39 CET