With as many as four superhero films a year these days, many complain there are just too many. But for every comic book film we’ve been given, there are plenty more that never saw the light of day. Let’s take a look at some of the unfinished superhero films that were just not to be.

Some of these scripts or treatments are now readable online for us to enjoy. Others are not, but need to be. In addition to enjoying this article, I would like the people reading it to write to Warner Bros. here to petition for the release of many of them.

SUPERMAN

The attempts to make a fifth superman film,including previous attempts at a Batman vs. Superman film, spanned 19 years between 1987 and  2006, and it is such a massive story, it merits its own article. Which I just happen to have here  That aside, there are other stories worth telling.

½. Superman III ( Ilya Salkind, 1980 treatment)
While this merits mention, I don’t fully count it, as it was only an eight-page treatment never intended to be made the way it was written. Written by the the film series’ executive producer Ilya Salkind, he himself even stated that this was really just a collection of ideas for mining the Superman mythology in future films, and should be checked for accuracy by DC themselves.

This treatment features Supergirl also being also rocketed off Krypton as a baby. She is raised by Brainiac, who becomes infatuated with her as an adult. She then flees to Earth, and falls in love with Superman. Brainiac arrives, and uses a device that turns Superman evil. Ultimately, Supergirl frees Superman, and he fights off both Brainiac and Mr. Mxyzptlk in a bizarre and long series of events that could never be made into an actual movie.

Sadly, the filmmakers decided not to delve into the Superman mythology for more ideas. The idea of Superman-gone-bad was used in the third film, and the villain is a super-computer, but it is far from Brainiac. Superman III and IV both ended up being silly, despised films and Brainiac has yet to be seen on the silver screen.

1. Superman Returns Sequel (Dougherty & Harris)
Superman Returns was already laying the groundwork for this sequel, which would have featured the giant mass of Kryptonite Superman threw into space (now called “New Krypton”) playing a central role. “Returns” writers Michael Dougherty and Dan Harris soon set to work on banging out story details. But the disappointing box office returns of the first effort turned Warner Brothers off from a sequel, and the project never even made it to the script stage.

2 ½. Millar / Vaughn Pitch
Perhaps I should not mention this at all, as it was only a pitch and was never officially greenlit (nor would it probably ever have been). But I include it here because it made enough headlines at the time that many still remember it. For the same reason, I semi-count several other pitches further down.

Famed comic book scribe Mark Millar was very open to the public in 2008 about his attempts to get a major new Superman film trilogy made, to be directed by Matthew Vaughn. Around the same time, Vaughn signed on to helm the adaptation of Millar’s “Kick-Ass.”

Since then, Millar has made known that he had planned to release the three films, each a year apart, and chronicle the entire life of Superman. The series would start a thousand years ago on Krypton, and ended with Superman the last man on Earth as the sun goes supernova. Probably a little dark, even for today’s audiences’ tastes.

BATMAN

1. The Batman (Manciewicz, 1983) Readable here
The first script for the film was written by Superman co-screenwriter Tom Manciewicz, dated June 1983. It definitely tries to make a serious film out of the character, but with a definite sense of wit reminiscent of the Superman films. It does occasionally veer into the realm of being overtly cartoonish, with some over-the-top technology and a rather goofy setting for the climax. Also, much like the final film, it has no qualms with Batman occasionally using lethal means on his enemies.

Inspired by the 1970s stories of writer Steve Englehart, the script tells the story straight from the beginning, with Bruce’s parents being murdered by Joe Chill. The main villains are The Joker and Rupert Thorne, with the Penguin having a smaller role, while Batman’s love interest is Silver St. Cloud. The origin of Robin is incorporated as well, but with Dick Grayson not showing up until the third act. After his parents are murdered by the Joker, he is taken in by Bruce. Discovering that his new guardian is Batman, he follows him out at night in time for the final fight against the Joker. In the fight, Silver St. Cloud is killed, accidentally shot by Thorne.  The script then ends on a shot similar to the finished film, the camera rising up skyscrapers to see Batman standing in the dawning sun, joined there by Robin.

Nine rewrites were eventually done on the script by various screenwriters, but those do not seem to have been made public. After years of development, at least one attempt to turn the film into a campy remake of the television series was made, with Bill Murray being eyed for the lead role. Eventually, though, the directing job went to Tim Burton, who decided to create his own treatment.

2. Batman (Burton & Hickson, 1985 treatment)
Here are two summaries. The first, and the second, The latter is a scathing review by Andy Mangels from the July 1992 issue of Wizard, years after the fact.

This is very similar in parts to the Manciewicz script, with the Joker, Thorne, Silver St. Cloud, and Robin all still main characters. And after nine rewrites, it may be even more similar than we realize. It incorporates a Christmastime setting, which was ultimately used in Batman Returns. This version is also the first to feature the Joker as the murder of Wayne’s parents, and has cameos by the Penguin, Riddler, and Catwoman as his henchmen when he murders the Graysons (Catwoman actually applying the acid to the ropes).

The treatment features the Joker committing all sorts of outlandish, fantastical crimes, including rocketing the giant Gotham Christmas tree into space, making the subways run backwards, painting the city candy-cane colors, breaking onto the set of The Love Boat, and holding Barbara Walters captive for an interview.

One thing that remains in the finished film is the final act featuring the Joker throwing a party for Gotham where he releases his gas, features much of what made it into the final film.

3. Batman (Englehart, 1986 treatments)
Some clips of them can be found at these two links: The first (where Englehart actively discusses the script) and the second (a brief clip of the openings scene).

Some reports put this as before the Burton draft, and the flow of ideas to the final film seems to agree, but the dates listed say otherwise. According to Englehart, the folks in charge grew tired of trying to adapt his comic books through other people, and hired him to do it himself. The studio wanted to have the Joker, Penguin, and Robin all in the film, despite Englehart’s protestations. His first treatment draft, dated March 21st, 1986, opens with Robin’s origin. He was eventually able to convince the studio that all this was too much. His second draft, dated May 22nd 1986, leaves out at least Robin and begins with Bruce’s origin. Although the climax takes place on a Ferris wheel, it is similar to the finished film in that the Joker is killed trying to reach his helicopter (although here he is struck by lightning)

Throughout all these scripts, Rupert Thorne and Silver St. Cloud were a continual presence, and Englehart claims that the final film merely changed their names to Carl Grissom and Vicki Vale. But there is no way to tell how much Englehart’s full treatment actually resembles the script used by Hamm.

Even earlier drafts by Hamm included the origin of Robin shoehorned into the third act. One of these drafts is Readable here. Also, on the Special Edition 2-disc Batman DVD, you can actually see the storyboard for this scene played out, with an added soundtrack, voiced by the stars of the animated series.

4. Batman Triumphant (Protosevich, 1997)
Before the release of Batman & Robin in 1997, studio executives were impressed with the dailies, and had already signed on Schumacher to direct a fifth film in the series written by Mark Protosevich, and complete with Clooney, O’Donnell, and Silverstone all reprising their roles.

The film would have featured Scarecrow as the main villain, with Harley Quinn as a secondary one. Rather than the Joker’s lover, the character would be portrayed as his vengeance-seeking daughter. The filmmakers were even planning for Jack Nicholson to make a cameo appearance as the Joker in a hallucination caused by the Scarecrow’s gas.

Once Batman & Robin was released to lackluster reviews and disappointing box office grosses, these plans were dropped.

4 ½. Batman: DarKnight (Shapiro & Wise, 1998)
Read the interview with the co-writer here.

While Warner Bros. was deciding to do with the franchise, his pitch was made by writers Lee Shapiro & Stephen Wise and was briefly entertained by the studio.

This story  featured a Batman retired from crime-fighting, with Dick Grayson a student at Gotham University. Dr. Jonathan Crane would be featured conducting experiments in fear that would unwittingly aid the transformation of his colleague Kirk Langstrom into Man-Bat. With a public thinking Man-Bat’s attacks are a bloodthirsty return of the Dark Knight, Batman returns to clear his name, facing both Man-Bat and the Scarecrow.

The studio ultimately passed on the project. It then simultaneously commissioned two different scripts, to make a film out of whichever one proved the stronger choice. Those two were Batman Beyond and Batman: Year One.

4 ¾. Batman Beyond (Dini, Stephenson, & Yakin, 2000)
This adaptation of the popular animated series was written by Paul Dini, Neal Stephenson, & Boaz Yakin, with Yakin possibly directing. He soon lost interest, however, and the project was abandoned in favor of Year One.

5. Batman: Year One (Aronofsky & Miller, 2000)
Details and concept art to be found here: here

The studio then hired Darren Aronofksy to direct an adaptation of the Year One storyline, co-written with Frank Miller himself.

In spite of being co-written by Miller, the film would take quite a different route than the comic of the same name. Aronofsky even stated on record “Toss out everything you can imagine about Batman! Everything! We’re starting completely anew.”
The story featured a Bruce Wayne who, after his parent’s death, loses his fortune and becomes homeless. He ends up working at a garage headed by an African-American named “Little Al,” and would have learned martial arts by simply reading books rather than traveling the world.
The project was moving along, but both it and J.J. Abrams’ Superman project were done away with when the studio decided to instead make Batman vs. Superman (see Superman article)

WONDER WOMAN

1. (Tod Alcott, 2001)

In 2001, legendary film producer Joel Silver (Die Hard, Lethal Weapon, The Matrix) began work on bringing Wonder Woman to the big screen, and first gave the writing job to Tod Alcott. With a reportedly unsatisfying script, several rewrites were done over the next two years by Jon Cohen and Becky Johnson. Actually, for all we know, all of these drafts these may have just been starting from scratch. The next writer hired seems to have done just that (though, as you can guess, it can be difficult to tell where to draw the line)

2. (Levens, 2003)
Philip Levens, one of the main forces behind Smallville was hired in 2003, yet his tenure only lasted a few months.

3. (Kalogridis, 2003)
The version by Laeta Kalogridis floated in limbo for a couple of years before…

4. (Whedon, 2005 [unfinished])
Fresh off making his directorial debut with Serenity, Whedon accepted the job to write and direct the Wonder Woman feature film. But differences in vision with the studio occurred and, after two years, Whedon never even finished a complete draft of the script, departing the project in 2007.

5. Paradise Island (Matthew Jenison & Brent Strickland)
Silver then bought a spec script from screenwriters Matthew Jenison and Brent Strickland which took place during World War II. Silver never intended on filming the script, only buying it to take if off the market. He then hired the two writers to craft a new script that explored Wonder Woman’s home of Paradise Island. This, of course, also never happened.

In 2010, after nine years of not producing a film, Silver lost the film rights back to DC Entertainment, eventually resulting in the upcoming 2017 film.

THE FLASH

½. (Jeph Loeb, 1991 treatment)

Jeph Loeb had already made a name for himself as a screenwriter, co-writing films like Teen Wolf and Commando. Although Loeb was hired by Warner Bros. in 1991 to write a screenplay for The Flash, it would appear it never even made it to past the treatment and into the script stage. However, as part of the writing process, Loeb met with DC publisher Jeanette Kahn, which led to his career with DC Comics.

1. (Goyer, 2004)
In December 2004, it was announced that David S. Goyer would write and direct a film version of The Flash. Studio execs were impressed with his script for the still upcoming Batman Begins, and he was hot off directing Blade: Trinity.

Goyer’s script apparently used Allen as the Flash (whom he wanted Ryan Reynolds for), and would feature Wally West as a supporting character. Goyer left the project in February 2007, citing the ever-classic “creative differences.” This was also right around the time that Joss Whedon was leaving Wonder Woman. Fans could no doubt see their hopes of DC catching up to Marvel’s film status melting before their eyes.

2. (Craig Wright, 2007)
This was the same month Warner Bros. revealed plans for their Justice League feature film, and they wasted no time in announcing they also were planning a Flash spin-off featuring Wally West (see plot of Justice League film below). Comedy director Shawn Levy was signed to helm the project. But, committed to a sequel to his hit comedy A Night at the Museum, he left the project in October and was replaced by fellow comedy director David Dobkin. Soon after, a writer was finally announced in Craig Wright. Even then, it was years before a further announcement.

3. (Geoff Johns & Dan Mazeau, 2009)
In 2009, with the Justice League film delayed and essentially dead, Charles Roven of Nolan’s Batman series, was brought on board the film, and a new story was commissioned, with Dobkin still directing. Fan-favorite comic book scribe Geoff Johns wrote a treatment, which was then expanded into a screenplay by Dan Mazeau.

In September of that year, Warner Bros. launched a new division, DC Entertainment Inc., to better expand the DC brand and create new adaptations, largely an attempt to catch up to Marvel in creating feature films. In October, however, Roven had departed the project. Dobkin apparently exited quietly by the time the next version came about.

4. (Berlanti, Guggenheim, & Green, 2010)
In 2010, the adaptation of Green Lantern was on its way, expected to herald in an age of DC Comics film adaptations, and Warner Bros. was impressed by the work by the writers Berlanti, Guggenheim, and Green. The studio commissioned them to write story treatments for both “Green Lantern 2” and The Flash, and then write the screenplay for whichever they chose. They chose Flash. With These plans, along with many for a DC Cinematic Universe, fell through after the flop of Green Lantern.

Another attempt was not made until the version now in development, due out in 2017.

GREEN LANTERN

1. (Smigel, 2004)
And you thought the Adam West Batman TV show was something! Around 2004, Robert Smigel had been hired to write a comedic script to star Jack Black. After major fan backlash on the internet, however, the idea was dropped.

2. Green Lantern 2 (Berlanti, Guggenheim, Green &  Goldenberg)
(see note on The Flash, #4)
With Berlanti, Green, & Goldenberg writing the screenplay for The Flash, their story for GL2 was left to Michael Goldenberg (who did a rewrite on the first film). Obviously, these plans ended when the first film flopped.

AQUAMAN

½. (Ben Grant)
Apparently in 2003 some tiny production company called Sunrise Entertainment wanted to make an Aquaman movie, with a first-time screenwriter named Ben Grant working on it, but of course, it did not come to fruition. Years later, it was reported that Leonardo DiCaprio’s production company, Appian Way, was looking into the project, but, well…you know…

JUSTICE LEAGUE

1. (Kieran Mulroney & Michelle Mulroney, 2007) Readable here

We all remember this one, right? This came about as close to getting made as any unmade film ever has and, like Superman Lives, has a documentary being made about its ill-fated production.

The project began in 2007, with Warner Bros. hiring the husband-and-wife team of Kieran and Michelle Mulroney to write the script. George Miller of Mad Max fame, signed on as director, with Lord of the Rings alum Barrie M. Osbourne producing. The film would have featured D.J. Cotrona as Superman, Armie Hammer as Batman, Megan Gale as Wonder Woman, Common as John Stewart, Adam Brody as Barry Allen, Santiago Cabrera as Aquaman, as well as Jay Baruchel as Maxwell Lord, Teresa Palmer as Talia, and Zoe Kazan as Iris Allen.

Filming was expected to take place in Australia in summer of 2008, for a 2009 release. Some of the actors had already spent up to three months training in Australia, and the wardrobes had already been fitted. But late in the game, Australia pulled out of the tax rebate offered to the production, indefinitely stalling the project. Although filmmakers insisted for a long time that the film was only delayed, not dead, it became obvious that it was over, and ultimately, the film was officially cancelled.

Adam Brody noted that another issue was “They just didn’t want to cross their streams with a whole bunch of Batmans in the universe,” referring to the already-existent Christopher Nolan franchise whose toes they would be stepping on.

The script featured the various heroes all already in existence, some knowing each other, but not having yet formed a team. The threat that brings them together is an alliance between Maxwell Lord and Talia Al Ghul, which produces the OMACs.

Treading the waters between having Barry Allen and Wally West as the Scarlet Speedster, the film features both. Already with super speed, Wally joins his uncle partway through the script, becoming a second Flash. In the end, Barry sacrifices himself in a method very reminiscent of his death in Crisis on Infinite Earths. Wally joins what then officially joins the Justice League.
The script also adapts part of the Infinite Crisis storyline from 2006, where Wonder Woman killed Maxwell Lord to stop him from controlling Superman, something which alienated her from her fellow heroes. In this version, however, it is Batman who snaps Lord’s neck. Knowing how well that went over with Man of Steel, one can imagine fans’ reactions were the film to have gotten made.

CAPTAIN MARVEL

1. (Goldman, 2002)
In late 2002, New Line Cinema announced plans for a Captain Marvel film written by the legendary William Goldman (The Princess Bride) and produced by Michael E. Uslan, the man responsible for bringing Batman to the screen. By early 2004, the team of Alec Sokolow & Joel Cohen (who worked on Toy Story), were doing a rewrite, with a later one by Bryan Goluboff.

2. (August, 2007)
John August was then brought aboard as a writer to, apparently, start his own version. Comedy director Peter Segal was announced to direct, and, in 2007, Dwayne Johnson was cast as Black Adam. The project still languished, however, and hit a major bump in 2008. That year, Warner Bros.’ Speed Racer flopped, while The Dark Knight became a mammoth hit. The studio then asked August to make the film darker, deciding that’s the way these films should be. A disgusted August left the film, and state publicly that he didn’t think the film would ever happen.

3. (Birch & Johns, 2009)
With New Line now absorbed into Warner Bros, development was restarted in December 2008. In August ‘09, however, it was announced that a new script had been commissioned, co-written by Bill Birch and Geoff Johns, and still directed by Segal. Even as it was evident that the film was not coming together, it wasn’t until 2013 that Segal openly stated the film was canceled.

That is, until the latest attempt, now scheduled for a 2019 release date, written by Darren Lemke, and still starring Johnson as Black Adam.

GREEN ARROW

1. Green Arrow: Escape from Supermax (Goyer & Marks, 2008)
David S. Goyer and Justin Marks co-write this script, with a draft finished in 2008, featuring Oliver Queen, framed for a crime he didn’t commit, attempting to escape a maximum security prison full of supervillains. No further production was made.

PLASTIC MAN

1. (The Wachowskis, 1995)
As early as 1992, Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment was developing a Plastic Man movie, with TV director Bryan Spicer  making his feature debut. He instead did so with the Power Rangers movie in ’95. There seems to be no information available on who, if anyone, was hired to write the film up to that point.
In ’95, Andy and Larry Wachowski were brought on board to write their own version, never produced. Years later, after the flop of Speed Racer in 2008, the brothers returned to their script, hoping to direct themselves; plans which never came to fruition.

TEEN TITANS

1. (Follmer, 2003)
In 2003, just before the debut of the popular Cartoon Network series, Akiva Goldsman was reported to be producing a Teen Titans film scripted by Follmer, a former assistant on The X-Files, for whom this would be a first writing credit.

2. (Verheiden, 2007)
By 2007, the project hit the news again, still produced by Akiva Goldsman, but now written by Mark Verheiden, with Robin as the only confirmed member of the team.

Even today, Goldsman is still at work with the Titans, now attempting to get a live-action television show off the ground

DOOM PATROL

1. (Turner, 2006)
At the same time as Teen Titans, Akiva Goldsman was also attempting to get a Doom Patrol film made, scripted by the unknown Adam Turner. No further production was made.

SANDMAN

1. (Elliott & Rossio, 1996)
Neil Gaiman’s hit series was first adapted by the pair of Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio (Aladdin, and later The Mask of Zorro, Shrek, Pirates of the Caribbean) Roger Avary was hired in 1996 to rewrite and direct the film. Creative differences with the producer led to Avary’s ultimate dismissal from the project, and the script went through many more revisions. (Avary and Gaiman would together write the film Beowulf) The script carried on through “several more writers and scripts” (according to my very thorough source, Wikipedia)

2. (Farmer, 1998)
One version by William Farmer met with a review by the famous Moriarty of aintitcoolnews, who ripped it apart and led to massive shaming by fans (the same happened with J.J. Abrams’ Superman script). By 2001, it was clear that the film was stuck in the development rut.

Now, of course, we have a new version in development from David S. Goyer and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. But it remains to be seen if this one will actually get made, or just join the group here.

So that about does it for the heroes of the DC Universe! But we don’t have to stick to the DCU! We can also do…

WATCHMEN

1. (Hamm, ca. 1986)
Producers Joel Silver and Lawrence Gordon bought the rights to a film version of Watchmen right away in 1986, to produce for 20^th Century Fox. After Alan Moore himself declined to write the screenplay, they hired a pre-Batman Sam Hamm. Hamm rewrote the unique ending. All that is evident of his ending is that it involved “an assassination attempt and a time paradox.”

Fox ultimately put the project in turnaround in 1991, and it moved to Warner Bros. Terry Gilliam was then attached to direct, with McKeown to rewrite Hamm’s screenplay. Unable to raise the budget necessary, Gilliam ultimately left the project, saying that the graphic novel could not be reduced adequately to a 2 ½ hour film. Warner Bros. ultimately dropped the project.

Long story short, David Hayter later wrote another script. After years of further development frustrations, the script was finally rewritten by Alex Tse (who took it from a modern day setting back to 1985) and turned into the 2009 motion picture.

Well, I hope you’ve enjoyed this look at what might have been! Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for a look at more unfinished films from the House of Ideas, Marvel!