Shortly after Man of Steel was released, Warner Bros. announced an entire slate of movies...most of which never happened. When the "SnyderVerse" was still a thing, we heard about plans for everything from Nightwing to Deathstroke and, unsurprisingly, those projects also fell by the wayside.
Now, the studio is trying again, with movies coming to theaters and HBO Max (alongside a few companion TV shows). Hopefully, things are finally starting to look up, but there are still some characters we're desperate to see make their debuts (or returns) in the DC Extended Universe.
While there are some big names here, there are also a few heroes and villains you might not be overly familiar with. Warner Bros. really has only scratched the surface of the DC Comics Universe, but there are ample opportunities moving forward to expand it every bit as much as the MCU.
To see which characters we're hopeful could be on the way to the DCEU, hit the "Next" button below!
10. Bizarro
Warner Bros. clearly has big plans for new, diverse takes on Superman, but that puts Henry Cavill's version on the backburner. However, if his Kal-El were to return, then who should he face?
Lex Luthor, Brainiac, Doomsday, and Metallo are among the most obvious answers, but why not head down a slightly more unexpected route? Bizarro was created by Lex Luthor and is an imperfect clone of Superman's (there are other origin stories, but that's perhaps easiest to follow).
His appearance, the way he speak and acts, and the fact Luthor created a Superman clone in the first place is all pretty ridiculous, but it would be a fun, light-hearted direction to take that long-overdue Man of Steel sequel in. It's possible to take things down a darker route, of course, and this would be a great opportunity for any actor to tackle two vastly different roles.
9. Mister Miracle
Darkseid finally made his big screen debut in Zack Snyder's Justice League, and the plan was to explore both that character and the rest of the New Gods in a movie from director Ava DuVernay. Unfortunately, it's since been confirmed that it's not happening, so these characters are stuck in limbo.
If it does eventually happen, Mister Miracle absolutely needs to be part of it. The son of New Genesis ruler Highfather, Scott Free was traded as an infant for Darkseid's child, Orion, in a bid to end the war between the New Gods of Apokolips and New Genesis. He hated his adoptive father as a youth, and later fled to Earth where he took on the mantle of Mister Miracle, becoming a master escape artist.
Fleeing from Apokolips was no easy feat, and his frequent clashes with Darkseid resulted in a lot of entertaining stories. This would be a fun approach to The New Gods, and gives moviegoers someone it's easy to root for and a character they'll no doubt be eager to see more of.
8. Green Arrow
Arrow reached its end on The CW after eight seasons, and as fun as it was to follow Oliver Queen's story there, a big screen version of the character could do so much more with Green Arrow. His dynamic with characters like Batman and Black Canary has a tonne of potential, whether it's clashing with Robert Pattinson's Dark Knight or romancing Jurnee Smollett's Bird of Prey.
The latter now seems far more likely considering the fact a solo outing featuring Dinah Lance is coming to HBO Max, and the archer could make for an entertaining supporting character.
Once upon a time, Warner Bros. was developing a "Supermax" movie that was set to follow Green Arrow after he was wrongly imprisoned for murder and then forced to escape from a supermax prison (hence the title). Along the way, he was going to clash with all manner of villains, including Lex Luthor and The Joker, so the studio revisiting this concept would also be no bad thing.
7. Tawky Tawny
Chances are you won't be overly familiar with Tawky Tawny, but there have been a number of iterations of this character over the years. At times, he's been portrayed as a literal tiger who accompanies Shazam into battle, and at others, he's been, well, a tiger wearing a suit basically.
One version you could end up seeing in Shazam! Fury of the Gods is the one who was an "ifrit," a creature who changed between human and animal. A friend to the young Billy Batson, he later transforms and saves the younger when Dr. Sivana and Mr. Mind team up to take over the magical realm with their Monster Society of Evil (they were teased in the first movie's mid-credits scene).
Shazam! proved that DC fans are happy to embrace a lighter, weirder tone, so there's really no reason for director David F. Sandberg to leave Tawny on the shelf any longer.
6. Poison Ivy
In 1997's Batman and Robin, one of the foes George Clooney's Dark Knight faced off with was Poison Ivy. Uma Therman clearly had a lot of fun playing the sultry villain in the movie, but aside from a long-running subplot in Gotham, the character hasn't been seen in a live-action setting since.
She is coming to Batwoman, of course, but we're not convinced that's the best place for the villain. It would be very interesting seeing what Matt Reeves could do with her in his new Batman trilogy, but perhaps the most compelling destination is whatever Warner Bros. does with Harley Quinn after The Suicide Squad (James Gunn has even tested some interest in the character).
David Ayer's Gotham City Sirens movie appears to be long forgotten about at the studio, and is unlikely to happen with Catwoman now part of The Batman. However, the project could easily be rejigged in some way, and even a team-up movie starring Harley and Ivy would be welcomed by fans (especially if it delves into the romantic side of their relationship).
5. Nightwing
Brenton Thwaites is doing the best he can with the material he's been given to work with in Titans, but we would still argue that this is a character who deserves better (particularly on the big screen))
Dick Grayson came close to getting his due in a live-action movie directed by The LEGO Batman Movie's Chris McKay, but that project fell apart around the same time as Ben Affleck's The Batman. As a result, Nightwing has been put back on the shelf, and his future in the DCEU itself is a mystery to us.
If any upcoming movie could help open the door to Nightwing getting a movie, it's The Flash. After all, there's no reason at all to believe Michael Keaton's Batman couldn't have met Dick and taken him under his wing(s) at some point. Now, all these years later, it's easy to imagine the former Robin breaking out on his own as Nightwing, this time in theaters rather than on HBO Max.
4. Zatanna
In the comic books, Zatanna is a powerful magician who casts spells by speaking backwards. She's a frequent love interest for John Constantine, and a hero with enough firepower to have been a member of both Justice League Dark and the Justice League of America.
Emerald Fennell, the Oscar-nominated director of Promising Young Woman, is writing the Zatanna movie, but after countless disappointments from Warner Bros. (remember that Deathstroke movie?), we aren't getting our hopes up just yet. Luckily, it seems like she could be about to get her due on screen, especially with a Justice League Dark series coming to HBO Max.
Warner Bros. could be banking on Zatanna being a breakout character in this corner of the DC Extended Universe, and while it would be a shame for her to be relegated solely to a streaming service, there's still room for her to shine (this is a character the studio could easily build an entire franchise around).
3. Reverse-Flash
It's beginning to look like The Flash will make use of an alternate Barry Allen as its lead villain, a bizarre decision when Reverse-Flash is right there and the perfect big bad for the Scarlet Speedster.
Hailing from far into the future, Eobard Thawne was a massive Flash fanboy who descended into villainy after becoming obsessed with his idol. Meeting him didn't live up to his expectations, though, and he set out on a mission to wipe the Fastest Man Alive from the timeline.
That involved going back and killing Barry's mother, an event that actually led to the creation of the Flash. There are ways this concept can be revisited down the line, of course, and that evil Barry could even become Reverse-Flash; however, we'd be much happier seeing Eobard in action (and definitely wouldn't have an issue with Jessica Chastain playing a gender-swapped version).
2. Red Hood
Had Ben Affleck not decided to hang up his cape and cowl, it might have been a lot easier to bring Jason Todd into the DC Extended Universe, especially after that suit tease in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (Zack Snyder has said the Robin costume belonged to Dick Grayson, but that still doesn't really make much sense if we're being totally honest).
Jason was murdered by The Joker, but after being resurrected by Talia al Ghul, he returned years later to seek his revenge both on the Clown Prince of Crime and the father he felt had failed him: Batman.
Taking on the mantle of the Red Hood, he served as a Punisher-like vigilante in Gotham City, and frequently clashed with his former mentor. Later, Jason would become an anti-hero, and as well as the perfect opponent for the Dark Knight, he's also more than capable of holding his own in a standalone franchise. Once again, this is a character who deserves better than Titans.
1. John Stewart
A Green Lantern TV series is coming to HBO Max, but that's set to focus on Guy Gardner, Simon Baz, and Jessica Cruz. Hal Jordan is supposed to return to the big screen alongside John Stewart in Green Lantern Corps, but there's been no movement on that for a while now, unfortunately.
This fan-favourite character was the Green Lantern in the beloved Justice League Unlimited animated series, and John is a former architect, social activist, and U.S. Marine sniper. He's also one of the bravest heroes in the entire DC Universe, a character arguably even more interesting than Hal.
There's really no excuse for John Stewart not to receive the spotlight at some point in the next few years. The franchise has been on hold for such a long time, though, so the hope is Warner Bros. can finally get its act together and give Hal, John, Kyle Rayner, Sinestro, and more a chance to shine.