Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav has become one of the most controversial figures in Hollywood today, though he does seem to be making the DCU a priority. For DC Comics fans, that's long overdue, and while Batgirl was an early victim of his regime, things are starting to look up with James Gunn and Peter Safran in charge of DC Studios.
Talking during an earnings call yesterday evening, Zaslav assured investors that the DCU now has a bright future thanks to the two men tasked with overhauling it.
"I've spent a lot of time over the past few months with James and Peter, talking about our strategy and long-term plans for the future of DC, across TV, animation, and film," he teased. "They have a powerful vision and blueprint that will drive a more unified creative approach that will allow us to enable to the full value of one of the world’s most iconic franchises."
"They are hard at work right now," Zaslav added, before heaping praise upon the Guardians of the Galaxy and The Suicide Squad director. "James is a brilliant storyteller who has the distinction of being the first and only filmmaker to direct a movie for both Marvel and DC."
As for Safran, the CEO noted that he's, "a prolific producer whose credits include DC’s highest-grossing movie Aquaman as well as the entire Conjuring universe, the most successful horror franchise of all time. We could not be more thrilled to have them join our leadership team and I’m excited for what is to come."
Gunn and Safran don't have an easy journey ahead of them, as they've essentially been tasked with righting the course of a sinking ship.
We can't help but think they'd be better off starting from scratch and rebooting the whole thing, but it's become clear that isn't the plan. It would mean losing a lot of great talent, of course, so we can't blame Gunn, Safran, and Warner Bros. for wanting to keep hold of actors like Henry Cavill, Gal Gadot, and Dwayne Johnson.
Are you feeling optimistic about the DCU's future under this new leadership?