SGT. ROCK May Have Been Scrapped Due To Doubts About Director's Abilities; Could It Shoot Next Year Instead?

SGT. ROCK May Have Been Scrapped Due To Doubts About Director's Abilities; Could It Shoot Next Year Instead?

Following the news that DC Studios has halted production on Sgt. Rock, we have some additional updates about what went wrong with the upcoming DCU movie. However, it may begin production next year instead.

By JoshWilding - May 01, 2025 04:05 AM EST
Filed Under: Sgt. Rock

Yesterday, we learned that DC Studios has halted production on Sgt. Rock. The movie, written by Justin Kuritzkes and directed by Luca Guadagnino, was in the middle of pre-production in the UK and had started assembling its cast. 

We now have additional updates from the trades, starting with The Hollywood Reporter. One insider tells them that "it came down to the project's scheduling needs of shooting outdoors." Deadline, meanwhile, explains, "shooting this summer was untenable, as the team would have had to rush through prep to hit the right weather conditions at the right time."

The UK weather is inconsistent at best, but it's only May, and it's not really until late October/early November that the country starts looking particularly autumnal and then wintery. With that in mind, it's hard to buy into this explanation. 

The Hollywood Reporter shares another possible explanation by revealing, "Another source raised the possibility that Guadagnino remained untested in the realm of action movies, and even though the budget was in the $70 million range, a paltry sum for comic book movies, higher-ups may have wavered in their confidence."

Making this news all the more unusual is the fact that Deadline points out, "Guadagnino was scouting locations last week and that the studio was far down the line with Alien: Romulus breakout David Jonsson to join Farrell."

Are we really supposed to believe a movie this far down the line was essentially scrapped because DC Studios was concerned it wouldn't be sunny enough? Something isn't adding up, and James Gunn has yet to weigh in on the news. 

Shifting to a 2026 shoot won't be easy; Guadagnino has several projects in the works, including American PsychoSeparate Rooms, and Lord of the Flies. If The Batman Part II happens as planned, Colin Farrell will also need to shoot that at some point next year. 

It's not all bad news, though, as according to The Wrap, Clayface is still scheduled to start shooting in October. Fingers crossed it doesn't rain. 

As a reminder, Sgt. Rock was set to pair the title character up with a female French resistance fighter to find the mystical Spear of Destiny, the spear used to stab Jesus Christ during his crucifixion, which, in lore, is said to have supernatural properties. They have to find it before the Nazis. 

Do you think DC Studios' Sgt. Rock movie will eventually become a reality? As always, let us know your thoughts in the comments section.

SGT. ROCK Character Details Revealed; Cillian Murphy, Mikey Madison, And More Were Offered Lead Roles
Related:

SGT. ROCK Character Details Revealed; Cillian Murphy, Mikey Madison, And More Were Offered Lead Roles

RUMOR: Michael Mando Confirmed To Return As Scorpion In SPIDER-MAN: BRAND NEW DAY
Recommended For You:

RUMOR: Michael Mando Confirmed To Return As Scorpion In SPIDER-MAN: BRAND NEW DAY

DISCLAIMER: As a user generated site and platform, ComicBookMovie.com is protected under the DMCA (Digital Millenium Copyright Act) and "Safe Harbor" provisions.

This post was submitted by a user who has agreed to our Terms of Service and Community Guidelines. ComicBookMovie.com will disable users who knowingly commit plagiarism, piracy, trademark or copyright infringement. Please CONTACT US for expeditious removal of copyrighted/trademarked content. CLICK HERE to learn more about our copyright and trademark policies.

Note that ComicBookMovie.com, and/or the user who contributed this post, may earn commissions or revenue through clicks or purchases made through any third-party links contained within the content above.

bkmeijer1
bkmeijer1 - 5/1/2025, 4:31 AM
Wanting to shoot in summer makes sense enough imo. I'm guessing they could shoot later in the year, but it's those conditions they don't expect the director to succeed in.

That said, it's interesting two trades come with different explanations. I only really see them as trust worthy sources, so think it's combination of explanations.
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 5/1/2025, 6:59 AM
@bkmeijer1 - plus there’s some confusion now too about the cast since others have said no one besides Farrell was cast yet while others saying Mike Faist & David Jonsson were offered the roles or had been cast aswell.

Conflicting information at times which shows that while the trades are usually reliable , even they can get it mixed up
ObserverIO
ObserverIO - 5/1/2025, 4:33 AM
They were scheduling around weather conditions in the UK? lol...
User Comment Image
tRuckRogers46A
tRuckRogers46A - 5/1/2025, 4:43 AM
The UK can have four seasons in one day and frequently does.
McMurdo
McMurdo - 5/1/2025, 11:42 AM
@tRuckRogers46A - amazing profile pic bud lol
tRuckRogers46A
tRuckRogers46A - 5/1/2025, 4:46 AM
It's a very pleasant 22°C at the moment, with rains forecast for next week.
Franshu
Franshu - 5/1/2025, 5:44 AM
Doubts about GUADAGNINO'S abilities as a director of all things??? I'm starting to have doubts about the producers' abilities to make their own brains function properly, honestly.
roboticJohnson
roboticJohnson - 5/1/2025, 8:19 AM
@Franshu - tbf it says they had doubts about him as an action movie director, which kinda makes sense since he has never directed an action movie. It'd be like having ari aster direct a romantic comedy, it's not exactly his gente so people would have doubts
McMurdo
McMurdo - 5/1/2025, 11:43 AM
@roboticJohnson - regardless I think it's disappointing considering how much Gunn and Safran have discussed hiring creatives and letting them bring their vision to the screen.
roboticJohnson
roboticJohnson - 5/2/2025, 3:04 AM
@McMurdo - yeah, but the way it is reported, it makes me think the ones worried are the higher ups at wb, not gunn and safran (though there's nothing stating that exactly, just going on a hunch since they are the ones who hired him)
Pictilli
Pictilli - 5/1/2025, 5:46 AM
No thank you
BigPhilbowski
BigPhilbowski - 5/1/2025, 6:03 AM
Oh I didn't know it was focusing the spear of destiny. Damn, that could have been their way of bringing Constantine into the DCU too. Now I'm more interested in this than I was before it was cancelled
TheVisionary25
TheVisionary25 - 5/1/2025, 6:58 AM
Honestly , I buy the location scheduling explanation moreso then higher ups all of a sudden having wavering faith in Guadagnino’s abilities since his track record speaks for itself (even if he is untested in this genre)…

If they do assess the film again for a summer 2026 shoot then it may or may not be with him & Farrell due to their own dates & projects so if that’s the case , I hope it’s the former then the latter .
dragon316
dragon316 - 5/1/2025, 7:41 AM
I’ll pass not something want to see in theaters it’s more stay home movie
bobevanz
bobevanz - 5/1/2025, 8:19 AM
Luca is awesome, this just wasn't meant to be. No loss on his behalf
RealTurner
RealTurner - 5/1/2025, 10:16 AM
I mean, when starting a universe that is meant to be a cash-cow ala Marvel, this should be so far down the list of priorities it can't be seen over the horizon. Seriously. Even if Superman somehow makes 2 billion and this shaky train actually gets underway, they need to follow it with big hits that cement the characters they want to use for the next 10+ years, not... whatever this is.

Please log in to post comments.

Don't have an account?
Please Register.

View Recorder