DC cinematic universe

One of the hot rumors surrounding Ben Affleck’s standalone Batman movie was that it would serve as a kind of loose adaptation of Grant Morrison’s Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth, a haunting graphic novel that features Batman breaking up a riot at Gotham’s notorious insane asylum. Morrison’s comic is a darkly beautiful addition to the Batman mythology and seems to be perfectly in line with the kind of superhero stories Warner Bros. is looking for: for mature audiences and crammed to the gills with as many recognizable faces as possible.

Warner Bros. has made plenty of decisions with its DC Cinematic Universe that don’t sit quite right with fans, but credit where credit is due, the casting of J.K. Simmons as Commissioner Gordon is not one of them. Simmons  —  now available in a bulked up version 2.0  —  is one of our generation’s great character actors, the rare talent who can switch from utterly terrifying to kindly paternal in the blink of an eye. Since Batman looks to Gordon as both a hard-boiled police officer and a surrogate father figure, Simmons is the perfect addition to both the standalone Batman movie and the Justice League film.

Margot Robbie is returning for Warner Bros.’ Harley Quinn spinoff, but this time she’ll be in front of and behind the camera.

One of the big questions surrounding that standalone Ben Affleck Batman movie is whether they will bring a version of Robin into the fold. Thanks to Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, we know that the character of Robin exists in the DC Cinematic Universe, but the level of violence in that film seemed at odds with the more lighthearted camaraderie that comes with an adolescent sidekick. Then again, a recent interview with DC Films’ Geoff Johns described Batman as a less grim figure going forward. Could Robin play a key role in making DC’s Batman more of a superhero and less of a vigilante in a cape?

After Guillermo del Toro dropped out of the Dark Universe adaptation for DC and Warner Bros., it became yet another in a growing list of potentially cool movies that were never made and the future of the project was uncertain. Now it seems that Dark Universe has been resurrected, with Edge of Tomorrow director Doug Liman replacing del Toro, who will remain involved as producer and screenwriter.

It feels a little wrong to just keep talking about upcoming Dwayne Johnson movies as if he isn’t at war with Vin Diesel over the future of the Fast and the Furious franchise. What if they never reconcile? What if this is the beef that finally tears the Toretto family apart? Then again, I’d like to think that neither Johnson nor Diesel would want us to put our lives on hold while we’re worrying about them. Life must go on, you know?

Suicide Squad has only been in theaters for a week, but it’s already become a flashpoint for fan discussion. (And yes, that was a DC pun, thank you very much.) Does the movie’s plot make sense? Does it matter? How much of David Ayer’s original vision wound up in the theatrical cut? And maybe the most contentious debate of all: Is the movie better than Warner Bros.’ previous entry in the DC Extended Universe, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice?

This looks like a job for Superman. Too bad he’s dead.

The following post contains SPOILERS — both real and hilariously fake ones that got shared online even though they were not true — for Suicide Squad.

What the heck went wrong with Suicide Squad? It’s a question that will be plaguing critics for a while.