If the name doesn't ring a bell with you, you can be forgiven. David Zaslav is the new head honcho over at Warner Brothers Discovery and the force behind the housecleaning I've been talking about here lately.
It seems he has a problem. Over at Marvel, there's one guy who steers the ship, Kevin Feige. The whole MCU, both movies and television are under his control and it seems that Mr. Zaslav is looking for the DC Comics equivalent with little success. He had a guy picked out but for whatever reason, he wound up turning down the job.
I've got a solution for Mr. Zaslav.
Me.
While I have only an outsider's perspective on the current state of projects at WBD, I'm confident if I can have a complete look at what's on tap that I can take the currently foundering program and get it back on track. From where I sit, about 1/3 of the "in development" projects need to go, about 1/3 need retooling and about 1/3 seem on track. Obviously I'd need a closer look to firm up those numbers.
DC Comics properties are an endless source of characters and stories to base movies and television upon. There is a built in multi-verse to play in, colourful heroes and villains to pit against one another and enough weird, quirky corners of the comic books from which to draw the unexpected. Failure shouldn't be an option. This is the house that Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman built and it should be as solid economically as any film and television enterprise on the planet.
First order of business is a Superman film that makes a billion. How this isn't already in the pipeline is a mystery to me and I'd make it top of my list. Keep the current The Batman sequel on track. Stop worrying about making an interconnected universe and tell good stories in stand alone movies and sequels. Get Wonder Woman 3 made, pronto. Plan a soft reboot of ALL properties and make Black Adam the starting point, keep the few things that are still working (Batman, Aquaman, Wonder Woman) and move the hell on from the rest. Let any interconnected universe develop organically, so that when a big crossover actually happens, the fans are ready and eager for the event.
On the television front, set an end date for Titans and Doom Patrol, say another 2 seasons each. Renew Young Justice for 2 more seasons, also with a firm end in mind. Give those three shows and Harley Quinn actual endings and stick to that commitment. Let Superman and Lois play out on HBOMax until season 5 or 6 if it's still working after the midpoint of season 3, cancel Stargirl and leave the CW era firmly in the rear view.
Unlike the movies, the television landscape lends itself to an interconnected universe, particularly if you imagine a small number of short season (6-13 episodes, each dictated by story not a quota) shows that live in a single universe. Start a NEW era on HBOMax with a Legion of Superheroes show set in the 31st century and use the first season to seed "historical" superheroes using a couple of time travel episodes to introduce new versions of more familiar Bats, Supers, Flashes, Lanterns and such as you work up the pilots for their new shows. This formula works for years into the future.
In television, two big changes to make things run smoothly past that initial stage. First, use a two then one formula. If you have a C list show or movie like Doom Patrol that will probably work but has little name recognition, don't do a single backdoor pilot but spread the introduction of the new property over two established shows in at least two episodes on each show. Seeds don't grow in unbroken soil.
Second, once you green light a show, sign the talent for at least 3 short seasons, say a minimum of 36 episodes to ensure that fans who invest their time don't feel cheated by losing a beloved show before it has found its full audience. HBOMax is a streamer, so it seems to me that the model offers that kind of flexibility. With careful casting and behind the camera talent acquisition, for every three season commitment that fails you'll see three that run 5 seasons or more.
Build an interconnected movie universe from the ground up and a television universe from the top down. Start with single character movies and move towards a big group event, start with a group on television and spread that group into a handful of interconnected shows. Assuming all goes well, you can cross pollinate the two universes when the right story presents itself.
Finally, don't be afraid of the multi-verse that DC Comics created LONG before Marvel started using the concept. Joker made a billion and doesn't really fit ANY other current DC movie or television universe and that's perfectly fine. Tell great stories, first and last. Everything else is window dressing. Marvel was able to do an Avengers movie because it had three (four if you count Ed Norton's Hulk) successful single character movies that worked as stand alone vehicles. That's the important takeaway, not the juggernaut that resulted. Build the road before you worry about getting the horse in front of the cart and if it turns out you build more than one road, that's just fine.
Give me a shot, Mr. Zaslav. I am a true fan DC Comics in all media, work (relatively) cheap and I guarantee results.
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