The DC franchise is beginning yet another new era with the arrival of James Gunn and Peter Safran as the co-leads of DC Studios, a separate entity within Warner Bros. that was created in an attempt to mimic Disney and Marvel Studios’ creative structure in order to have the same sort of success as the MCU.
A new era appears to be desperately needed, with reviews continuing to lament the weak stories and the attempts to make the franchise feel like the MCU as unoriginal and not playing to the strengths of DC. The box office has also been seriously affected as well, with movie after movie failing to make a profit. The latest of these stumbles was Shazam: Fury of the Gods, which had a higher budget than the first film but made less in its opening weekend than its predecessor, a fact that shows just how much interest has dropped in the DC franchise. There’s also Black Adam, which once again failed to make a profit and appears to be the catalyst for much of the changes at DC (a fact that is contrary to The Rock’s claims that his film would change the hierarchy of the franchise forever).
Because of these developments, many are questioning how well the DC franchise will do financially going forward, particuarly Blue Beetle, a new film about a relatively unknown hero that's set to release later this year. It’s certainly a valid question, and one that is bound to be debated endlessly until everything gets back on track once again. However, there is some hope for the longevity of the franchise moving forward, and for Blue Beetle, particularly with James Gunn’s new creative vision in place and his enthusiasm for the project.
Black Adam is arguably the root cause of much of these questions surrounding the financial stability of the franchise. Other films, such as Birds of Prey and Justice League, had underperformed at the box office but the potential for DC remained. However, Black Adam, and the subsequent drama that ensued surrounding its box office intake and the making of the film behind the scenes, has seriously impacted proceedings moving forward.
Black Adam earned much less than analysts predicted it would worldwide, a total that was far below what The Rock and co. had hoped for and a massive disappointment given that the film was in development for so many years (and the star’s passion for the role). The Rock making moves behind the scenes to include Henry Cavill’s Superman as a means to boost box office success also didn’t go down to well as he appeared to ruffle some feathers within the studio. There’s also the fact that Cavill’s return did little to save Black Adam’s prospects, proving that not even the Man of Steel could rescue this sinking ship.
That’s exactly where the question as to whether or not the entire DC franchise is a sinking ship going forward comes from. Audiences seemingly weren’t interested in Henry Cavill’s return as Superman, despite the social media buzz from certain corners of the fandom, which is in itself a startling fact given that the Kryptonian is DC’s most popular hero alongside Batman. These questions only got louder after the financial performance of Shazam: Fury of the Gods, which seemed to lack any and all excitement that the first one had from fans and, at this point, appears extremely unlikely to receive a third movie.
Despite these concerns, DC fans should have hope that this franchise can get back on track soon. A regime change means a new creative direction for the studio, something that is desperately needed after a startling lack of cohesion or identity in almost every DC project of the last few years (apart from the standalone stories like The Batman and Joker). James Gunn has a good track record in superhero movies and made a well received film in 2021’s The Suicide Squad, and his experience in the more successful and more popular MCU is valuable. Gunn has also said a lot of the right things since his arrival, stating that he wants to unify the DC franchise in a way that tells good stories while focusing on characters and their development first and foremost.
Getting back on track could begin with DC's next two films: The Flash and Blue Beetle. Both are projected to have a bigger box office total than most of the recent DC projects. Gunn described The Flash as one of the best superhero films ever made, and the excitement that came from the film’s first full-length trailer was palpable. The presence and return of Michael Keaton’s Batman also helps the film’s financial potential. In regards to Blue Beetle, Gunn has also showed similar passion for the film and the project’s uniqueness as one of the first superhero movies to star a Latino lead character makes it all that more appealing for audiences.
The DC franchise has been on a bumpy road for quite some time now, a fact that is hammered home by the box office numbers behind Black Adam and Shazam: Fury of the Gods. Despite these disappointments, the presence of new creative heads and more exciting upcoming projects such as Blue Beetle means that the franchise has the potential to get back on track in the near future.