There are a lot of moving parts in the DC Universe. After the success of Superman, James Gunn’s new franchise will turn its attention to the Girl of Steel with Supergirl, which will follow Milly Alcock’s heroine as she travels the cosmos in search of a good time. The Kryptonian party stops after that, though, with the next film on the release slate being Clayface, a solo movie from horror experts James Watkins and Mike Flanagan. Leaning into the scarier elements of the shape-shifting villain will make the film stand out in a genre that’s dominated by action-driven projects and flesh out Batman’s corner of the universe before his arrival.
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An intended consequence of greenlighting a movie like Clayface is that other horror filmmakers will want to get in on the fun. In fact, one big name is already spilling the beans on a script they’re writing that features not only the Dark Knight but Joker and Harley Quinn as well. While it’s a bit of a tall order given the premise, Gunn and Co. can’t look a gift horse in the mouth, this time around.
Zach Cregger’s Henchman Movie Idea Is Too Good to Pass Up
Despite going up against two Disney movies at the box office in its opening weekend, Zach Cregger’s Weapons is already one of the biggest winners of the year. It was always going to be tough for Cregger to follow up on his 2022 hit Barbarian, and his next movie didn’t get off to a great start when it lost almost its entire cast due to the 2023 Hollywood labor disputes. However, Weapons is finally here, and it’s quickly being regarded as one of the best horror movies in recent years. It blends horror with humor by telling a mysterious story that features a cast of characters who can’t get out of their own way. Critics are also singing Weapons‘ praises, with Rotten Tomatoes’ Tomatometer being well over 90%, and fans aren’t that far behind, giving it a respectable 87% on the Popcornmeter.
Whatever Cregger does next will be of great interest to the moviegoing community, but it might be surprising for some to hear that he’s looking to do some franchise work. He’s already attached to direct a Resident Evil movie that will be an original story that takes place in the popular video game universe. But video games aren’t the only apple of Cregger’s eye, as he’s also working on a script for a DC movie. If it gets the go-ahead from Gunn, it would focus on a henchman in Gotham City who incapacitates Batman, putting him on a collision course with other villains, including Harley and Joker. While the idea sounds a little bit out of left field, even for Gunn’s franchise, it would be smart for the DCU to bring Cregger into the fold, especially if he’s looking to take a different approach than the previous regime’s.
The DCU Doesn’t Need Joker and Harley to Be in the Spotlight
The reason Gunn is in the spot he is now is due to the failures of the DC Extended Universe. Starting with Man of Steel, Zack Snyder and his collaborators adopted a dark approach for their franchise, which meant placing their heroes in challenging situations to test their resolve. By the time Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice was released, it was clear the direction wasn’t working, so the powers that be decided to make last-minute changes to Suicide Squad. The result was an uneven movie that burned up a lot of potential. Margot Robbie’s Harley made it out mostly unscathed, but Jared Leto’s Joker wasn’t so lucky, with him being placed on the back burner until Zack Snyder’s Justice League.
If Gunn really doesn’t want to repeat the past, he should hand Cregger the reins and let him do whatever he wants. It doesn’t matter if the Joker comes out of the movie looking like a fool because there’s a good chance that whatever else the filmmaker cooks up will be worth it. There’s even a slim chance the henchman that Cregger has in mind can become every bit the villain the Clown Prince of Crime is and face off against the Dark Knight in the future. The DCU can’t have any regrets, and if that means using Joker and Harley before it’s time, then so be it.
Weapons is in theaters.
Would you like to see Zach Cregger’s DC movie? What do you think he would do with the Joker and Harley Quinn? Let us know in the comments below!
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