NEWS; Gunning down the Snyderverse UPDATE Cavill gets the Kryptonite handshake!

[Grendel_Khan]

It sounds like Dwayne Johnson is optimistic/hopeful about Black Adam making appearances in future DC movies, and Gunn would be a good person to take advantage of Johnson's talents beyond looking intense and imposing, so maybe there's some hope there.

Yeah, I mean, whatever other flaws Black Adam had (boring needle drops, an unstoppable protagonist, weird squandering of Hawkman, etc.) it took all of Johnson's considerable charms and buried them behind a glower. His body was a great practical effect, but that's all he had to work with.

 

[Umbran]

In a general sense Gunn has always done basically the same thing his whole career—edgy action comedy—so saying he's "one note these days" seems like a misread to me.

I mean, if you think he's one note in general, I'm not going to argue with you, as it only supports my overall point.

But to clarify - I don't claim to be a Gunn-scholar, so I spoke to his recent work, which is what I'm familiar with. Other than Brightburn (for which he was producer, not director, so we don't know how much the tone of the work is him) his recent work has largely been one note. If someone wants to offer up some older work that speaks to his breadth, we can entertain that discussion.

But he's also never had this sort of position, so judging him as a producer and studio co-head based on his track record as a writer and director seems a little odd to me.

I mean, sure, keep digging the hole deeper for him. He's never had this sort of position.... so he has no relevant experience? That's harsher than I wanted to get.

However, imo his stuff isn't as one-note as you're saying. There are shades and differences in there. Peacemaker is a pretty big departure from Guardians of the Galaxy—way more cynical about power, but also a lot more vicious in its humor and violence. And I'd argue that he knows how to do action, and more importantly action with stakes. To me, that's what's missing from nearly all superhero movies. Action without stakes is just more hazy CGI splatter.

I don't get any more sense of stakes from his work than most other superhero movies out there. Indeed, the cynical and comedic approach he takes tends, to me, to undercut stakes, rather than establish them.

 

[Grendel_Khan]

I mean, sure, keep digging the hole deeper for him. He's never had this sort of position.... so he has no relevant experience? That's harsher than I wanted to get.

See my response above to Ryujin about Kevin Feige. Feige was basically a producer of some well-performing superhero movies and then a slew of terrible ones before he made the MCU into a thing. You gotta do something before being handed the reigns to an entire portfolio of IP. And at least he knows how to make a movie, and not just provide notes.

I don't get any more sense of stakes from his work than most other superhero movies out there. Indeed, the cynical and comedic approach he takes tends, to me, to undercut stakes, rather than establish them.

Welp, then we know where you stand, and there's no real point talking any further about it. If you think he can't do stakes, then nothing Gunn does will be of any value to the DC universe anyway.

 

[Tonguez]

It sounds like Dwayne Johnson is optimistic/hopeful about Black Adam making appearances in future DC movies, and Gunn would be a good person to take advantage of Johnson's talents beyond looking intense and imposing, so maybe there's some hope there.

Yeah Dwaynes 50 now, while Black Adam may come back in future, Dwayne might not be the one to portray him in the future. Bautista at 54 has indicated that he’s ready to retire from MCU and I dont see Gunn making another Black Adam vehicle in the next 5 years (I could be wrong)

...did you watch Peacemaker? About as hard-R as it gets, and that series is arguably what landed him this new role.

I feel like if we're going to weigh in on this stuff, it's helpful to know the stuff we're opining about.

um yes? My point is just because you include swear words and excessive blood splatter in what is otherwise action comedy wont be enough to differentiate the DC movies from MCU movies - it just makes it another movie with corny jokes and hazy cgi splatter.

but yeah maybe Gunn and Sanfran will work as Producers and will deliver a plan that does the DC characters Justice

 

[Kaodi]

I expect that a DCEgUnniverse might have a strong emphasis on music and score. I am less sure about The Suicide Squad in this regard but GotG and Peacemaker were both very strong in this regard.

It could be interesting too if Gunn's style set the tone for the universe and villains in a way that the heroes are explicitly supposed to fight against. Maybe it could work if approached the project as if he we the bad guy so to speak.

Also: Krypton may not have been the greatest series but I did like Adam Strange in that so maybe we could see him or a similar Booster Gold in the DCEU.

 

[Shades of Eternity]

Just don't mess with Zachari Levi as the Big Red Cheese.

He is awesome and I want him to start doing crossovers with other dc superheroes.

 

[Ryujin]

I expect that a DCEgUnniverse might have a strong emphasis on music and score. I am less sure about The Suicide Squad in this regard but GotG and Peacemaker were both very strong in this regard.

It could be interesting too if Gunn's style set the tone for the universe and villains in a way that the heroes are explicitly supposed to fight against. Maybe it could work if approached the project as if he we the bad guy so to speak.

Picturing '90s action movies in which the villain provides the charisma and comedy, to the hero's straight man. As in "Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves" how I found Costner's Robin to be ultimately forgettable, but I couldn't take my eyes off Rickman's performance. It's one of the things that I loved about Ledger's Joker, as another example.

 

[Tonguez]

Picturing '90s action movies in which the villain provides the charisma and comedy, to the hero's straight man. As in "Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves" how I found Costner's Robin to be ultimately forgettable, but I couldn't take my eyes off Rickman's performance. It's one of the things that I loved about Ledger's Joker, as another example.

Oh a villain universe with heroes as antagonist could be an interesting approach to it…hmmm

 

[Umbran]

If you think he can't do stakes

Well, that isn't what I said. I said that he does stakes about as well others in the genre. Not that he cannot do stakes, but that he doesn't stand out at them, either.

... then nothing Gunn does will be of any value to the DC universe anyway.

I don't think that actually follows, because his new role isn't about making folks feel the stakes in individual films.

His new purview is about overall theme and strategy choices, and I don't think his past work demonstrates appropriate breadth in that regard. Doesn't mean he can't do it, but isn't a signifier that he can, either.

 

[Umbran]

Oh a villain universe with heroes as antagonist could be an interesting approach to it…hmmm

Well, in that film, Rickman wasn't the protagonist - he was just stunningly good at chewing the scenery in an entertaining fashion.

Heroes as antagonists would be up his cynical alley, I guess. But I don't know if a universe of that will be palatable for a decade or more.