Variety is the spice of life, as the old saying goes, but it’s also the lifeblood fueling Warner’s DC Extended Universe.
At least, that’s according to writer-director Patty Jenkins. Currently doing press rounds to promote Wonder Woman‘s Blu-ray release, the filmmaker spoke to Toronto Sun about her lauded Diana Prince solo movie and the overarching DCEU, which is about to launch its fifth mainline entry in the form of Zack Snyder/Joss Whedon’s Justice League ensemble piece.
However, having signed a record-setting deal to helm the so-far untitled Wonder Woman sequel, it’s clear Jenkins will have a fairly sizeable role in determining the future of Warner’s shared franchise beyond JL, and here, the director drew attention to the “great filmmakers” on board.
This, coupled with the sheer variety of costumed crusaders at their disposal, broadens the canvas for Warner’s filmmakers to create “wholly original and unique” comic book movies. It also aligns with Chris McKay’s comments about the studio doubling down on a “director-driven” approach to its prized asset.
Per Toronto Sun:
There are a lot of great filmmakers around the DC universe and there are a lot of great characters. My favourite thing about the DC universe is some of these characters have been the greatest, most original superheroes for decades. I think there’s just exciting things to be done with them ahead and lots of different people that I’m excited about seeing. All of us are very different and we’re all going to do different things. So I can’t wait to see the variety, personally.
And few would argue with Jenkins’ point. As things stand, Warner has appointed James Wan (Aquaman), Chris McKay (Nightwing), Matt Reeves (The Batman) David Sandberg (Shazam!), and, more recently, Gavin O’Connor for the embryonic Suicide Squad 2.
Wonder Woman is available on Blu-ray and DVD as of today, September 19th, and it heralds a ton of extras and special features for the Patty Jenkins-directed epic. Buoyed by the film’s landmark success at the worldwide box office ($816 million), the Powers That Be have gone ahead and slated the untitled sequel for a release on December 13th, 2019. Jenkins is back in the director’s chair, and will be working from a script co-written by The Expendables scribe, Dave Callaham.