Warner, DC hold superhero summit

Warner, DC hold superhero summit
Strategy in works for comic catalog
By DAVID S. COHEN

It’s not quite a gathering of the Justice League, but there’s a superhero summit under way at Warner Bros.
Warners and sibling DC Comics are holding high-level talks to hammer out a master strategy for their stable of superheroes.

Warners has never had such a strategy, and there have long been complaints the studio has been slow to exploit a potential treasure trove of franchises. And while the studio is basking in critical love for “The Dark Knight,” it has watched studio rivals rake in big bucks from Marvel Comics characters, and Marvel itself get into the tentpole business.

While it’s assumed there will be another Batman pic, there’s been no formal announcement. And Warners has no movies based on the classic DC universe to preview at this year’s Comic-Con.

Warner has scripts it likes for “Justice League: Mortal,” which teams up classic DC characters, and “Green Lantern.” “Justice League” was close to getting a greenlight until the writers strike hit, and “Green Lantern” has gained heat lately.

All plans, though, depend on the course the studio charts in its summit.

The studio is keeping details of its meetings under wraps, but issued a statement saying, in part, “We’re constantly looking at how best to exploit the DC Comics characters and properties.”

But Warner and DC have often appeared lethargic in getting comic properties developed into films, with only Batman and Superman established in movies. In fact, Warners watchers may feel a certain deja vu, though, with all this talk of giving DC more attention.

Five years ago, WB was getting ready to hire someone to kickstart its development on the DC characters (Variety, July 14-20, 2003). WB said then that it was aware it could lose an entire generation of fans if it didn’t get its characters into the movies. “We’re not going to let that happen,” said a senior VP.

Warners has long been the only studio home for DC heroes. It must pass on any DC character before it can be licensed to another studio, and Warner almost never passes. It keeps the characters in development. (One exception: Summit recently acquired rights to DC/Wildstorm’s “Red” — not one of the classic titles fans have been clamoring for.)

Many recall the painful development attempts to revive the Superman franchise, as handfuls of scribes, directors and stars came and went. Tim Burton and Nicolas Cage famously had pricey pay-or-play deals that the studio had to cover when “Superman Lives” bit the dust.

To be fair, Warners has not ignored its DC legacy: Besides “The Dark Knight,” “300” helmer Zack Snyder’s adaptation of DC’s seminal “Watchmen” is slated for winter release. And DC characters have been more successful than Marvel’s in TV, most recently with “Smallville.”

Yet this year, Warner Bros. has been unable to point to anyone at the studio with responsibility for overseeing the DC characters. While DC’s senior VP of creative affairs Gregory Noveck pegs Warners toppers Jeff Robinov and Alan Horn as “the ultimate decisionmakers,” they’re the decisionmakers for pretty much everything at the studio, and neither is in a position to dive into active development of the DC universe.

Besides “Green Lantern,” which Greg Berlanti is set to write and direct, DC characters that are know

http://www.variety.com/article/VR111...goryid=13&cs=1

WB mulls redraw of DC Comics plan

WB mulls redraw of DC Comics plan
Big shake-up could be in the works
By Borys Kit

July 11, 2008, 12:00 AM ET
A big shake-up could be in the works at Warner Bros. for its DC Comics film properties.

In the course of the past couple of weeks, Warner Bros. Pictures Group president Jeff Robinov and Warner Bros. Pictures president Kevin McCormick have been meeting with DC Comics executives as well some of DC's top talents, like Jim Lee, to discuss a new direction for film adaptations.

Up until now, the comic properties had been undergoing a hodge-podge development process. With the recent success of Marvel Studios' "Iron Man" and "The Incredible Hulk" and that company's plan to develop its many characters linked strategically together, Warners has been forced to take a close second look at its sister company.

With "The Dark Knight" near its release date, a new agenda is being set, one that not only sees the DC characters emerge with a higher priority but also one that would see them developed with an overarching goal in mind.

Although plans are in motion, any firm deals or announcements are weeks away.

Warners declined comment on the discussions, only stating: "While we are not going to go into the specifics of the meetings, we're constantly looking at how best to exploit the DC Comics characters and properties. DC is an incredibly valuable asset to Warner Bros. and plays an important role across the entire studio by providing development and franchise opportunities for all media, including films, television, home entertainment, animation, consumer products, video games and digital platforms."

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/...58eda691c39b90

Latest "Hulk" may not spawn a sequel

Latest "Hulk" may not spawn a sequel
Wednesday July 9 1:17 AM ET

It's a tale of two movies, with an oddly similar ending.

Five years ago, "Hulk," the first movie based on Marvel's hulking green comic book character, rang up $245 million in worldwide box office but was widely dismissed as a commercial failure.

The second attempt, "The Incredible Hulk," amped up the fun factor and dialed down the brooding of director Ang Lee's original but is unlikely to gross significantly higher than its predecessor and might not spawn a sequel. And it's been dubbed a success.


What gives?

"We're happy with the financial results, even if they (only) reach the first film's levels," a Marvel insider insisted. "Having a sequel is not the definition of success."

That's fortunate, as even outpacing the first film's worldwide haul by 10% looks optimistic at this point, and that's not likely to stoke enthusiasm for a franchise follow-up anytime soon.

After four weekends, the Louis Leterrier-directed "The Incredible Hulk" has earned $125 million, the same as what "Hulk" had pulled in at the same time in its run. "Hulk" finished with $132 million, and its successor is unlikely to do much better.

Its foreign rollout is still in progress, with comics-friendly Japan among the territories the remake has yet to bow, but it appears likely that the Edward Norton starrer will struggle to reach $130 million internationally. The first film tallied $113.2 million overseas.

Action films tend to outperform internationally, though comic book adaptations can be a different matter if the fan base skews American. Marvel touts the Hulk comic franchise as its second most popular worldwide, after Spider-Man.

"All we can say as a studio is that we are very pleased with the result," Universal domestic distribution president Nikki Rocco said.

Despite the similarity of the Hulk films' theatrical runs, industryites suggest the lighter tone of the second film makes it more the vehicle to generate sequels, and some suggest the remake will prove a more lucrative DVD title than the Eric Bana-starring original. On the other hand, production costs and marketing expenses were steeper the second time around, totaling more than $200 million. The first film cost about $150 million to make.

Still, the dark original so turned off the Hulk character's fanboy base as to require a complete reworking of its big-screen rendering before a film franchise could be christened.

But Marvel has yet to greenlight a Hulk sequel. So other observers suggest the films' most important distinction lies simply in how well market expectations were managed in advance of their respective bows.

"Hollywood is always about perception," said David Davis, managing partner and entertainment analyst at Arpeggio Partners in Los Angeles. "The first Hulk (movie) had such high expectations after the NBC-Universal merger and was supposed to be critical-favorite Ang Lee's breakout commercial blockbuster.

"Then with the new Hulk film, Marvel was able to underplay the importance of the success after the great success of 'Iron Man' this summer," Davis said. "So the new one overdelivered, relative to its underpromise."

The Marvel-produced, Paramount-distributed "Iron Man" has fetched more than $563 million at the worldwide box office.


http://movies.yahoo.com/mv/news/va/2...559147200.html