Widely described as part of the fall out due to Warner Brothers’ disappointment in Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, The Hollywood Reporter has announced that Jon Berg and Geoff Johns will be heading up DC Films, a shingle dedicated to the DC Expanded Universe and will be home to the remaining films in that series.
Their role in DC Films has been described as similar to the one Kevin Feige plays with Marvel Studios. The pair will over see the films, with Johns keeping an eye from a comic fans’ perspective and Berg, seen to the left, from a corporate standpoint. Berg also has good ties with Ben Affleck, giving more proof to the fact that the actor/director will be taking a more active role in shepherding the DC Films as well.
This also gives weight to the rumor that Zack Snyder, whose vision was once the template for the DCEU films, will have his voice and influence reduced as the franchises move forward.
The addition of Johns is an encouraging sign. He came into comics from the world of film (he was Richard Donner’s assistant). I really enjoy his writing while at DC, and so did Warners because they decided to promote him to management. While in his role as DC’s chief content officer, Johns helped usher in DC’s successful TV shows based on comics. If you were one of the many who wished the films could be more like the TV series, well, it looks like you might be getting your wish.
Johns will still be working at DC Comics, he is just adding this new job to his resume. Johns will also be working with Affleck on the script for his Batman film.
The article states that it was Suicide Squad that encouraged Johns to take a more hands on role in the films, as third act problems, not lack of humor or action, were the reason behind the massive reshoots on the film. This necessitated Johns becoming involved on the post production of that film in particular and the entire DCEU in general.
The piece also goes into more detail in Seth Grahame-Smith’s departure from The Flash. Apparently, the creative differences between the first-time director and the studio came about because Warners felt hesitant to trust such a major part of their future film plans to such a novice.
