Update:
On May 18, 2022, it was officially confirmed that the Wonder Twins Movie has indeed been cancelled. Variety reports that “the planned Wonder Twins live-action movie at HBO Max is no longer going forward”. It also looks like the new Warner Bros Discovery CEO is looking to add more Harry Potter content as he will be meeting with JK Rowling in the coming weeks about creating new content in the universe.
Original post:
Warner Bros Discovery made headlines in April when it announced it was shutting down CNN+ weeks after it launched, but are more big changes for the company? If recent rumors are true then yes. It sounds like there will be changes for multiple companies under the Warner Bros Discovery banner, including DC, Rocksteady, and the CW.
CW
In January, months before the Warner Bros Discovery merger was complete, it was announced that ViacomCBS and WarnerMedia were looking to sell the channel. The two companies combined their channels of WB and UPN back in 2006, but has never been able to turn a profit. Most of the revenue that came from the channel was from international and streaming, so to focus on HBO Max would be a smart move on their part.
DC TV
Leakers are reporting that a lot of DC projects in development that aren’t related to a new DCEU that is being built or the Matt Reeves Batman series will be cancelled. Earlier this week the CW cancelled Batwoman and Legends of Tomorrow. If the rumors are true, then Superman and Lois could be in its last season. Since it’s renewal, the Flash has been rumored to be returning for one final season as well. As for Stargirl, there’s been nothing officially announced, but with the CW being up for sale, the show could also be heading into it’s last season.
https://twitter.com/LookUponTheSta/status/1520859689638154245
DC Movies
According to That Hashtag Show, the Wonder Twins movie has officially been cancelled. It was set to start production in July. There are still plenty of other DC shows coming out, including the Flash, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, Wonder Woman 3, Batgirl, and more. The Flash could be the key for the new universe, with the superhero having the ability to cross universes and time travel. In fact the movie Flash, Ezra Miller, has already met the CW’s Flash, Grant Guston in the Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover in 2020. The movie is already confirmed to have Val Kilmer and Ben Affleck as two different versions of Batman, so it is possible that they use the movie to course correct their missteps with the multiverse and make it a single universe.
In 2020, the CW did something similar with their Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover where the conclusion saw the creation of a new earth. The new earth saw Black Lightning and Supergirl join the same universe as the Flash, Arrow, and Legends of Tomorrow. If they do it again, could we see the Arrowverse merge with another universe? Ezra Miller has a hard time staying out of trouble it seems and fans have been vocal about Grant Guston taking over. It would be pretty great to hear Grant’s Flash talk about Aquaman having sex with fish.
Interactive Content
According to Comicbook.com, Warner Bros Discovery is trying to sell off its gaming studios. They’ve had some big successes in the past with the Batman Arkham Series and the Lego video games. It’s unclear if they would sell the IPs with the studios, so that Rocksteady would continue to make Arkham games, TT Games could continue the Lego games, etc or if the licenses would be separate. Microsoft, Sony, Electronic Arts, Take-Two and more are interested in acquiring the studios. It would be interesting to see if Microsoft gets it, they are currently in the process of acquiring Activision, with the deal expected to close in 2023. Last year, they acquired Bethesda Studios and are becoming a powerhouse for first party studios.
Other Content
Now this is purely me speculating, but with CW looking to be sold off, CNN+ shutting down, and all the other potential changes coming, I don’t see them holding on to online media companies. Even though RWBY and Red Vs Blue are still popular, it was reported last year that AT&T was trying to sell Rooster Teeth since it’s revenue dropped nearly $20 million in 2019. It’s entirely possible that Warner Bros Discovery leaves Rooster Teeth and all its other online media companies alone, but it sounds like they want to do a complete restructuring in nearly every department. Before the merger, AT&T sold Crunchyroll to Sony, it’s possible that they sell off Rooster Teeth to another company.
In any case Warner Bros Discovery seems like in 2023 it will look a lot different than it did in the beginning of 2022. Are you excited for the potential DC changes? Are you sad that the Wonder Twins movie was cancelled? Do you think this is the end of the Arrowverse? Let me know in the comments.
