Zack Snyder's 'Superman' Reboot in Crisis?

Apologies in advance for the complete and total lack of updates over the last seven days. If you know where I work, you know my life’s been crazy since Monday night. If you don’t, well, let’s just say my week has been “electrifying.” You smell what I’m cooking? Rock on.

Sports-entertainment aside, there has been a great deal of nerd news breaking online this week, including word that Warner Bros.’ faith in Superman reboot director Zack Snyder—whose previous Warner Bros. projects include the under-performing Watchmen and The Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole—has been shaken. New York Magazine’s Vulture blog reports that Snyder’s forthcoming action spectacle Sucker Punch is testing extremely poorly. One insider is quoted as saying “It was bad ; like, really bad. They’re [Warner Bros. execs] really not happy with it over there.”

This isn’t the best news for Superman fans who just recently celebrated the casting of British actor Henry Cavill as the Man of Steel. Insiders also note that the script for the unnamed reboot suffers from some devastating third-act problems, which have likely induced some studio hand-wringing as the project nears its 2013 deadline. If a Superman film isn’t in production at that point, Warner Bros. must re-license the rights to the franchise from the estates of Superman creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster.

Additionally, Vulture reports that Snyder’s 300 sequel, Xerxes, has been re-assigned to Sherlock Holmes director Guy Ritchie. Could his Superman film fall into another director’s hands if Sucker Punch doesn’t deliver a knock-out blow when it hits theaters on March 25? Stay tuned, Wortmaniacs.

In Response to the Watchmen 2 Rumor

Ugh. I really, really didn’t want to weigh in on this, but since the Internet has been buzzing over the last day or so about a rumored sequel to Watchmen, I’m compelled to comment.

Okay, so Bleeding Cool’s Rich Johnston reported on February 3 that DC Comics is considering a sequel to Watchmen, the company’s best-selling publication. As you might remember, there was some restructuring at DC last year, with president and publisher Paul Levitz being relegated to a contributing editor/consultant role as Warner Bros. brand manager Diane Nelson stepped in as president of the newly created DC Entertainment. The website notes that Levitz has been against the idea of Watchmen offshoots, sequels or prequels, and with him gone, the company is free to pursue such projects under the leadership of Dan DiDio, DC’s senior vice president and executive editor. Reportedly, Watchmen creators Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons must be offered first refusal before any additional Watchmen material can be published. But since it’s pretty much a given that Moore and Gibbons would never agree to this (especially in Moore’s case), DC is pursuing other writers and artists to continue the Watchmen story. Again, this is still a rumor at this point until we receive official confirmation from DC.

But what about another movie? Sure, Zack Snyder’s Watchmen film adaptation didn’t do so well at the box office last year, but sequels were included in the contract language during the legal battle between Twentieth Century Fox and Warner Bros. leading up to that film’s release. Thankfully, Nikke Finke at Deadline Hollywood confirmed on February 4 that a second Watchmen film won’t be happening.

“There is no truth to anything related to a movie sequel. Not a chance by a longshot,” an unnamed insider told Finke. “With regards to the comics, well, I guess anything is possible. I’ll keep my opinion to myself as to whether it's a smart idea to do so.”

Hurm. Even if we entertain the idea that there’s some truth to this rumor, and that DC is actually considering more Watchmen comic books—which is very, very unlikely—what self-respecting artist or writer would dare sign on to a Watchmen sequel? That’s career suicide. DC would never find the kind of (willing) talent this project would require, and actively pursuing such a doomed enterprise makes no sense at all.

So, Internet, let’s file this under “unsubstantiated, unlikely rumor” and move on.

Watchmen: Director’s Cut Arrives on DVD and Blu-ray

Most comic book aficionados have had July 21 marked on their calendars for some time now. If you haven’t, and if you’ve somehow missed all of the television and online banner ads, Watchmen: Director’s Cut arrives today on DVD and Blu-ray disc. This version features 24 minutes cut from the theatrical release along with a few video journals and a featurette called The Phenomenon: The Comic That Changed Comics.

However, if you’re a completionist (as most geeks surely are), there’s the Watchmen Ultimate Collector’s Edition on its way in December. That 5-disc set will include the director’s cut with the animated Tales of the Black Freighter woven in, as well as new commentary by Watchmen artist Dave Gibbons and film director Zack Snyder. It will also include Under the Hood—a faux documentary featured on the standalone Black Freighter disc already on shelves—as well as the complete Watchmen motion comic. If you haven’t purchased any of the supplemental Watchmen material released thus far, this seems to be the better deal.

While it performed poorly at the box office, I think Snyder should be commended for bringing this hard-to-film story to the big screen. It’s not perfect, but it’s a stirring deconstruction of superhero mythology that’s worth seeing whether or not you’ve read the graphic novel.

Watchmen Director’s Cut to Screen in Select Theaters

Did you love Zack Snyder’s Watchmen? If so, you’ll be pleased to learn that a director’s cut of the film will be hitting select theaters in Los Angeles, New York, Minneapolis and Dallas the weekend prior to its July 21 DVD and Blu-ray shelf date, according to the The Hollywood Reporter. The cut includes 25 minutes of unseen footage.

The weeklong theatrical Watchmen event will culminate in San Diego on July 25 with a special screening at Comic-Con International. Snyder will attend to talk about the film and answer questions from fans who may or may not be dressed as Rorschach. If you’re going as Dr. Manhattan, I think everyone—Mr. Snyder included—would appreciate it if you wore pants. In that case, accuracy be damned!

The screening will be a BD-Live session, meaning that Blu-ray owners can watch the movie at the same time as the Comic-Con crowds, listen to Snyder’s commentary and even submit questions. The screening will be archived, so fans can revisit it anytime they want.

“Comic-Con, it isn’t just comic book fanatics, it's cinephiles as well,” said Snyder at a June 24 Warner Bros. press event. “It'll be cool to discuss what people are thinking.”

The Hollywood Reporter notes that a theatrical re-release of this film is unusual, as the big-budget comic book adaptation is generally considered a financial disappointment. Watchmen earned just $107.5 million domestically.

However, Snyder has no regrets. “I’m proud of this movie,” he said. “It does everything I wanted it to.”

Warner Bros. and Fox Reach Watchmen Settlement

While a legal dispute between Warner Bros. and Fox threatened the theatrical release of the film adaptation of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ Watchmen, both studios have agreed to an out-of-court settlement requesting that the case be dismissed, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The agreement is said to entail a cash payment to Fox and awarding the studio a percentage of the film’s box office take.
Fox sued Warners in February of last year, claiming copyright infringement based on an earlier agreement the studio had made with producer Larry Gordon. On December 24, Judge Gary Feess ruled that Gordon did not secure rights to the film from Fox before selling it to Warners.

This ruling cast an ominous cloud over the $130 million project, with many fans fearing that the film would not hit theaters on its March 6, 2009 release date or, in a worst-case scenario, may never see the light of day. Thankfully, a joint statement released by both studios confirms that we’ll be watching the Watchmen on time.

"Warner Bros. and Fox, like all Watchmen fans, look forward with great anticipation to this film's March 6 release in theaters,” the statement read.

In the word(s) of Rorschach, “Hurm.” That means I’m excited.

Watchmen Movie Faces Legal Trouble

A Los Angeles judge ruled on December 24 that 20th Century Fox owns the distribution rights to Warner Bros.' adaptation of acclaimed graphic novel Watchmen, which could put the film’s March 6, 2009 release date in jeopardy, Variety reports.

“Fox owns a copyright interest consisting of, at the very least, the right to distribute the Watchmen motion picture,” the ruling said.

According to the article, Fox filed a suit against Warner Bros. in February claiming that they retain the rights to distribute the film under a 1994 turnaround agreement, having originally acquired the rights to Watchmen in the late 1980s. Warner Bros., however, has denied claims that Fox has any remaining stake in the film.

Judge Gary Allen Feess said he would elaborate on this ruling in the near future, and has set a January 20 trial date for Fox’s suit.

I’m no legal expert, but this all seems to indicate that the Watchmen film—directed by Zack Snyder—may run into some major problems leading up to its release. In a worst-case scenario, the film could be shelved until the suit reaches some sort of resolution. From what we’ve seen so far, Snyder looks to have done justice to Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ masterpiece, which was long thought to be unfilmable due to its epic scope and bleak, deconstructionist themes. It would be a shame if Watchmen's arduous journey to the silver screen is halted by legal complications this close to its release date.