Warner Bros. and DC are currently in closing talks to sign up director Ava DuVernay (Selma, A Wrinkle in Time) for an upcoming movie based on DC’s The New Gods comic book series.
If, like me, you have never read these comics and have no idea who The New Gods are, the DC Comics website has a handy primer to help bring you up to speed.
The New Gods were created in the 1970s by the legendary Jack Kirby, who both wrote and drew the initial series after he parted ways with Marvel. The characters are replacements for the mythical gods of yore, who were all killed off during Ragnarok. Their world was split into two warring planets: a lush paradise called New Genesis and a fiery hellhole called Apokolips. If Apokolips sounds familiar, that’s because it’s the origin of fearsome DC villain Darkseid, who pops up now and then to battle the Justice League.
So why Ava DuVernay? A Wrinkle in Time has been a major hit for her, and it is currently sitting at number 2 at the US Box Office at the time of writing. DC’s superhero movies have pulled in impressive figures but have, for the most part, not been generally well-received by critics – with this move, Warner Bros are clearly hoping to salvage their reputation a little bit as DuVernay has serious dramatic chops to bring to the table. There’s also the fact that the last time a DC project signed a woman to direct, we were gifted with Patty Jenkins’ phenomenal Wonder Woman, quite possibly the best DC superhero film since The Dark Knight. With all the talks of inclusion riders and a push towards greater diversity in moviemaking, signing DuVernay could seem like a smart, if cynical, publicity move, but she clearly has the proven ability to lead a project this large.
I’m very interested to see how they intend to make a property this cosmic and potentially confusing accessible to a beginner like me. It’s not impossible – I had the same confusion going into Guardians of the Galaxy, and that became one of my favourite Marvel films. It all depends on how it’s handled. And with DuVernay in the director’s chair, you can be sure it’s in safe hands.
What do you think? What’s your ideal casting for the New Gods?
Some of the coverage you find on Cultured Vultures contains affiliate links, which provide us with small commissions based on purchases made from visiting our site. We cover gaming news, movie reviews, wrestling and much more.
