Yesterday, word got out that Justice League is undergoing extensive retooling, the same kind of thing we saw with Suicide Squad. Later that day, The Wrap ran a denial from Warner Brothers, quoting a(nother anonymous) source: “There has been no additional photography to date on Justice League, we have planned and will shoot additional pickups early summer.” So, nothing to see here, everything’s fine, move along.
But it’s not like they’d admit otherwise—Disney has never admitted to how much of The Force Awakens they reshot, even though you can tell from the trailers it must have been not insignificant. In fact, they went to great trouble and have continued to hold a tough line on not admitting to specifics on what and how much got redone. Given the beleaguered state of DC Films, it’s not like anyone would be super into acknowledging they’re in the swamp with yet another one of those movies. Not to mention the money angle—Warners has undergone cost-cutting measures, and burning through tens of millions more on an already wildly expensive superhero movie will only lead to more Gracie Laws (and investor ire).
Maybe the most interesting thing here, though, is the source of the two reports. The Splash Report broke the reshoot story—it’s run by Kellvin Chavez, who used to run Latino Review, a notorious scoop site. The Wrap’s contradiction comes from Umberto Gonzalez, who was LR’s most prolific scooper. So basically, this Justice League story pits two of the most seasoned scoop hounds against one another. Only one of them can be right, but which one?
Well, let’s examine the evidence. There’s a sharp tonal shift from the Comic-Con trailer released last year and the “official” trailer that came out in March. In hindsight, one of the earliest signs of trouble with Suicide Squad was the divergent tones between the first set of trailers. Inconsistent trailers means no one knows what the f*ck they’re trying to sell, which usually means the movie itself is all over the map. It’s not damning, in and of itself, but it’s not the best sign, either.
Another consideration is Aquaman, which has been pushed back five months, from July to December 2018. Splash Report lays the delay at the feet of Justice League, for pulling Momoa away from Aquaman’s set. And that does make some sense—Aquaman is by far the smoothest, quietest production DC has run yet, so why does it need five extra months in its schedule? But it could just be a simple studio shift—Avatar 2 bailed, which leaves that sweet holiday spot wide open, and Warners could be taking advantage. So the Aquaman release date change is inconclusive.
And then there’s Diane Lane, who is already sh*tting on Justice League:
“No and no.” Short but sweet, and Lane obviously doesn’t care whether or not she gets invited back for Man of Steel 2. And it also makes me think back on Ben Affleck’s Batman waffling. The Batman issues scream story problems, which lines up with not knowing what the f*ck kind of Batman you’re going to have coming out of Justice League.
There’s just so much in flux at DC Films, with movies going on and off the schedule, starting over with new directors and writers, and underlying it all is that Justice League just plain doesn’t look good. But does it add up to Justice League being in trouble? Let’s put it this way—I’m disinclined to believe arsonists when they tell me there’s no fire.
