Congratulations, Marvel: you now have a fully-fledged superhero competitor. Warner Bros. CEO Kevin Tsuijihara announced the studio’s plans for its DC Entertainment properties this morning, naming ten DC movies between 2016 and 2020, in addition to three Harry Potter spin-offs and three Lego movies. In August, Warners announced dates for nine untitled DC releases for those years at the same time as it moved Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice from May 2016 to March that year in order to avoid a showdown with Marvel's Captain America 3. Some of the projects had been rumored and quasi-announced (Dwayne Johnson confirmed the existence of a Shazam project when he announced that he would be playing Black Adam last month, for example), but today's announcement is the first time all 10 movies have been named. Read more 'Batman V Superman': First Official Superman Image Released Those 10 DC movies named are: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice directed by Zack Snyder (2016)
Suicide Squad directed by David Ayer (2016) Wonder Woman starring Gal Gadot (2017) Justice League Part One directed by Snyder, with Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill and Amy Adams reprising their roles (2017) The Flash starring Ezra Miller (2018) Aquaman starring Jason Momoa (2018) Justice League Part Two directed by Zack Snyder (2019) Cyborg starring Ray Fisher (2020) In a press release following Tuijhara’s announcement, Warners noted that the DC slate consisted of “at least” these 10 movies, “as well as standalone Batman and Superman films.” It's worth noting that each of the solo movies feature characters who are currently members of the comic book incarnation of the Justice League, although whether or not the same will be true in their movie incarnations remains unknown (For example, Gal Gadot isn't listed as appearing in the Justice League movie, interestingly enough, but Amy Adams' Lois Lane is). Outside of the DC properties, the studio will also further explore J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter mythology with three movies to be released in 2016, 2018 and 2020 based on her Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them novella.
The first movie, which features Rowling’s screenwriting debut, will be directed by Potter veteran David Yates. Warners’ Lego plans include three releases over the next four years, starting with the Charlie Bean-directed Ninjago in 2016, followed by The Lego Batman Movie in 2017 (as exclusively revealed by THR last week) and The Lego Movie 2 in 2018. Read more J.K. Rowling Drops Harry Potter Hints to Send Twitter Crazy 'Logan' Premiere: Hugh Jackman Thanks Fans for 17 Years as Wolverine Why 'Nightwing' Might Signal a Change in Direction for DC's Cinematic Universe Carrie Fisher's 1978 Oscar Date Recalls His Unexpected Evening With 'Star Wars' RoyaltyYou guys, have you seen The Lego Movie? Have you have you have you have you? Because if you haven't, you should totally go see it as soon as possible. Yeah I know you're busy, but what have you got going on that's more important than being completely and thoroughly entertained for 100 continuous minutes? I'm feeling evangelical about The Lego Movie because I took my kids to see it this weekend and I was totally surprised by how much I loved it.
While my 6-year-old was squirming in his seat and my 8-year-old was semi-distracted by the task of ferreting every last kernel out of his popcorn bag, I was utterly enraptured by the action happening onscreen. Honestly, I don't think I've laughed that much in a theater in years. What I'm saying is that I'm almost entirely certain you'll love it even if you don't have kids -- but if you need a little extra encouragement, here are 5 Lego Movie in-jokes that were clearly meant to sail right over little kids' noggins. The Lego Movie was written and directed by the team of Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, who also did 21 Jump Street, which starred Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill. In The Lego Movie, Tatum voices Superman and Jonah Hill plays the socially awkward, overly clingy Green Lantern. Channing to Hill, when their characters get stuck together in a wad of gum: "I super hate you." Cobie Smulders from How I Met Your Mother voices Wonder Woman in The Lego Movie. If this seems like an oddly appropriate choice, given Smulders' gorgeous WW-esque looks, Joss Whedon has said he considered her for the role of Wonder Woman in his draft of the eponymous film, which never went into production.
Smulders was also reportedly in the running for the Wonder Woman role in the upcoming Batman vs. Superman, but lost out to Gal Gadot. That's a bummer for her, but it looks like Smulders is at least enjoying playing a minifig version of the superheroine: The failed BIONICLE product line.When Morgan Freeman-voiced Vitruvius describes the various worlds Lord Business has tried to master, he mentions there are some no one cares about. Watch the blink-and-you'll-miss-it glimpse of Bioncile, the line of toys Lego discontinued in 2010 (semi-replacing it with the Hero Factory series). Nice little self-deprecating nod to one of Lego's own unsuccessful products. Early on in the movie, Emmet's "friends" are seen eating croissants and turkey drumsticks while waxing poetic about what makes them all individuals. The joke here is that Lego only has a few foods that fit into mini-fig hands. Croissants show up in over 30 different LEGO sets, while turkey drumsticks are in well over 50. And now for the last one, which is a BIG spoiler if you haven't seen the movie ...
At the very beginning of the movie when Lord Business and Vitruvius fight over the Kragle, we see a title screen that says, "Eight and a half years later." This we can assume refers to the birth of Finn, the live-action kid who's been playing with the Legos all along. As MTV puts it, So though it's never explicitly stated, when Finn was born, The Man Upstairs locked his toys away, separated the worlds and made sure that his son would never play with them. Given the poignant ending, this is yet another beautiful, emotional detail that adds to the richness of the film. I couldn't possibly list all the rapid-fire jokes from the film, because they're nearly nonstop from beginning to end. And on top of all that relentless humor, the last 35 minutes take an initially confusing turn into live-action territory that may just have you sobbing into your popcorn. So many thumbs for The Lego Movie -- a true rarity in that it's equally enjoyable for kids and grownups. Have you seen The Lego Movie?