Batman v Superman: Warner Bros rearrange executives in charge of DC in the wake of Zack Snyder's film

The studio is reportedly creating DC Films

Jack Shepherd
Wednesday 18 May 2016 09:16 BST
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Batman v Superman’s run at the cinema is coming to an end, grossing $869.8 million as of writing (having reached cinemas on the 25 March).

In comparison, Captain America: Civil War, a film that shares many similarities with the Dark Knight’s superhero brawler, has grossed $957.1 million and opened in the US less than two weeks ago.

Warner Bros. - the studio behind Ben Affleck’s film - were likely expecting a little more from the film. It should, therefore, come as no surprise that the company is going through some major reorganisation to hopefully correct the misstep that was BvS.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the company is completely changing the way it handles its DC Entertainment-centered films. Whereas Warner Bros. has had executives in charge of numerous departments, the studio is creating a new department dedicated just to DC films called (you guessed it) DC Films.

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Interview With Cast & Crew

At the head of the new studio will be current executive vice president Jon Berg and Geoff Johns, DC's chief content officer and the person who launched DC’s foray into television, including Arrow, The Flash and Supergirl.

Excitingly for fans of Affleck’s Batman, Berg - who was already working on BvS, Suicide Squad, Wonder Woman and Justice League - is a close acquaintance of Affleck, having worked with him on the films Argo and Live by Night.

Johns, meanwhile, is a seasoned comic book veteran and writer behind DC's upcoming Rebirth. Warner Bros are overtly trying to unify the creative heads behind the DC universe, emulating the successful Marvel Cinematic Universe that is presided over by Kevin Feige.

THR’s report also states that many more executives will manage “genre streams” instead of a broad range of films so that certain people can specialise in specific franchises.

For instance, Courtenay Valenti will now be in charge of the Lego and Harry Potter franchises. Meanwhile, Jesse Ehrman and Niija Kuykendall will oversee comedy/family and sci-fi/action, respectively.

This structural reorganisation of DC has already had a minor effect on the cinematic universe; remember those Suicide Squad reshoots that were said to include more humour? Johns’ involvement in the film led to those post-production changes.

Whether Warner Bros. can rectify the mistakes Batman v Superman made, we will only be able to tell in the future. For the meantime, check out our piece comparing Civil War and BvS, here.

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