It’s been amazing to watch how much superheroes have taken over pop culture within the past decade. Nowadays, movies based on comic books are the ones that become the most successful. The DC Extended Universe has faced many hurdles since its inception, however.
The DCEU has had less of a cohesive vision than what’s been present with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but there have still been interesting adaptations of DC’s finest superheroes that have resonated with audiences. It’s clear that the trend of superhero movies is far from over and there are a number of future DCEU entries that are stuck in various stages of development.
10 Cyborg’s Entire Future Remains In Question
Out of all of the Justice League members from the DCEU, it’s Ray Fisher’s Cyborg that’s been neglected the most. Significant material from Cyborg’s backstory was originally excised from Justice League and he’s failed to receive a solo film like the other prestigious superheroes have. There were still plans to eventually make a Cyborg movie happen, but it’s likely faced some setbacks after the backstage conflict that’s developed between Ray Risher and Warner Bros. Cyborg’s appearance was just written out of the upcoming Flash movie, so his whole film could now be in jeopardy.
9 Black Adam Is Ready For Dwayne Johnson To Rock The DCEU
Dwayne Johnson’s pet project, Black Adam, has been in development for the better part of a decade. The past few years have seen significant traction on the front and while there's still no release date set, Jaume Collet-Serra has been tapped to direct and the cast will apparently contain classic Justice Society of America characters like Hawkman, Doctor Fate, Cyclone, and Atom Smasher. Black Adam is a popular antihero and Johnson has plans for his villain to not just crossover with the Shazam! franchise, but at some point square off against Henry Cavill's Superman.
8 The Trench Aims To Bring Horror Into The DCEU
James Wan has been an influential voice in the horror genre and he carried over many of these sensibilities with his DCEU movie, Aquaman. The success of Wan's film has led to the announcement of not just a conventional sequel, but also a horror-centric spin-off that's focused on the aquatic monsters that occupy one of the Seven Kingdoms.
Details are minimal on this Trench spin-off and while more horror in the superhero genre is far from a bad thing, this also sounds like the type of project that could slowly sink into oblivion in favor of more ordinary DC movies.
7 The New Gods Will Expand The DCEU In Major Ways
The development of the DCEU project, The New Gods, feels like it will be the counterpoint to the MCU's upcoming Celestials movie. The New Gods are a race of galactic and nearly immortal beings that are one of Jack Kirby's headier creations. This DCEU project has considerable talent behind it with the acclaimed Ava DuVernay attached to direct and comic savant, Tom King, as writer. Despite how New Gods have appeared in Zack Snyder's movies, it's not clear if this film will expand on this or build its own continuity on the subject.
6 The DCEU Is Ready For A Take On Batgirl
Batgirl is another project that the DCEU had been batting around before the release of Justice League. Joss Whedon was originally in charge of the project and in 2018 Christina Hodson came on to write a fresh take on the character. There have been minimal updates on the status of Batgirl, but the recent news of Michael Keaton's return as (a) Batman in the DCEU has been tied to the development that his older Batman will be training Batgirl, rather than a new Batman. It's unclear if this approach will replace a Batgirl movie or simply act as its introduction.
5 The Gotham City Sirens Can Further Develop DC’s Femme Fatales
Harley Quinn was the clear standout in David Ayer's Suicide Squad and there were plans for several spin-off features featuring Harley with other characters. One of these projects was a Gotham City Sirens film, centered on Harley, Poison Ivy, and Catwoman, directed by David Ayer.
Cathy Yan's Birds of Prey film seemed to ostensibly replace Gotham City Sirens, but there have still been rumblings on the movie. It's unclear if the characters and ideas will be incorporated into a Birds of Prey sequel or if could still be a new entity for Harley.
4 Aquaman 2 Hopes To Go Even Deeper Under The Sea
The DCEU has found a solid take on Aquaman thanks to Jason Momoa's bravado performance in the role. James Wan's Aquaman has been one of the DCEU's biggest commercial & critical successes, so a sequel is inevitable. Wan's sequel is currently slated for the end of 2022, but it's probable that date will get pushed back since it seems seems to still be in early planning stages. Wan has announced that most of the cast from the first film will return and there will be even more world building.
3 The Flash Movie Might Be The Lynchpin To The New DCEU
The DCEU's Flash movie has gone through so many directors and changes that it seemed like it would never come together, but it's now finally in a reasonably stable place. Directed by IT's Andy Muschietti and written by Christina Hodson, The Flash is set to use the Flashpoint storyline to smooth out the DCEU's rough patches and reframe their cinematic universe. It's currently set for a November 2022 release and it has many people curious after the news that Ben Affleck and Michael Keaton are both set to appear in the movie as different versions of Batman.
2 Shazam! Fury Of The Gods Is A Sequel Worth Waiting For
Shazam! turned out to be one of the biggest surprises of the DCEU and it's proof that these films don't need to feature a superhero that's already popular in order to succeed. Shazam!’s sequel will surely continue to develop Billy Batson's powers as well as the new strength that has been bestowed to all of his friends. Shazam! Fury of the Gods will be directed by David F. Sandberg and written by Henry Gayden, but it's otherwise still a ways away. Initially slated for a mid-2022 release, it's now expected to come out in summer of 2023 at the earliest.
1 Fans Think Henry Cavill Deserves A Man Of Steel 2
Justice League’s failure to meet expectations largely dismantled Zack Snyder’s future plans for the continuation of this universe. Snyder’s DCEU started with Man of Steel and he had plans for solo Superman movies to continue the character’s story. The news that Cavill was out as Superman seemed to kill any hope of a sequel, but all of this has recently turned around. The optimistic reception around Zack Snyder’s Justice League and the large push for Cavill to stay on in the role means that a Man of Steel 2 could be a possibility.