Will 2022 be DCEU’s year?
FULL DISCLOSURE: I’m all in when it comes to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It wasn’t always this way-but ever since Endgame I’ve never looked back. Whatever they make, I’m there for: Eternals, WandaVision, Loki, the multiverse-personally, Marvel Studios is simply printing money. Before I ask the big question I need to make sure this is a safe space. We’re all fanboys here right (an all-inclusive term I might add)? What’s the big question, then? Will the DCEU ever catch up with the MCU?
You have to admit there were some missteps. The biggest piece of evidence being The Justice League, right? A movie where the original director, Zack Snyder, went back and re-did the thing because of how awful it was. Forget about all the behind-the-scenes drama (which I’m not trying to downplay), but as far as team-up superhero movies go…it was rough. Did the Snyder-cut indeed make it better? Well, that’s up to public-and your-opinion. My point is, it needed to be re-done. If that doesn’t point to a studio in need of direction, I’m not sure what does.
But wait! What’s that in the sky? It looks like hope is riding high through the clouds of 2022! Yep, DC has four new films slated for this year and it may be the perfect time to turn things around. Hey, they may be a little late to the party but here’s hoping they brought tacos. So let’s see what’s coming down the pike.
First up is-of course-The Batman. Since it appears to be chronicling the early years of Bruce’s foray into vigilantism, this isn’t really part of the DCEU immediate family. In spite of the film being somewhat of a distant cousin, we look forward to meeting this version of Batman none-the-less. Like the earlier Joker film it stands alone among the library of Batman films to date, but if it’s knock your socks off good, it’ll be a great way to hype up the other DC films that follow it.
The second film in line is Black Adam, premiering July 29th. This is tied to the Shazam film released back in 2019. Black Adam is being played Dwayne Johnson and while the details to this and all the other films are being kept hush hush, it’s expected to be Black Adam’s origin story. This will set him up to be Shazam’s archenemy which of course we hope go head to head in a future film.
Third in line is The Flash, premiering November 4, 2022. Ezra Miller reprising his Barry Allen role. Reportedly the plot is speculated to be that of 2011’s flashpoint storyline in the comics. Barry travels back in time to try and prevent his mother’s death, but doing so messes with the entire timeline. The hype behind this films is that Ben Affleck is supposedly making an apperance as Batman, but in the teaser we hear Michael Keaton’s voiceover questioning Barry Allen, “you can go to any timeline, any universe…” Which begs the question: Will we see Keaton back as Batman? Will Affleck hang up his cowl? Will this introduce the multiverse concept into the DCEU the way Marvel has? All very exciting!
Last but not least: Aquaman and The Lost Kingdom, premiering December 16, 2022. Jason Momoa is back. Again, details are vague at this point but it looks as if James Wan is back in the director chair. While the first film was tonally all over the place, here’s hoping they can learn from past mistakes and level up on this franchise.
Let me give an honorable mention to another big screen release: DC League of Super Pets, coming out on May 22, 2022. DC gets a big screen animated film about the superpets that come to the rescue when the Justice League gets into trouble. This one is obviously for the little fanboys out there, but still sounds like fun. Especially with voice work from Kevin Hart, Vanessa Bayer, Natasha Lyonne, Diego Luna, John Krasinski, and Marc Maron.
The above list is all about the big screen, but DC fans have plenty of small screen shows they can look forward to as well. The Peacemaker made it’s debut on January 13. Several DC shows also have continuing seasons on various networks throughout the year. Make sure you check them out!
All hope is not lost for DC and DCEU fans! Things appear to be looking up. I’ve already got my tickets to see The Batman in theaters in a couple weeks. As far as the other films go, I’m cautiously optimistic. I’d love to see DC finally get their footing and bring some additional greatness to the broader fandom.