Looks like Universal may lose the war to develop a Dark Universe — the key may be to start with a Bad Robot, and not bad movies. According to Deadline, J.J. Abrams’ Bad Robot and Warner Media are teaming to exclusively develop both film and TV ideas based on DC’s Justice League Dark universe.
Meetings will reportedly soon be held between Bad Robot and writer/talent reps as to which characters could get their own projects. Warner Bros has been loosely developing a JLD movie for years with helmers like Guillermo del Toro and Doug Liman linked at various points.
Allegedly, del Toro’s script began with a series of ancient tomes being stolen by a madman hell-bent on humanity’s end. Due to this, occult detective John Constantine seeks out a group of heroes that specialize in the mystic and arcane in order to save the world including Swamp Thing, Deadman, Zatanna, Etrigan the Demon, and Madama Xanadu.
Other characters who have been on the team in the comics include Shade the Changing Man, Black Orchid, Doctor Mist, Pandora, Nightmare Nurse, Frankenstein and the vampire Andrew Bennett.
DC Universe did release a Justice League Dark animated film, which featured Batman at the center of the plot, though Constantine still pulled the team together. Constantine and Nightmare Nurse were also featured in an animated project for CW Seed last year.
The taste for it is there. Can J.J. Abrams feed Warner Bros’ hunger?
