With the exception of Batman, writer Mark Millar says that the DC gallery of heroes is not suited to the silver screen.
Posting on his blog in the wake of Green Lantern‘s disappointing performance at the box office, the comic writer described “non-Batman” DC heroes as “too outrageous” for the format.
“Batman works because he’s more human for the big screen and more empathetic, but I fear The Flash and others would just meet the same fate as Green Lantern,” he wrote.
“They’re just too outrageous to provide tension in a live-action format and I’d love to see them done, Pixar style, as brilliant, theatrical animated movies. Aquaman talking underwater would have us wincing in live action. In a cartoon we wouldn’t even blink. Some stuff just doesn’t suit the format.”
However, Millar also pointed out that the superhero movie genre continues to perform well overall, despite the relative commercial failure of Green Lantern.
“Any Chicken Littles screeching about Green Lantern being a flop and ruining everything must look at the big picture and remember it’s far rosier than any other genre,” he said.
“Our track record in comic book movies has been incredible since Goyer and Norrington changed the game with Blade, Singer carried it through with X-Men and Sam Raimi slam-dunked with Spidey.
“In the decade that followed we’ve had monster hits from almost unknown characters.”
Nonsense. He’s never seen the highly successful Superman movies? Or the Wonder Woman TV? He’s suggesting that Green Lantern is more outrageous than a movie about a kid who dresses like a spider and swings from a web? Or a movie about a guy thinks he’s the Norse god of Thunder? There’s nothing wrong with DC heroes that a good director and screenwriter can’t cure.
Too True. Green lantern failed because there were too many cooks in the kitchen that did not truly understand the property. Batman and Xmen (the first and second) succeeded simply because everyone bent to the strong wills of amazing directors who stuck to a singular vision.
This coming from someone that creates a story about curving bullets? So it’s acceptable for Storm to fly but not Superman because she’s Marvel & he’s DC? Millar really is Marvel’s bitch apparently. Proof you can be successful and still be a complete idiot.
I don’t think it’s the powers that’s the problem but rather the characters. Marvel’s characters, even the alien ones, just tend to be more relatable on the human level than DC’s for the most part, Batman and Green Arrow being exceptions.
I don’t think the problem is the characters at all. The problem is the crappy movies, wooden acting, bad scripts, bad directors, etc. etc.
I haven’t read a comic in 40 years and I still go see almost every “comic book” movie. Since Marvel took creative control, their movies have been far superior to DC movies.
With the shining exception of the Chris Nolan Batman movies.
I just saw Green Lantern (one of my favorites when I was a kid) and it is almost a cartoon. The CGI never looked in any way real. If you’re gonna make an animated feature, go all the way.
The real problem with DC is Warner Bros. trying to control everything. I am a DC fan but Marvel is doing their movies the smart way.(With their own production company.) If DC could copy Marvel in how they do their movies it would really help them. The animated movies that DC has been putting out I have really enjoyed.
Browncoat Marc,
I was thinking the same thing in that Marvel has control over how their movies turn out. DC doesn’t have the same authority and thus are subject to the insane whims of Warner Brothers who thinks that word ‘art’ is a curse word.
This is the very thing that I’ve been screaming about for some time now… I’m glad to see that there are others in agreement with me regarding creative control (Marvel has it while DC doesn’t).
Sounds like a lame excuse for bad movies. Novels can use that reason why their movie versions are bad. But comics are visual too. Some of the DC cartoons were pretty good (remember the multiple seasons of Batman TAS through JL Unlimited?) so it’s a mistake to say they’re not suited to movies.
Heck, superheroes are probably best suited to movies if done right. Just take a couple of issues from their comic and there’s your story board.
Millar is a a complete Jackass, he is a total marvel fanboy and if he wrote for DC superheroes he would not be published. Batman tv series?-Superman with Reeve? Wonder Woman with Carter? Smallville? Green Lantern simple problem was pacing-other than that it was a Green Lantern movie that was fun. It’s only problem was that it is not leading in to something like the Marvel Studio films are. Millar forgets how BAD_ Spiderman 3, X-Men 3, Daredevil, Fantastic Four 2,Ghost Rider, Punisher, Ang Lee’s Hulk were? Of recent years only DC film lacklusters were Batman & Robin, Catwoman, Jonah Hex.
So who’s selling better?