Producer Dan Lin (The Lego Movie, IT) will reportedly NOT be taking the job of becoming head of Warner Bros. Discovery’s DC Films and TV division. According to the latest reports, Lin sat down for negotiations with Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav and other executives but did not reach a deal. Lin will reportedly stay at Rideback, his own movie and TV venture – but that was also the factor that may have killed the deal. Lin reportedly wanted to keep Rideback going with WBD taking on an equity stake, but the terms got “bogged down,” according to anonymous sources.
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Warner Bros. Discovery has not commented on the matter (as of writing this).
The DC Films and TV brand has been a major focus of Zaslav and Warner Bros. Discovery since the merger happened. 2022 will be remembered (for better or worse) as a pivotal year for DC Films: the studio proudly announced and promoted its most ambitious slate of projects yet, only to have about half the planned film releases make it to theaters. Moreover, the entire franchise blueprint has been revised under Zaslav, with completed films (Batgirl) and planned projects all getting dumped, and new DC franchise goals being set:
“Our ambition is to bring Warners back and to produce great high quality films, and as we look at the opportunities that we have broadly, DC is one of the top of the list for us,” Zaslav stated on an investors calls. “You look at Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman — these are brands that are known everywhere in the world. The ability to drive those all over the world with great story is a big opportunity for us. We have done a reset. We’ve restructured the business. We’re going to focus.”
It was hoped that Dan Lin would become the “Kevin Feige” of DC Films and TV – referring to the head of Marvel Studios under the Disney banner. DC getting its own Feige is one strategy that fans, analysts, and executives all seem to agree on. But as you can see, the search for that person is going to be difficult, to say the least.
Right now, DC has The Flash movie, and a sequel to the billion-dollar Aquaman franchise on deck, while Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is working hard to give the franchise a step in the right direction by making Black Adam a major theatrical success this year. Blue Beetle is another project that DC seems to be sticking by, while the Joker sequel is already a major event, with Lady Gaga (and an all-star cast) joining Joaquin Phoenix. How this all will summate in a new shared franchise remains to be seen.
