Premiere.com has an article up that looks at 20 movies that are stuck in “development hell,” a pit so harsh that not even Tom Cruise, Terry Gilliam, Tom Hanks, Joel Silver or Adam Sandler can help them crawl their way out. Their list of films includes Dino, the Dean Martin biopic, as well as The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay and Wonder Woman:
Not even Wonder Woman’s golden lasso has been able to rein in the seemingly endless development that keeps Princess Diana of the Amazon in perpetual procession to the silver screen. As with all DC Comics characters, Wonder Woman seemed bound for the big screen via DC’s corporate sibling, Warner Bros. However, no one besides Lynda Carter has ever been formally fitted for Wonder Woman’s halter top since producer Joel Silver took control of the project in 2001. While Sandra Bullock and Jennifer Lopez were bandied about to put on the bulletproof bracelets, Antz screenwriter Todd Alcott took a stab at the film, followed by a series of scribes leading up to Buffy the Vampire Slayer creator Joss Whedon being hired to helm in 2005. His version, said to be set in the present day and star an unknown, wasn’t deemed wondrous by the studio. Warner Bros. unceremoniously dumped Whedon by buying a version set during World War II and written by two unknowns, though the studio claimed it was only a preemptive measure against a plagiarism lawsuit.
The article says Joel Silver is considering leaving Wonder Woman alone until she can join the Justice League film.
June 14th, 2007 at 9:32 am
i’d rather wait until a good movie comes along then a crappy rushed one w/ sandra bullock.
i just don’t see her as a goddess (nor j-lo).
i still think they should use the greek porn star terri summer
June 14th, 2007 at 9:39 am
I read a review of the of the World War II Wonder Woman Script and thought it sounded good. Maybe they can change the script so that it can become Hippolyta’s story and then spin-off Diana’s movie which would be set in the present day.
June 14th, 2007 at 9:42 am
I read a review of the script for the World War II Wonder Woman movie and thought it sounded good. Maybe they can the script so that it can be Hippolyta’s story and then spin-off Diana’s movie which could be set in the present day.
June 14th, 2007 at 9:52 am
“Wonder Woman trapped in the pits of development Hades”
Hold on, I’m going to count exactly how many people on the planet this bit of news surprised…
Oh, that’s right. NO ONE.
June 14th, 2007 at 9:58 am
Okay, like this is seriously news?
We’ve known this for, like, ever.
And yeah, its the ubersuck.
Why don’t they just take the WWII script and modernize it? Or, ooooh, just take Perez’s relaunch of Wonder Woman, change some of it so it’s more “today” and then turn that into a movie. It’s a classic origin story. Seriously, its not that hard to come up with a script if you go with the classics and try not to be overtly “cool”.
June 14th, 2007 at 10:25 am
We’ve known, but not nessarily the general public. And if they wait till the JLA film this could be a LONG time before we see our Amazon Princess. A shame really.
June 14th, 2007 at 12:03 pm
I don’t think this movie is ever going to happen. A woman running around in a bustier is not politically correct and any attempt to make it so will only lead to conflicts between writers, producers, and studios over how to modify the character in a way that wasn’t necessary for Batman or Superman (or any other male superhero, really).
I believe the only way we’ll ever see Wonder Woman onscreen is in the JLA film where she’ll part of a larger ensemble and won’t be the primary focus.
June 14th, 2007 at 12:15 pm
Yeah, but its sort of an injustice to have Diana only show up in a JLA movie. She has a history beyond and before the JLA, and that should be honored. Especially since she’s one-third of DC’s so-called Holy Trinity.
June 14th, 2007 at 12:18 pm
Practically all DC movies live in development hell, and I doubt Warner will ever get it together. It’s an absolute miracle Batman Begins was ever made.
June 14th, 2007 at 1:04 pm
Surprised? No.
Frustrated? Greatly.
I count a dozen DC properties off the top of my head that have been announced as movie projects in the last few years. Only two of those projects ever got finished. As much as I would like to believe otherwise, I hold very little hope that Teen Titans, Doom Patrol, Shazam, Metal Men, or even JLA will fare much better than Wonder Woman or Flash have.
June 14th, 2007 at 1:07 pm
It’s hardly a miracle Batman Begins was made–Superman Returns, maybe, but not BB.
June 14th, 2007 at 1:10 pm
Shocked? Nope.
The Wonder Woman movie’s been buzzed about since 1998.
June 14th, 2007 at 2:30 pm
It’s actually pretty simple. Spider-Man, X-Men, Ghost Rider, Hulk… they all look cool and people want to see them come to life in the movies.
Wonder Woman, Flash, Green Lantern… they look dated and people would probably laugh if they saw them in a movie.
So I think the fault lies with DC creators for not updating their characters so they can be translated into films, not counting Batman.
June 14th, 2007 at 4:09 pm
For God’s sake, just make Whedon’s original vision. Screw what the producers think.
June 14th, 2007 at 4:12 pm
Don’t confuse your own beliefs with what other people may think, Sal. There’s nothing inherently better about the visual look of the (thirty to forty year old) Marvel characters you mention. All of them were substantially altered when they appeared in “real life” form at the movies.
There’s a difference between what works on the page and what will look good on the screen. Comic book costumes are usually simple and striking designs with no more than two or three bright colors (kind of like logo designs), while movie costumes are usually more muted and complex. The movie screen isn’t real life, but it contains a much wider range of colors and lighting conditions than the comic can, which leads to more complicated visual compositions. Pure comic book characters tend to stand out like beacons in that environment.
June 14th, 2007 at 11:54 pm
Joe Silver…
For every hit he’s had on his hands, he’s had a miss.
Let’s just keep Joel Schumacher away from the franchise, good as he is, I don’t think he gets the comic book movie.
June 15th, 2007 at 3:03 am
C’mon Mr. Bill Reed, you think just because Whedon was doing it that it had to be a good script? I never seen such a cliche’d writer get so much acclaim.
June 15th, 2007 at 4:37 am
Do we really want to see a Wonder Woman movie? I think we really would prefer to see Wonder Woman in a movie with the rest of the gang, JLA THE MOVIE. That is a script you can take to the bank.
Warner Bros listen to the fans, Superman returns was terrible, Batman begins is on the right track.
June 15th, 2007 at 1:42 pm
Well I think DC creators need to think about grounding their characters more into reality if they want their heroes to star in movies. They have to look at why Marvel has so many successful movies and doesn’t show any sign of slowing, and why the show Heroes is so popular. DC hero comics can be too fantasy-heavy and lend themselves best to cartoons like the Justice League.
But the Vertigo line seems better suited for movies with comics like Constantine and Y: the Last Man, or graphic novels like V for Vendetta, A History of Violence, Stardust, Watchmen, etc.
June 15th, 2007 at 6:37 pm
Sigh…
June 16th, 2007 at 9:36 am
I can’t believe that Silver cannot find a writer or director for this movie. Is there not any big in the business that is a fan of the character? I am starting too think that this is Silver’s fault. It’s time that he steps down. This movie needs a woman to write and direct, or hell even produce. It appears that no one wants to make it. And there is very good one’s out there. At this rate, Spidrerman 4 will be out, and we will still not have a movie. I truely believe that the failure of the Catwoman movie has alot too do with this. A big name star in low budget film was a box office bomb It’s sad that they have no faith in this character..An idea would be too incorperate the TV show in the story. I would be shocked. if the viewing audience does not know of Lynda Carter’s Wonder Woman. If they don’t then they are not of this earth. It would then have Lynda in some way pass the mantle to her daugther played by in my opinion Nadia Bjorlin. And Artemis played by Jessica Biel would be the villan. Keep the main villan in house, that connects her history. At least that’s what I would like too see. But as I said before it’s time for Silver to go..
June 16th, 2007 at 3:56 pm
The only reason why DC characters are having difficulty reaching the big screen is because the corporate structure at Warner makes it virtually impossible to get anything done. So please stop with the zombie-biased comments Sal. The real world could care less if a character is a Marvel or a DC.
Boy says magic word and becomes a super-powered adult is something that would work. Guy finds a ring that allows him to do anything would work. Princess falls in love, gets powers from gods, and explores man’s world would work. All characters are updated for the movies, but the intial concepts are still good.
Marvel characters are making it to the big screen, because they are being sold to different studios and they treat each character as they would any other property. With the exception of Elektra, the producers are sticking to the core concept for the Marvel characters (and not pulling a Catwoman).
For some reason, once a DC project gets going, everybody has to start getting involved. Which ultimately slows everything down. As DBHughes pointed out, it really is a miralce that Batman Begins got made. I believe the only reason Singer is still on the Superman movie, is because Warner knows that it’ll take forever getting someone else to do it.
I mean really, after the sucess of the first Batman movie, DC bought back the rights to Superman, did a huge campaign about it and it took almost 20 years to get a movie done.
The structure at Warner is completely screwed up. All one has to do is find some articles about the “The Death of WCW,” to get an idea of what the corporate structure at Warner is like.
June 18th, 2007 at 9:35 am
I agree - DC characters have every bit as much to give to the movie going public as Marvel characters. Its just WB that has their head up their ……
As a retailer that talks to hundreds of comic fans every week its tough to explain why Marvel (an independent company) can get so many movies made, while DC which is wholly owned by a production company flops around like a dying fish to get a movie (based on characters a lot better known than Blade and Ghost Rider) to the big screen.
I wish Warner Brothers would realize they would be making money all sides with their own properties (Wow WB gets paid for the property rights, merchandise sales, and distribution(Tickets/DVDs/TV)) Wow, with this brain trust in Time Warner its no wonder that their stock hasn’t done anything in five years (in fact when I go back to 2000 its gone down over 75%)
June 18th, 2007 at 9:35 am
Timm as Director, Dini and McDuffie Screen Writers. There is your winning formula.
June 18th, 2007 at 11:09 pm
JC Baron has an idea there. How about an animated movie? Personally considering all the bull that DC has pulled with WW’s book (the murder, the delays in shipping and interrupted storylines) I’d just like to see them get the book right first.
June 20th, 2007 at 6:19 am
An animated film would be cool, but I think Timm could handle directing a live action movie, as well.
June 22nd, 2007 at 10:57 am
If they make the JLA movie before a wonder Woman movie, it might be the only live action Wonder Woman too hit the big screen. The longer it’s take’s too make this movie, it becomes less and less a realality. It might be in their best intrest, to make a TV series again. introducing the actress who will play WW on the big screen. The TV show would be their best bet at this time. Starring Nadia Bjorlin as Diana /Wonder Woman. They can do so much more in this medium. Since they don’t want to have a big budget on the movie, use it wisely giving america a chance to fall in love with Wonder Woman all over again. The time is now. A start would be getting rid of Silver.
July 7th, 2007 at 1:46 am
I agree with nandoninny. They need to wait for the movie to come to them. They should concentrate on some lesser known charachters, do some interesting movies, maybe even with some Image charachters, and just quit trying to force the issue. They could be doing some pretty interesting projects while they’re spending all this time on projects that don’t seem to be going anywhere…