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2022 – The Year-In-Review

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The sequel, which reunites lead Keanu Reeves and Constatine screenwriter Akiva Goldsman, is bound for a Netflix release. To fully unleash the potential of the world of John Constatine, Lawrence feels the first film’s PG-13 rating is insufficient.

Francis Lawrence:

All I know is that Keanu and Akiva and I have been wanting to do it forever. We finally have been sort of given the permission to go ahead and do our version of Constantine because people are always saving him to be part of some shared universe thing or some TV thing or [whatever. And] now I think people realize that there might really be an appetite for another version of the Keanu Constantine.

Constantine 2 Expectations, and How Keanu Reeves’ version is distinct

The original theatrical release in 2005, which costarred Rachel Weiz, Tilda Swinton, and Djimon Hansou, was seen as a radical departure for a character who hails from England. Created by Alan Moore during his Saga of Swamp Thing run, John Constantine – aka Hellblazer – was a former punk rock star, a supernatural investigator, con man, and notorious chain-smoker. Keanu’s Americanized version took key elements of the character yet didn’t hit the right notes with much ofthe target audience. Reeves’ Constantine had the natural gift to see angels and demons, becoming a P.I. and exorcist to buy his way into heaven after trying to end his life, a cardinal sin, when he was a teenager. The subplot of his having terminal lung cancer as a consequence of his chain-smoking only serves to speed the clock to complete that bargaining chip.

This direction contradicted John’s comics origin: an inexperienced teenage Constantine recklessly opened a portal to Hell and an innocent girl was dragged there because of it. This experience led John down the path he’s walked ever since, chain-smoking and all. For Reeves’ version, Rotten Tomatoes currently rates the first film with 42% while its audience rating is 72%.

Matt Ryan has played a more faithful version of the character, first in a short-lived NBC series, then across the CW’s Arrowverse. Although he became a regular on DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, the series still lacked the necessary levels of darkness to compliment John’s world. Ryan has also voiced the character on Justice League Dark, Justice League Apokalips War, and Constantine: House of Mystery.

Following the merger of Warner Bros. and Discovery, filmmaker J.J. Abrams was relieved of his contract to develop a new Constantine series. A female version of the character – Johanna Constantine, played by Doctor Who and Victoria star Jenna Coleman – recently appeared in the Netflix Sandman series.

Getting back to the sequel, Lawrence elaborated:

One of the biggest things for me about the first one was we followed, per Warner Bros., the rules to make a PG-13 movie in terms of violence, blood, language, sexuality. The ratings board gave us a hard R based on the gray zone of intensity. My big, big regret was that we have an R-rated movie that’s really a PG-13 [movie. The] idea is this time, at least for me, is to really go at it and make a real R-rated Constantine which is, I think, what people always wanted originally, not the PG-13 version that just happens to get an R.

Lawrence also hopes to tap into Constantine’s sardonic sense of humor more so than in the original film. It’s been over a decade since the Keanu version of Constantine was released, and a lot can happen in that time.

There’s no release date scheduled at this time.

Official Source – ‘Constantine 2’ Will Be Rated R If Director Francis Lawrence Gets His Way (thewrap.com)

The post ‘Constantine 2’ Director Gunning for An R-Rating appeared first on DC Comics News.

The series, starring Brec Bassinger and Luke Wilson, is the latest in sweeping cancellations of the CW’s list of superhero shows in the past few months. Prior to this announcement, executive producers of The Flash – the longest-running spinoff of Arrow, that helped birth the Arrowverse – had announced that its upcoming season will be its last. Superman & Lois, recent Saturn Award winner, remains the only ongoing superhero shows on the network. This cancellation is also the latest of other shows that have met their end since the acquisition of The CW by Nexstar Media Group. The sad truth is there may be more on the way.

Stargirl – Cocreator and Star Reflect on The Series’ End And Its Mark

Executive Producer and Stargirl co-creator Geoff Johns released this statement on the cancellation:

Stargirl has always held a special place in my heart for many reasons. With all the brewing changes at the network, we were aware this was possibly the last season, so we wrote with that in mind and have delivered what I believe to be the best season of Stargirl yet, with complete creative closure. The cast and crew are extraordinary, and I’d like to thank them for helping me bring this series to life. Brec embodied Courtney in every way possible — with grace, strength and humor — exceeding my wildest expectations. I am grateful to WBTV and The CW for giving us a home to tell this story and to honor my beloved late sister, and I’m beyond thankful to the press and fans who have always championed us for three amazing seasons. Most series never get this far. We couldn’t be more proud of our show and the fan community it’s built!

Courtney Whitmore was the creation that Johns broke into comics with. Since that time, he has been the hand guiding famous DC properties like Superman, Green Lantern, The Flash, JSA, and so on. His being the Executive Producer on Stargirl brought both validity and quality to the storylines. Lead actress Brec Bassinger, herself, offered this reaction to the news of the show coming to an end:

Getting to play Stargirl and be a part of the DC Universe has been the greatest honor, and I am so grateful for every moment of it. I would like to thank our fearless leader Geoff Johns, along with WBTV, The CW, the cast and crew of Stargirl, and of course, the fans. Thank you. This show will forever live in my heart.

The current season of Stargirl can be found on Wednesday nights on 8/7 Central on The CW.

Official Source – Stargirl’s Geoff Johns And Brec Bassinger Respond To The CW Cancelling DC Superhero Series After Season 3 | Cinemablend

Official Source – DC’s ‘Stargirl’ Will End After Season 3 At The CW – Deadline

The post “Stargirl” To End With Third Season, Cast and Crew React appeared first on DC Comics News.

Ever since the series of finale of Arrow, John has been bouncing around the remaining Arrowverse shows to determine the nature of the alien box that fell out of the sky. Although it seems Diggle has left this mystery behind, David says differently.

It’s not [resolved. When Eric Wallace] called me, showrunner of The Flash, and he had a pitch for me to end the saga, the Green Lantern Saga, within the Arrowverse. The reason why he did is because the Arrowverse was ending, right? It’s gonna end with Flash and all the other shows would go.

 

We knew, not at the time, I knew but you didn’t know yet, that Todd [Helbing] was going to reveal in Superman & Lois that the Superman & Lois-verse, if you will, exists on another planet, on a different Earth, and these characters are still alive.

 

The idea is perhaps there’s a world where we can explore the Flash, or maybe just Barry Allen. Maybe he is Flash, maybe he isn’t. Is Oliver Queen alive? Maybe he is. Maybe the ring is still there.

David As Green Lantern – Journey Thus Far And Could It Happen?

From Supergirl, The Flash, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, and to Batwoman, Diggle has been on a two-year journey to every scientific mind he has worked with. Comic book fans have been clamoring for this to be John – whose stepfather has the surname “Stewart” – going on to becoming the CW’s Green Lantern. Besides that tease, The Flash of Earth-90 (John Wesley Shipp) had seen Diggle in “Elseworlds” and wondered why he wasn’t wearing his ring.

What has also driven this quest is the continuous mental attacks from an unknown voice repetitiously telling him “Worlds await.” However, it was not until he circled back to The Flash, turning to the incarcerated Reverse-Flash (Tom Cavanaugh), that he finally got answers. In “The Man In The Yellow Tie,” Eobard Thawne, with future knowledge, revealed this extraterrestrial box may only open if John wills it to. When this mindset finally opened the box, Diggle was bombarded with galactic imagery of what he could become, but ultimately rejected whatever this “offer” was. With the box seemingly transported back to its point of origin, Diggle resolved to get back to his family, since none of those realities he’d witnessed revealed he would.

Again, it’s not over. Rather, it’s just beginning.

Now that it has been established that Superman & Lois is not part of the slowly dying Arrowverse, Ramsey suggests this revelation is a whole new beginning:

Superman & Lois allows us to reboot the Arrowverse in a way that we didn’t really think [before. When Todd initially revealed that, there were a lot of moans and groans about “Oh, we’re no longer in the Arrowverse.” I think it was smart. It was [Greg] Berlanti’s brainchild and I think it was smart because it allows us to grow outside of the Arrowverse, which we weren’t allowed to do.

 

So, to answer your question is that the ring is still around. It exists in Superman & Lois, it’s been denied in the same way it was in the Arrowverse, but [John Diggle] didn’t go through the same thing.

Ramsey has directed two episodes of the series thus far, first appearing last year as Diggle and acknowledging Superman had worked with Oliver. By doing so he acknowledges that there is a Green Arrow in that dimension. If Oliver, indeed, is not dead, then it opens the door for Stephen Amell to perhaps play the role that made him famous.

Diggle returned in the second season finale to approach John Henry Irons (Wole Parks) with a request to help him go after Intergang. Could this also lead this version of John Diggle on the path to becoming Green Lantern? Will the box fall out of the sky on this world and present the same offer to Diggle? Will John make a different choice? Time will tell.

The third season of Superman & Lois has recently begun filming in Vancouver, and is set to premiere in January 2023 on The CW.

Official Source – Arrow Star David Ramsey Says Diggle’s Green Lantern Tease Isn’t Resolved (comicbook.com)

The post David Ramsey: “Green Lantern Arc Isn’t Resolved”, Actor Claims appeared first on DC Comics News.

The Batman spinoff’s go-ahead comes just weeks after the network unexpectedly canceled Batwoman after three seasons. Other Arrowverse cancellations include DC’s Legends of Tomorrow and Naomi, the latter suffering from low ratings. With these creative decisions, only Superman & Lois and The Flash are the remaining shows on The CW with the continuity established by Arrow.

Gotham Gets New Knights For The Future, While Winchesters and Walker Look To The Past

The description of Gotham Knights establishes that this show does not share the Arrowverse continuity. According to sources, the jumping-off point is the murder of Bruce Wayne. Further, the children of Batman’s infamous rogues gallery are framed for the crime, and the city itself suffocates from the rise in crime. It falls on the shoulders of Bruce’s adopted, unidentified son to unite these offspring to clear their names and change the direction of their lives as the new guardians of Gotham City; its new “Gotham Knights.” The description also deviates from the video game of the same name, albeit with a similar Bruce Wayne death premise. The series is to be produced by Berlanti Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television. James Stoteraux, Chad Fiveash, Greg Berlanti, David Madden, Sarah Schechter, and Natalie Abrams are Co-Executive Producers. The pilot script was co-written by Abrams, Fiveash, and Stoteraux, and the pilot itself will be shot and executive produced by Danny Cannon. Regarding casting, the only confirmed addition to the cast is Supernatural Alum Misha Collins as Harvey Dent/Two-Face.

Speaking of the beloved brothers-on-the-road horror series, other shows coming to the network have a strong foothold in the equally popular Supernatural and Walker franchises. Further, one has an Arrowverse connection.

Executive produced by Dean Winchester himself, Jensen Ackles, his wife Danneel, and fellow alum Robbie Thompson, The Winchesters is a prequel series focusing on the courtship of Sam and Dean’s parents, John and Mary. Drake Rodger has been cast as future demon hunter John Winchester, while Meg Donnely will portray the ill-fated matriarch of the family, Mary Campbell. The series will follow not only their romance but their dive into the world of demon hunting. Supernatural examined the couple’s early years in the fourth season episode “In The Beginning,” which saw Amy Gumenick play Mary and Matt Cohen as John. The episode established the revelation that it was Mary’s side of the family, in fact, that had a history of demon hunting, which flipped the dynamic completely given the present-day John (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) was the driven mentor for his sons following his wife’s murder.

On the other end of the pond, the Jared Padelicki-led reboot of the Chuck Norris CBS series, Walker, Texas Ranger is getting its origins examined, and its protagonist is a very familiar face to Arrow fans, in Walker: Independence, based on a story idea by Sam Fahey. Co-executive produced by Fahey, Larry Teng, Anna Fricke, and Padelecki himself, Kat McNamara, known for her work as the second Green Arrow, Mia Queen, plays Abby Walker. Set in the late 1800s, Abby is a Bostonian who loses her husband before her eyes while traveling to the West. The series follows Abby’s quest for vengeance, which causes her to cross paths with scoundrel Hoyt Rawlins (Matt Barr) along the way to the town of Independence, Texas. The town itself is to be populated by diverse occupants choosing to escape their own respective traumas, and Abby and Hoyt are to become “agents of change” in the fate of that town.

While it is confirmed these shows have pilot orders, there is no scheduled release date for any of these, so stay tuned.

Official Source – ‘Gotham Knights’, ‘Walker: Independence’ & ‘The Winchesters’ Picked Up By The CW – Deadline

The post ‘Gotham Knights’ And Others Greenlit Post CW’s Arrowverse Cancellations! appeared first on DC Comics News.

Spearheaded by Lost creator J.J. Abrams, speculation is orbiting the possible casting of Dirisu as occultist and con man John Constantine. If cast, Dirisu would be the first black actor in the role.

Dirisu is best known for his work on series such as  Gangs of London, Humans, and Next of Kin. Film credits include The Huntsman: Winter’s War, Criminal, and Sand Castle. He will also be seen in the upcoming Dr. Malcom’s List.

Sope as John Constantine – What Do We Know About Ol’ John?

Co-created by Alan Moore, Rick Veitch, Stephen Bissette and John Tottleben in Saga of The Swamp Thing, John Constantine is a Liverpool-born occult expert set on this course by a tragic past. From former lead singer of a punk rock group to current member of Justice League Dark, John’s been around. He is visually characterized by his trademark trench coat and smoking habit. His cynicism and tendency to work an angle keeps him at odds with other heroes, Swamp Thing in particular. His loyalties to the angels, however, is never in question. As a bisexual, his romantic entanglements are numerous, but he’s been infamously linked time and again to the magician Zatanna.

Although this is only a rumor at this point, Dirisu would be the third actor to play the role. Keanu Reeves brought the character to audiences in 2005’s Constantine, albeit an American version of the British character. Matt Ryan brought a more faithful interpretation to NBC in the short-lived Constantine series before being brought to the CW in the fourth season of Arrow and made a regular on DC’s Legends of Tomorrow. Ryan has also voiced the character on numerous animated projects in the DCAU, including the upcoming animated Constantine: The House of Mystery.

More on this story as it develops.

Official Source – Constantine: Ṣọpẹ Dìrísù reportedly set to star as John Constantine in the new HBO Max series (joblo.com)

The post Sope Dirisu Allegedly In Talks For Lead in HBO’s “Constantine” appeared first on DC Comics News.

The HBO Max series producers have tweeted that the series has added three new cast members to portray classic antagonists. Joseph Morgan will play Sebastian “Brother” Blood, Lisa Ambalavanar has been cast as Jinx, and Franka Potente will be Mother Mayhem.

View The Tweet Below

All rise for the Church of Blood.

Introducing Joseph Morgan as Sebastian Blood, Franka Potente as Mother Mayhem and Lisa Ambalavanar as Jinx. #DCTitans pic.twitter.com/qNeInp4I6w

— DC Titans on Max (@DCTitans) February 1, 2022

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

Titans Season Four Villains – Who Are The Players And Who Are The Characters?

The new faces are both seasoned veterans and fresh faces of recent years. Morgan is best known as Klaus Mikelson from both The Vampire Diaries and The Originals. Potente is best remembered in such films as Run, Lola, Run, The Bourne Identity, and The Bourne Supremacy.  She’s also starred in TV shows like Claws, Taboo, American Horror Story and Copper. And finally, Ambalavanar has starred in The Doctors and The A List. 

However, longtime fans of The Teen Titans in both comic and animated formats remember their characters well.          Sebastian “Brother” Blood is the occultist leader of The Church of Blood, the latest in a generational succession to bear that title and birth name. The Titans have battled both Sebastian Blood VIII and IX, the latter created by Marv Wolfman and George Perez during their Tales of The Teen Titans run. Both have possessed supernatural powers. His first live-action appearance was in the second season of The CW series Arrow as a lieutenant of another Titans antagonist, Slade Wilson aka Deathstroke. This version of Blood was played by Kevin Alejandro, whose grand ambition was to orchestrate a massacre of Starling City’s undeserving with a super soldier army and rebuild it as its mayor.  Another incarnation was found in the Teen Titans animated series, voiced by John DiMaggio.  This Brother Blood was more of Cyborg’s enemy as the leader of the organization H.I.V.E and possessed the power of mind control, telekinesis, energy blasts, and teleportation to name a few. He was also a minor antagonist introduced in the first act of the DCAU feature Teen Titans: The Judas Contract, voiced by Gregg Henry.

In the cases of Jinx and Mother Mayhem, however, this will be their official live-action debuts.  Little is known about Mother Mayhem other than the face that she is the wife of Brother Blood in the comics, who birthed a daughter to Sebastian Blood VIII.  As for Jinx, she was also created by Wolfman but designed by Chuck Patton in 1985.  She is an Indian-born elemental sorceress that must retain connection to the ground while spellcasting.  She also has precognitive abilities and is able to speak to the Earth itself.  She is also the leader of The Fearsome Five.  Her only appearance outside the comic is in the animated series as leader of the H.I.V.E. Five, but her powers were changed to affect probability like Marvel’s The Scarlet Witch.  She was voiced by veteran voice actress Tara Strong.

There is currently no release date for the fourth season of Titans.

Official Source – DC Titans on Max on Twitter: “All rise for the Church of Blood. Introducing Joseph Morgan as Sebastian Blood, Franka Potente as Mother Mayhem and Lisa Ambalavanar as Jinx. #DCTitans https://t.co/qNeInp4I6w” / Twitter

The post “Titans” Season Four: Brother Blood, Jinx, and Mother Mayhem All Cast! appeared first on DC Comics News.

Justice U will focus around a young group of selected meta humans going undercover at university. Diggle is responsible for their recruitment and training. Spartan will be hoping to help build the heroes of tomorrow. The new series will be set in the “Arrowverse” and will see a host of brand new characters. As well as appearing in the show, the pilot will be directed by David Ramsey himself. This isn’t his first venture into directing as he has previously directed episodes of Arrow and has struck a deal to direct more across the connected shows.

The Growth of the Arrowverse

This is a good indication of the CWs commitment to this fictional universe. The fact that they’re still looking to grow and build, following the end of shows like Arrow and Supergirl, is a positive sign. With little information on JLU so far, we don’t know anything, except the projected date of 2022/23. However, what we do know for definite is that this show will also have Greg Berlanti as executive producer. Berlanti has worked on all the other “Arrowverse” shows in the same role, including Batwoman, The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow and Supergirl.  

Justice U will not be the only CW project Berlanti will be overseeing for the 2022-23 period. He is also working on the other DC related Show “Gotham Knights“.

Source Article

The post John Diggle to return in new Arrowverse show appeared first on DC Comics News.

The wrestler-turned-actor brings his character from The Suicide Squad to the small screen. While there’s still no official synopsis, the series is partially a prequel to the James Gunn film, as the origin of Peacemaker, aka Christopher Smith, will be revealed over the course of the series.

Peacemaker – What Is It, Who Is In It, and What to Expect

The series also features Freddie Stroma as Adrian Chase, aka Vigilante. Like his comic book counterpart, Adrian is a District Attorney with regenerative capabilities. This is the second live-action appearance of Chase, as another character of the same name appeared on the fifth season of the CW’s Arrow. He was portrayed by Josh Segarra but was repurposed as the villainous Prometheus. His Vigilante persona also appeared in Arrow but had the civilian identity of Vincent Sobel, played by Clayton Chitty and Johann Urb with voice provided by Mick Wingert.

The trailer largely focuses on his work-for-hire status and showcases the buddy-cop relationship Smith has with the Vigilante and his avian sidekick, Eagle. Also starring Jennifer Holland, Steve Agee, Chukwudi Iwuji, and Robert Patrick, Peacemaker has a truly eclectic story brought to life by a stellar cast, but given it is loaded with coarse language, lewd humor, violence, and nudity, this series is not for kids.

Created in 1966 by Joe Gill and Pat Boyette, Smith is so passionate about peace that he’s willing to use as much force as possible to achieve it. Post-Crisis, the character has been in not only the Suicide Squad but was part of the Justice League International team as well. Smith made his return to comics in Geoff Johns’s Doomsday Clock and was a Suicide Squad member once more in Future State, and Infinite Frontier #0. The series, as a whole, strives to give dimension to Christopher’s journey, albeit in a more raunchy and violent manner.

Please click the trailer below.

Peacemaker | Official Red Band Trailer | HBO Max – YouTube

Catch it when this series debuts on HBO Max on January 13th 2022.

Official Source – WATCH: New trailer for HBO’s ‘Peacemaker’ series starring John Cena – Wrestling News

The post “Peacemaker” Red Band Trailer Released! appeared first on DC Comics News.

The former Law and Order: SVU performer has been cast in the upcoming CW adaptation of a very recent DC character created by Brian Michael Bendis, Jamal Campbell, and David F. Walker.

DC’s Naomi – Who is Stephanie March Playing? And What’s the Show About?

March will play a recurring character called Akira, an extraterrestrial in hiding on Earth whom Naomi (Kaci Walfall) seeks out when she starts to question her own reality. March’s other credits include films such as Mr. And Mrs. Smith, The Invention of Lying, and the Law and Order spin-off series Conviction.

The series follows Naomi McDuffie, who sets out on a hero’s journey to discover her origins following a supernatural event. That search leads to uncovering startling secrets behind well-known DC superheroes. As to whether DC’s Naomi takes place in the well-established CW Arrowverse remains to be seen. And it would not be the first, as previous shows Supergirl and Black Lightning initially started on other networks before being brought into the same continuity as Arrow and spinoffs The Flash and DC’s Legends of Tomorrow. Then both of their realities were merged into Earth-Prime during the crossover based on Crisis on Infinite Earths.

Besides Walfall (Person of Interest, The Equalizer) and March, the series also stars Barry Watson (7th Heaven), Aidan Gemme (Dora The Explorer, Tomorrowland), Will Meyers (Gotham), Mary Charles-Jones (Kevin Can Wait), Mouzam Makkar (Champions), Cranston Johnson (Filthy Rich), Daniel Puig (The System) and Camila Moreno (Lost Beyond The Stars). The series is cowritten and co-executive produced by Ava DuVernay and Arrow scribe Jill Blankenship. DuVernay’s company Array Filmworks will produce the show in association with Warner Bros. Studios.

The series is set to debut on the CW some time in 2022.

Official Source – DC’s Naomi Adds Stephanie March to New CW Series (comicbook.com)

The post DC’s Naomi: Stephanie March Cast in Upcoming CW Adaptation! appeared first on DC Comics News.