13 Problems Nobody Wants To Admit About The DC Movie Universe

Building on the muted success of 2013's Man Of Steel, Warner Bros. are moving full-speed ahead with crafting their own DC Extended Universe (formerly Cinematic) to rival Marvel's massively successful enterprise. With Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice due for release next year and a host of other titles readily in development, it's a ballsy undertaking, though one that comes front-loaded with a number of snags which Zack Snyder and the project's other creative forces are going to need to contend with. From the sheer competition of Marvel's presence to creative issues, characters who may already have burned their bridges with fans and the problem of having too much of a good thing, there are a ton of road-blocks standing in the way of the DCEU being a colossal success. Who knows what sort of a future it has in store, and though competition for Marvel is very much welcome, it's going to be an arduous uphill struggle for Warner over the next few years. Here are 13 problems nobody wants to admit about the DC Extended Universe...

13. It's Rushing To Keep Up With Marvel

The Problem: With the insane success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, having grossed just shy of $9 billion over the last 7-and-a-half years, Warner Bros. are no doubt eager to establish similar gains with their own DC properties. However, while Marvel meticulously planned out each of their "phases" with a clear road-map, there's the distinct feeling that Warner are rushing to try and catch up with their rival, perhaps in the hope of getting there before the superhero movie bubble bursts (something we'll return to later). Their announced slate for the next five years is unquestionably ambitious, but whereas Marvel served up five individual superhero movies before The Avengers, the DCEU is giving us Batman V Superman in just its second movie, and isn't even bothering with standalone Aquaman, Cyborg and Green Lantern movies until after the Justice League is very much underway. How To Fix It: In an ideal world, shifting the movie order around a bit, but more realistically, giving these supporting characters snappy introductions in Batman V Superman such that Justice League won't hit audiences cold. But really, given the nature of business and competition, there's not much that can be done to stop Warner diving into this double-time. Whether it will pay off with the same success is anyone's guess. In its defense, the DCEU's first movie, Man Of Steel, grossed more than the MCU's inaugural outing, Iron Man, even if Superman is of course much more widely-known.