DC films have had a massive history of over 20 years when it comes to the big screen. Several characters from the DC Universe have made their way from page to cinema, some being more successful than others. However, one of the most common things in the film industry is projects getting announced before getting stuck in development hell and eventually canceled. With comic book films, it happens very often where studios reveal plans to adapt various characters into feature films.

DC has had an interesting history when it comes to their announced films. While things are starting to shift in the right direction with the current slate of films, there have been so many projects announced that never saw the light of day. Whether they got stuck due to creative differences or otherwise, many DC pictures have been scrapped, including some with ambitious concepts behind them. With that said, here are 10 canceled DC movies that should have happened.

Green Lantern 2

Despite its many flaws, it’s hard to imagine anyone who didn’t want to see a continuation to Ryan Reynolds’ 2011 Green Lantern after the Sinestro post-credit scene. Even though the first installment was a critical and box office disaster, a sequel had been put into development prior to the film’s release.

While it’s understandable that it was impossible to justify a sequel to be produced, it’s a big loss that fans never got to see what could have been with Mark Strong’s Sinestro. What would a sequel have looked like with Hal Jordan and Sinestro clashing? Viewers will always wonder.

Akiva Goldsman’s Batman vs Superman

 

Before Zack Snyder’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Warner Bros. tried to do a Batman vs Superman film in the early 2000s. Akiva Goldsman, who is no stranger to DC Comics both in TV and film, was hired to pen a screenplay for a film. Although it can’t be stressed enough that it was going to be quite extreme and so a risky bet. Several big Batman characters would have been dead in this story leaving Bruce all alone and even more unstable. Clark and Lois would have even been depicted as no longer being married.

While it would have been a mixed bag, it would have been intriguing to see what this version of the Batman vs Superman story would have looked like.

8. Teen Titans

Before Titans came to television from Goldsman, the producer was actually trying to bring the iconic teen heroes to the big screen. In 2007, Warner Bros. began developing a live-action Teen Titans film with Goldsman attached as a writer. It was never revealed specifically who would have been featured in that line-up.

While the group does now exist in live-action thanks to Titans, it would have been interesting to see a version of those heroes as actual teenagers.

Wonder Woman 2009 Sequel

In the animation department, there have been several projects that unfortunately got canceled after initially getting developed. One of them was a sequel to the Wonder Woman film starring Keri Russell in 2009.

Despite getting a lot of positive critical reception, the poor DVD sales were ultimately the reason a sequel never happened. While it may have only been in development stages, a sequel to this version of Diana Prince is something many would love to have seen.

David Goyer’s The Flash

The Flash has had several attempts at a feature film, with the latest one being Ezra Miller’s upcoming spin-off movie for 2022. David Goyer has had a big hand in DC live-action projects, from The Dark Knight trilogy to Krypton. However, Goyer tried to bring the fastest man alive to live back in 2004-2005.

Reportedly, he’d have featured both Barry and Wally in the screenplay, with Ryan Reynolds eyed to play Barry. Goyer was using a combined inspiration of Sam Raimi’s early Spider-Man films to Flash stories written by Geoff Johns and Mark Waid. But due to creative differences with the studio, Goyer dropped out.

Green Arrow: Escape from Super Max

While Smallville and Arrow have kept the Green Arrow in live-action on TV, the Emerald Archer almost got his own film. In 2008, Goyer and Justin Marks did a screenplay for Green Arrow: Escape from Super Max, featuring Oliver Queen getting sent to a super max-level prison.

After being framed for a crime he didn’t commit, Oliver would face the challenge of being in jail with several DC baddies. But eventually, Warner Bros. didn’t go forward with it. Even if this would have been a risky story to do as the first installment, seeing a Green Arrow film start with a bang would have been fun.

Tim Burton’s Catwoman

Anyone who saw Halle Berry’s Catwoman will understand why many choose to suppress that film’s existence. Despite the 2004 flop, Catwoman almost had a proper feature film that would have been a spin-off from Batman Returns. Michelle Pfeiffer was set to reprise the role of Selina Kyle in a film that Tim Burton would have directed.

A screenplay was penned by Daniel Waters who had turned in his draft on the same day as Batman Forever came out. Due to Warner Bros., at the time, not wanting to pursue too dark Batman projects, this version of the project got delayed and eventually turned into the 2004 bomb.

Ben Affleck’s The Batman

While Robert Pattinson will be suiting up as the Dark Knight in The Batman, there is still the Ben Affleck version that fans will never get to see. Initially set to star, direct and write the film, Affleck’s version of the movie ended up not happening for several reasons. However, from 2016 until 2019, Affleck’s version of the film became less and less a reality until the actor dropped out of the role altogether.

Superman Lives

While Superman had had plenty of big-screen adventures, several projects have been attempted. The infamous Superman Lives starring Nicholas Cage is something that fans have only seen glimpses of through the Death of Superman Lives: What Happened? documentary.

What was started by Kevin Smith only to be revamped by Tim Burton once he boarded as director was going to be perhaps one of the strangest, but compelling Superman films ever. No one will ever know if this would have been a success or not. But it’s still something many wishes would have made it to the screen just for the sake of seeing it as a finished product.

1. Justice League: Mortal

Before 2017’s Justice League, there was Justice League: Mortal from director George Miller. Despite having a complete cast, costumes produced, a storyline that was more solid than what fans got in 2017, the film faced a real-life Legion of Doom. From the Writers Strike to conflicts about shooting locations, Justice League: Mortal is the DC film that was ridiculously close to happening.

It’s perhaps the most discussed canceled DC film as would-be cast members and Miller have talked about it in many interviews in the last few years.