While 2013's Man of Steel technically marked the beginning of what is now being called the DC Extended Universe, Superman's (Henry Cavill) movie only hinted at the existence of a much bigger world. Now, DC and Warner Bros' 2016 releases will aim to expand this new cinematic universe and demonstrate that it's worthy of multiple comic book movies.
David Ayer's Suicide Squad will take a look at how the U.S. government is responding to the emergence of these superpowered and highly dangerous beings, while also establishing several popular villains such as Joker (Jared Leto), Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), and Deadshot (Will Smith). However, before that, Zack Snyder's Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice will not only tease the formation of the Justice League and introduce characters like Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), Aquaman (Jason Momoa), and Lex Luthor (Jessie Eisenberg) - it's also the very first time Superman and Batman (Ben Affleck) will share the big screen in a live-action movie.
Naturally, Batman and Superman appearing on a theater screen at the same time is something fans have been waiting to see for ages, so expectations are understandably high. With Marvel Studios achieving success - both financially and critically - in the forming of its own comic book universe, all eyes are on DC and WB to see how they'll bring their biggest names together. Thankfully, many fans thought the latest Batman V Superman trailer offered a good mix of emotion, epic action sequences, and fan service, so many are feeling optimistic about what's to come. Now fans may have another reason to look forward to the movie.
According to Den of Geek, a "near finished" version of BvS was recently screened for WB's executives and the film's crew. The report claims the screening was a "glowing success" and the movie earned a standing ovation when it finished. After watching the movie, WB's higher-ups allegedly called Affleck the "definitive Batman" - a sentiment some fans expressed after seeing the first official image of Affleck in a costume inspired by Frank Miller's iconic The Dark Knight Returns comic series. If true, this is a promising development for WB and its relationship with Snyder, as they continue to work together on building the DCEU.
WB is banking on a lot when it comes to BvS - if the film doesn't meet expectations, how can casual moviegoers have faith in Suicide Squad or the spinoffs revolving around less popular members of the Justice League? Batman and Superman are not only the two biggest names in DC, but they're also easily two of the most popular superheroes around. Marvel Studios having the ability to use Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is huge for them, but DC finally putting Batman and Superman in the same picture is even bigger; it has the potential to create new fans of the DCEU (which is - literally - just getting started) and build a tremendous amount of hype for upcoming DC/WB features.
BvS will either give fans confidence in what's to come or turn them off, and if it made studio executives pleased to the point of standing and clapping (assuming it wasn't simply out of respect for the crew), then that's a development that's sure to make DC fans happy. What makes it even more interesting is that this apparently wasn't even the final version of the movie, so some of the special effects may have not been up to par. Those will of course play a big role in the movie (it does involve a flying man with heat vision and a Demi-God in action scenes, after all), but the story here is going to be critical, so it's encouraging to see the executives were delighted with Snyder's movie.
Now we just have to wait and see whether or not BvS will make moviegoers want to give a slow clap when the credits begin to roll. Given the amount of views the trailer has received, it definitely looks like a large amount of people will buy a ticket so they can find out for themselves.
NEXT: How BvS Connects to Suicide Squad
Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice opens on March 25th, 2016, followed by Suicide Squad on August 5th, 2016; Wonder Woman on June 23rd, 2017; Justice League on November 17th, 2017; The Flash on March 23rd, 2018; Aquaman on July 27th, 2018; Shazam on April 5th, 2019; Justice League 2 on June 14th, 2019; Cyborg on April 3rd, 2020; and Green Lantern Corps on June 19th, 2020.
Source: Den of Geek