We recently reported that DC comics writer Geoff Johns (The Flash, Green Lantern) had turned in a treatment for The Flash movie to studio DC/Warner Bros. Well, it so happens that Johns was a featured (read: very popular) panelist at the 2009 San Diego Comic-Con International and, after a last minute quick-switch I as there to cover the event.
Now, Hollywood legalities are a tricky thing, so Johns couldn’t say TOO much about his work on The Flash script, or his opinion of The Green Lantern feature film – but thanks to some good old-fashioned Screen Rant investigative reporting, we do have a gem or two to share with you.
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THE FLASH
For those not into comic books, Geoff Johns has been writing
The Flash series since 2000 and was also responsible for such notable (comic book) events such as the return of Hal Jordan as Green Lantern in 2005; re-launching the Teen Titans in 2003; and he even did some work on the book JSA alongside David S. Goyer, writer of Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. He’s pretty famous and beloved by modern comic book fans everywhere and (for my money at least) there’s no better writer to be handling The Flash script right now.
So just what exactly is Geoff Johns’ cinematic vision of the Scarlett Speedester? Sorry guys, he couldn’t legally divulge what the plot points of his script treatment were – but that didn’t stop me from asking him what core elements of the character he had in mind when sitting down to hammer out the big-screen version of The Flash. Said Johns:
“We’re caught up in a world that’s obsessed with speed these days. Texting, faster downloading… We’re always looking for ways to speed things up, it can be hard to slow ourselves down.”
He wanted to expound on that explanation, but his editor (and his own good sense) cautioned him from saying any more. Johns did add, however, that part of his recent storyline in the Flash: Rebirth comic book dealt with the resurrected Barry Allen’s attempts to deal with “the seduction” of speed and being lost in the speed force. When asked a direct question about whether or not it would be Barry Allen we see in a Flash movie, Johns had no answer to give – but based on his impassioned description of the character in modern context, I wouldn’t be surprised if Barry Allen DID turn out to be the Flash that graces the silver screen, or if the film explores the many meanings of the term “moving too fast.” Guess we’ll know more if and or when the film moves forward.
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THE GREEN LANTERN
In addition to writing The Flash comic book, Geoff Johns has been arguably the most acclaimed and celebrated writer of the Green Lantern comic book series ever. Even in the panel, fan after fan approached the microphone just to tell Mr. Johns that his recent stories (”Green Lantern: Rebirth,” “The Sinestro Corps,” the upcoming “Blackest Night”) are the ONLY reasons why they decided to get familiar with Green Lantern.
Naturally, as the guy bringing Green Lantern into the limelight (no pun) on the page, one must wonder what Geoff Johns thinks about the upcoming feature-film adaptation of The Green Lantern and the recent casting of Ryan Reynolds as the titular hero. Luckily for us, one eager fan in the panel asked that very question! Said Johns about Reynolds being cast as Hal Jordan:
“It’s great, he’s got the swagger for early Hal, definitely. And Martin Campbell directing… I’m psyched about it.”
Judging from all the things Johns couldn’t say, I think it’s a safe bet that he’s seen what’s in the works for The Green Lantern and if HE’S confident about it, I think it’s ok for the rest of us to start getting excited too.
So that’s it for the panel with Geoff Johns. Comic book fans who have been keeping up with the rebirths of Hal Jordan, Barry Allen and the events leading up to the “Blackest Night” storyline: you can expect more dark horror-style storytelling, more deaths and dead hero resurrections. Oh, and SPOILER: Hal Jordan throwing down with the “Black Lantern” version of Abin Sur (that’s a little gem for the die hard Green Lantern fans out there).
The Green Lantern is slated for release on June 17, 2011.
The Flash movie is still in the planning stages and has no release date yet.
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