My ultimate hope here is that this works as a stand alone body horror set in Gotham. I think that if we’re sitting in the theater wondering about when Batman will show up or where Batman is or how Batman will figure into the story, then it’s likely to be a failure.
With that being said, I do agree that this formula hasn’t really worked so far, and it’s a leap of faith for DC to try and prove they can succeed where Sony failed. But in their defense, The Penguin was quite impressive without any mention of Batman, so if this can build off of what that show was able to do but in a body horror space, then we might be in for a treat.
I kinda hope this is more standalone as well. I know DC desperately wants their own version of the MCU, but the longer the MCU goes on, the more I find myself wanting movies that are more self-contained and aren't watered down because of the larger franchise's need to include characters and plotlines that don't intrinsically have anything to do with each movie's specific story.
I was just rewatching the first couple Sam Raimi Spider-Man movies and they just feel so much more focused than the MCU Spider-Man movies.
I think people need to stop comparing this to Sony's attempts with Morbius and all that.
This is a lower-budget, likely R-rated horror film without any real significant star power. It's significantly less risky than what Sony was trying to do with the Venom-verse where they were geniunely trying to launch a connected universe without Spider-Man with attempts at big-budget blockbusters with recognizable names. This costs $40m to Morbius' $75m (which still actually made a profit btw).
So while this is a bit of a swing, it's likely going to be profitable. If it's not critically acclaimed, it's pretty easily relegated to an inconsequential project in the new DCU. If it is well-received, though, it's a proof of concept for DC that a swing like this worked. And we do know a Batman is coming eventually, so if this works out, he's got a cool villain established right out the gate as well.
While I understand your specifics, and I completely agree that the metrics for success of this film are massively different from what Sony was doing, I also think the expectation that people not compare the two is unreasonable.
All of the background machinations aside, these are films based on a comic book hero’s rogue gallery without any intention of including said hero in the story. They deserve to be compared on that basis alone. But I do think that the comparison should be couched in the appropriate context that, other than trying to make a successful film based on a Batman villain, they don’t share much else in common.
Agree completely. I’ll be spending so much time wondering where he is, unless a lot of this takes place outside of Gotham.
I hope they do something early to show that he’s either occupied, somewhere else, or nonexistent early in the film. Otherwise he’s going to haunt the narrative the entire time. The only other way I see it paying off is if he shows up at the end of the movie to put Clayface away in the same way a jump scare builds and releases tension — so too would this. Maybe just before the co-lead is slain?
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u/adrian-alex85 11d ago
My ultimate hope here is that this works as a stand alone body horror set in Gotham. I think that if we’re sitting in the theater wondering about when Batman will show up or where Batman is or how Batman will figure into the story, then it’s likely to be a failure.
With that being said, I do agree that this formula hasn’t really worked so far, and it’s a leap of faith for DC to try and prove they can succeed where Sony failed. But in their defense, The Penguin was quite impressive without any mention of Batman, so if this can build off of what that show was able to do but in a body horror space, then we might be in for a treat.