As the list of planned DC Comics-based projects continues to expand, the latest addition is a New Gods movie directed by Ava DuVernay (Selma and A Wrinkle in Time).
According to a number of outlets, the live-action movie will revolve around deities created in the early 1970s by legendary comic book artist Jack Kirby. Known as The New Gods, they come from the twin planets New Genesis and Apokolips, which exist outside normal time and space in a realm called The Fourth Wall.
Screenwriter Kario Salem (The Score and Chasing Maverick) will work closely with DuVernay to create the script. In addition to his movie credits, he won an Emmy Award for writing the television special Don King: Only in America.
There's some uncertainty over whether the New Gods movie will exist independently or as part of the existing DC Films shared universe. According to Deadline, the project currently has no connection to the other DC worlds. On the other hand, Variety reported that it will be a major addition to the DC Extended Universe.
It's possible that Warner Bros. is waiting to see the script before they decide whether the flick will join the shared universe. Historically, this would be nothing new. For instance, Greg Berlanti's Booster Gold movie was originally to be independent of the shared universe, but the director recently hinted that those plans may have changed.
We were surprised to learn that a New Gods movie was in development. However, DuVernay recently tweeted that Big Barda, a member of the alien race to be featured in the movie, was her favorite superhero. It could be that she’d been involved with the project for some time, but it’s also possible that her tweet caught the studio’s attention and inspired them to approach her. Here’s DuVernay’s tweet, and another posted after her involvement was announced:
Gosh, that’s hard. Big Barda. Many reasons. #askava https://t.co/3qxGDq7mHe
"” Ava DuVernay (@ava) December 27, 2017
"Our dreams make us large."
Thank you, #JackKirby. pic.twitter.com/gv3SiccV6a
"” Ava DuVernay (@ava) March 15, 2018
