I'd be willing to bet Flashpoint is only taking a few elements from the actual story like Civil War. I'm almost certain no big changes will happen afterwards.
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Ben Affleck's Batman Future in Doubt as Warner Bros. Plots Franchise
- Thread starter ryan299
- Start date
Fancyarcher
Member
Will see, would be weird for them to announce it though, without some major changes being involved.
CartridgeBlower
Member
Huh? Then what was your point?
Didn't you want people to talk about what he said at comic-con? And then when most everyone's like 'his response means nothing, and if you compare it to his earlier response about The Batman on Kimmel...well, um...'
So again, what was your point that we all seemingly missed?
Bobby Roberts
Banned
The only reason you invoke Flashpoint at all is because you're going to change the status quo of your fictional universe.
I think it was "uhhhhh"
I think it was "uhhhhh"
Chained Prometheus
Member
Oh I don't doubt that the film will have major differences from the graphic novel. I'm referring to Flashpoint because THR pretty much exactly foreshadowed it yesterday with their story in the first place:
The Hollywood Reporter said:
I noticed that line yesterday and figured that meant we were either getting a Flashpoint-driven retcon or that Dick was going to be handed the mantle of Batman. Because "working on plans to usher out a character gracefully" isn't something you do for a mere recast.
It is however something you do if you want to make drastic changes to a character and the canon relating to them.
Want to make Batman a bit younger and give him room for more development in the future? Want to have Batman not be a killer at all in the DCEU? Get wonky with the timeline via Flashpoint and reset the universe a bit so that those changes are narratively the byproduct of messing with time travel.
Exactly.
ThoseDeafMutes
Member
It can work as a standalone time travel story where you assume everything is "back to normal" at the end - as in the case with the animated version. Since it's a long way off I would assume that DC will decide whether or not they want the status quo changed based on feedback to JL / other movies, whether any actors want to jump ship and so forth.
Yep. Soft introduce young Bruce Wayne in The Batman and have Batfleck die at the end. Bring young Bruce to the present in Flashpoint. Ben gracefully dances out of the DCEU.
mugurumakensei
Member
They're not going to recast Bruce Wayne. Likely scenarios are Flashpoint Thomas, Nightwing taking over the bat's role in the JL, or Terry McGinnis or some other successor to the Batman title.
Sweeney Tom
Banned
Bingo
The Driver
Member
I'm kinda bothered they are invoking it in the first place if they DONT wanna usher Affleck out because it's a cool card to play (if they do it right) and it seems like a weird story to base Barry's first solo movie about. I get it features the Reverse Flash and maybe they really are just taking the name and time travel concept but I'd rather they just do a higher budget/less melodramatic version of S1's arc of the Flash if they are gonna use RF.
Bobby Roberts
Banned
I think those decisions are already being made (or have already been made) because the pre-production on a lot of the films on that slate need to start sooner rather than later, and while we're probably not going to see the results of the decisions being made for another 3-4 years, it's a pretty good bet they're making those calls now.
What they were doing wasn't working. They were already eyeballing a way to course-correct back in Feb/March. Whedon got brought on around that time. Moves started getting made we didn't hear about in the trades until months later. Wonder Woman's success very strongly reinforced the need for a different direction. Basically, I agree with you that they were waiting for feedback, and that they were waiting for Justice League to be that feedback. I know I've said as much here before. But I think Wonder Woman's critical and financial success told them what what they needed to hear already, and so the moves are getting made now. Affleck is backing away from the whole shebang. Snyder was going to be done after Justice League regardless.
I think announcing Flashpoint is a sign that their mode of course correction is going to include rewriting the fictional history they've already established, a-la Days of Future Past (which worked very well when it was loosely adapted to film)
Inferno313
Banned
Funny thing about Flashpoint is the lady and I were chatting about the Infinity War footage description and laughing about how great it is that these things are really embracing the crazier and wackier parts of comics.
I remember saying "Yeah, but when these things start doing multiverse and alternate reality stories, then we're really there." Haha.
I remember saying "Yeah, but when these things start doing multiverse and alternate reality stories, then we're really there." Haha.
broncobuster
Banned
Nah. They literally just did it this past season on The Flash. Everyone assumed it'd add Supergirl to the universe or something major... and it didn't change much of anything in the end. Plus they've been heavily backtracking from Flashpoint since Rebirth in the comics.
The door is always open to do some adjustments in the movies, but I could also see using the framework for a Flash movie. Basically, Flash by way of Back to the Future 2.
Wait, don't they want Zemeckis to direct this.
Yeah you don't actually have to change anything with Flashpoint. You get a fun time travel/alternate reality, and you get to use established characters in interesting ways that otherwise wouldn't be necessary.
On Flash it only really changed Diggle's kid, which more just a retcon to bring it line with a Legends episode.
On Flash it only really changed Diggle's kid, which more just a retcon to bring it line with a Legends episode.
Plasticine
Member
Or you could do it to introduce bad drama, inane SECRETS and a boring, repetitive villain who's big reveal arrives with a dud and it all adds up to a horrible, awful, not very good season of television.
Let's keep the one person who can't act for shit
Bobby Roberts
Banned
I'm not saying it's not possible it could just be wacky time-travel hijinks that reset to status quo by the end.
But taking into context pretty much everything else surrounding this fictional universe's behind the scenes machinations and its critical reception and its poor word of mouth (until Wonder Woman) it becomes just as much, if not more, of a possibility that announcing a Flashpoint movie means they're leaning more towards actually shaking shit up.
Again - they've got a positive example of a loose adaptation of a time-travel canon re-set working cinematically over Fox way.
ThoseDeafMutes
Member
It leaves the door open for them to do that if they want, but the only thing I can think of that they would want to retcon out of existence might be if they want to change Batman's actor while preserving Bruce as the character. If they don't mind doing Nightwing -> Batman or Damien -> Batman it's unnecessary, and even if they want to keep Bruce they can simply recast and not say anything. As a motive for doing Flashpoint I don't think it's strong. Now that they're doing Flashpoint, if they want to recast Bruce that's how they'll probably do it, but I don't think that's why they did Flashpoint to begin with.
Changing the tone of movies to be more WW and less BvS isn't something you need timeline alterations to do. JL will already be more lighthearted and so will future movies that will all come out before Flashpoint will. Basically, if they change anything, I don't think it will be more than one or two details, as opposed to a Days of Future Past style "the slate is now clean and we will keep telling prequel stories" type situation. I think the selection of Flashpoint has more to do with simply telling a recent, popular, and well known story than it does signal that they want to alter the timeline in notable ways.
What would the point be? Fanservice?
Bobby Roberts
Banned
I think this is a priority, yeah. I think the mishandling of Superman is also a thing they're probably looking at addressing too.
I agree. They don't need to do it. But I think the option might have some appeal to them, and I can see the studio appreciating not just the storytelling possibilities it could open up - but the marketing ones.
Do you know when the rumors of him not directing first came out? I don't remember the timeline of events
Besides, there's no reason to believe he was outright lying at either of these moments. He could have been debating about it and then bis personal life hit him very hard. Plus as he said at CC, he just wasn't that enthusiastic about directing it, whereas the dude seems crazy for Batman. I don't think they ever even officially announced him as the director...People were just assuming. Coild be wrong there
NipplesAndToes23
Member
Not a good look DC.
broncobuster
Banned
Ben Affleck on playing Batman: 'I'd love to do it as long as they'll have me'
For the optimists,
For the cynics,
Some of the rumors (not THR's) claim Matt Reeves' proposed trilogy might not fit with Affleck's Batman. Possibly taking place in the past. Nobody can say for sure, and that includes Mr. Affleck right now.
For the optimists,
For the cynics,
Some of the rumors (not THR's) claim Matt Reeves' proposed trilogy might not fit with Affleck's Batman. Possibly taking place in the past. Nobody can say for sure, and that includes Mr. Affleck right now.
The ultimate knowledge is knowing that you know nothing
Grizzlyjin
Supersonic, idiotic, disconnecting, not respecting, who would really ever wanna go and top that
It was official. Warner Bros made a big deal about it, press release and all.
http://variety.com/2016/film/news/ben-affleck-batman-standalone-directing-1201752021/
Flashpoint was a storyline from the comics in which Flash goes back in time to save his mother from being killed, and by a ripple effect changes the entire world. Bruce Wayne has died and his mom and dad have become the Joker and Batman respectively, Aquaman and Wonder Woman are at war, etc. After righting the situation and returning to what should be his original timeline, Flash finds that everything is similar but differentthis is the rebooted continuity that has been running in the comics for the past several years. The Flashpoint storyline has been used in both the animated movies and the CW shows by now, with the CW Flash also affecting the other shows in small ways. It goes to reason that if the movies are using Flashpoint, they would use it to create some sort of retcon, reboot, or reset as well.
Dreams-Visions
Member
Just let Patty and the other guy direct all the rest of the movies and Snyder do the action. That seems like a great setup if Zach is willing to take that sort of roll. His action remains godtier.