Warner Bros. Has a 10-Year MCU-Like Plan For Batman, Superman & DC

Warner Bros. Discovery has announced changes to the studio's structure, with a 'theatrical' DC Films shift and combining with HBO Max.

HBO Max and Warner Bros. Discovery are merging into a new streaming platform that will launch in Summer 2023. During a Q2 earnings call on Thursday (August 4), Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav referenced the cancellation of films Batgirl and Scoob: Holiday Haunt, saying that the studio would "fully embrace theatrical" and take "aggressive steps to course correct" their previous direct-to-streaming offerings.

Per Too Fab, Zaslav shared that the film company is "on the right path to meet our strategic goals and really excel, both creatively and financially," adding that the studio is focused on creating "compelling and diverse offerings in the world."

"DC is one of the top of the list for us. You look at Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, these are brands that are known all around the world. Big opportunity for us," said Zaslav, adding that the studio has "done a reset" on superhero films.

"There will be a team with a 10-year plan just focusing on DC," he added. "We think we can build a long-term, much stronger, sustainable growth business out of DC."

"We're not going to release any film that's not ready. The focus is going to be how to we make each of these films as good as possible," he continued. "DC is something we think we can make better. We have some great DC films coming up, Black Adam, Shazam and Flash. We've seen them, we think they're terrific and we think we can make them even better." Starring Leslie Grace, Batgirl was shelved from the WBD slate in an announcement on Tuesday (August 2). On Instagram the following day, Grace responded to film's cancellation, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

“On the heels of the recent news about our movie ‘Batgirl,’ I am proud of the love, hard work and intention all of our incredible cast and tireless crew put into this film over 7 months in Scotland,” wrote Grace. “I feel blessed to have worked among absolute greats and forged relationships for a lifetime in the process! To every Batgirl fan — THANK YOU for the love and belief, allowing me to take on the cape and become, as Babs said best, ‘my own damn hero!’ Batgirl for life!”Speaking on the HBO Max merger, Zaslav promised that HBO and HBO Max service would remain "the centerpiece" of their new initiative.

"Our strategy is to embrace and support and drive the incredible success that HBO Max is having."

JB Perrette, CEO and president of global streaming and games also spoke about Discovery+ and HBO Max becoming a single service.

“At the end of the day, putting all the content together was the only way we saw to make this a viable business,” Perrette said. Bringing HBO Max and Discovery+ together is aimed at cutting churn so “there’s something for everyone in the household,” he said.