Posted in: CW, Opinion, streaming, TV, TV | Tagged: henry cavill, opinion, superman, superman & lois, the cw, Tyler Hoechlin

Superman & Lois: Warner Bros. Discovery's DCU Comments A Bad Sign?

When it comes to the Tyler Hoechlin & Elizabeth Tulloch-starring Superman & Lois, it seems like being quality television that viewers love isn't enough to protect it from some very real-world "big bads." First, you have the uncertainty that comes with Nexstar taking over The CW with a programming model that looks to go cheap and easy with a heavier leaning towards unscripted and reality. While I'm not sure what the actual budget for the series is, I'm fairly certain that trimming down what The CW's fronting financially will leave us with a cross between cable access and parody porn (without the humor or porn). But there's always a backup, right? I mean, there's no way that Warner Bros. Discovery would let a show that popular just die off, right? Isn't that why we have HBO Max? Well…

That used to be the case until Warner Bros. Discovery's David Zaslav (of "Disco Dave" as we now call him) took over and started cutting programming and pretty much running down how HBO Max has been doing business since it's been in existence. And then "Disco Dave" did something right by appointing James Gunn and Peter Safran as the heads of DC Studios. Their mission? Map out a cohesive 8-10 year gameplan for the DCU moving forward. Sounds great, right? Even better? "Disco Dave" says the duo is "coming close to the end" of putting it all together. But not content with letting the two people who should always do the talking on DC Studios' behalf actually do the talking when their plan is unveiled, "Disco Dave" looked to grab headlines (and he definitely did) with this: "I think over the next few years, you're going to see a lot of growth and opportunity around DC; there's not going to be four Batmans. And so part of our strategy is [to] drive the hell out of DC, which James and Peter are going to do. I think they've thrilled the fans. I think they're going to thrill you over a period of time."

You see where this is going, right? If "Disco Dave" isn't looking for "four Batmans" then it's not hard to assume that he's not looking for "four Supermans" going forward, either. And considering all of the fanfare behind Henry Cavill rejoining the DCU as The Man of Steel, this does not bode well for Superman & Lois or Hoechlin's future as Superman. And that's not the only Superman projects in play, with Michael B. Jordan and J.J. Abrams both apparently involved in different takes on The Man of Steel. Again, this is all speculation, and none of this truly means anything until things are confirmed by the appropriate parties. But it's something for all DCU fans with shows on the bubble to keep in the back of their minds. 

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