Posted in: HBO, Opinion, streaming, TV, TV | Tagged: damon lindelof, dc studios, dcu, HBO, james gunn, opinion, Watchmen

Watchmen Season 2: Time to Give Damon Lindelof a Call, James Gunn

Praised by critics and viewers alike, HBO and Damon Lindelof's pseudo-sequel spinoff/remix of writer Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons & colorist John Higgins' Watchmen did the impossible by blowing past the gatekeepers and comics snobs to produce a work of art worthy of the name "Watchmen." The limited series would go on to earn 11 Primetime Emmy Awards, including Best Limited Series; Regina King for Best Actress for a Limited Series; and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II for Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series (the most for any show in 2020). But even more impressive was Moore's overwhelming praise for… JUST KIDDING! He actually hasn't seen it (but apparently still hates it). And then… it just ended. And though there were rumblings and rumors and comments from HBO execs that more seasons were a possibility, Lindelof stayed true to his words that the season was a complete story for him and that he had told his story. And as much as we've wanted more of Lindelof's "Watchmen" universe, we respect his willingness to stick by his artistic integrity. But now that James Gunn & Peter Safran are the new co-heads of DC Studios, charged with mapping out a blueprint for the DCU, maybe it's time for Gunn to give Lindelof a call. And we're going to make our case by using Lindelof's own words against him.

During a sit-down with Deadline Hollywood's Dominic Patten, Lindelof readily admitted that he would be a hypocrite if he took issue with someone else coming in to play in his series' creative sandbox. "It would also be completely and utterly lacking in self-awareness for me to say that nobody should continue this story because Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, Alan more than Dave, certainly didn't want that original story continued, and I went along and did it anyway." In fact, Lindelof would go on to say that he sees the "Watchmen" universe as being "much more expansive than anybody gives it credit for," affording it the opportunity to have other storytellers come in to spin their tales. "I do think that the world is much more expansive than anybody gives it credit for. I would not decry or be insulted by a further exploration," Lindelof explained. "In fact, I'd be quite curious about future iterations of 'Watchmen' moving forward."

And that's where Gunn comes in because he and Safran have the ability to offer Lindelof something that I don't know if he was offered before. So from one creator to another, Gunn could make the pitch that Lindelof could be an over-arching executive producer for "Watchmen" that would allow him to bring in & help mentor a new generation of diverse writers & directors that could offer their own takes. Much like what appears to be going on with Matt Reeves's "The Batman" universe, Lindelof could have his own "pocket universe" to function in (apart from whatever the "core universe" is going to be). And if you're Warner Bros. Discovery head David Zaslav, then you're seeing something being done with a very successful IP for WBD (one that brought both prestige & big bucks to WBD's previous owners ). And as long as DC Comics continues to make a cluster-f**k of things on the comics side, the shows will never be the worst take on Watchmen out there.

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