One of the questions that DC Universe fans have had since a greater “DC Cinematic Universe” was formally announced with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice has been “will the worlds of Arrow and the upcoming Flash television shows be a part of it all?” Well, it seems DC Chief Creative Officer Geoff Johns has finally given a definitive answer on the subject at the TCA (Television Critics Association) presentation for the upcoming Flash series, via IGN;  “You’ll see a lot of DC universe characters on The Flash and on Arrow. You won’t see Batman or Superman. We’re on production on Batman V Superman now. So you’ll see characters like The Atom or Firestorm, but no not Batman or Superman right now. It’s a separate universe than film so that the filmmakers can tell the story that’s best for film while we explore something different in a different corner of the DC Universe. We will not be integrating the film and television universes.”
Well, that seems like a pretty solid “NO” from the person in charge, so it looks like the Marvel Cinematic Universe model isn’t something they’re going to be emulating anytime soon, with the same universe sharing both movie and television screens at the same time. While this might be frustrating for many, it actually is in keeping with how the DC multiverse has always operated, which is to have as many alternate versions of their main characters as possible. Even when there wasn’t a multiverse proper at DC following Crisis on Infinite Earths, there were years and years of Elseworlds stories featuring alternate takes on their most famous characters.
In the meantime, both The Flash and Arrow are set to have a big presence at Comic-Con this upcoming week, with the Flash pilot being screened for the public for the first time.
Does the separate universes upset you or are you jazzed that you essentially have two completely different continuities to enjoy without having the weight of everything on your poor hypothetical shoulders. Let us know below!
Image: The CW
Just thinking about the implication of The Flash pilot teasing Crisis on Infinite Earths… Hmmm… So you have different versions of heroes in different universes, how do you solve that problem? That would be awesome.
It depends on the story that each show is trying to tell. You could get away away with Batman but even introducing the idea of Superman immediately makes the story sci-fi rather than action/adventure. That’s why Superman couldn’t exist in the world of the Dark Knight films and probably not in Arrow either.
This a shame. I think DC is missing the ‘mark’ with this one and they fail to ‘keep up’ with Marvel but their gamble may pay off. Personally, Id prefer Stephen and Grant be in both the TV and the movie Universe but we don’t always get what we want.
I have mixed feelings about this. Mostly in that I wouldn’t want Arrow or Flash played by different people in the DC Universe unless they were also going to be older versions of the characters.
I think I would be content if in the very least Arrow and Flash would be allowed the existence of Superman and Batman in their universe even if they can’t show them. That would open characters like Nightwing for us and still able to say he trained under Batman. As one example.
I hope that makes sense…
What a wasted opportunity. If the movies try to cast their own Green Arrow or Flash, they could spoil the films if they are not as good as the actors who are on TV now and they’ve set the bar really good. There’s a reason why Superman Returns didn’t get the footing it needed and it was partly because fans were too much into Smallville to care about someone else playing their hero. Splitting the fanbase is never a good idea. Fans love crossovers, Avengers proves that fans will come out in flocks to see it. DC has better just give the people what they want…
dumb fucks
Having 2 universes is awesome, It leaves open the possibility of Crisis on infinite earths, The movies and tv shows can still exist in the same multiverse and crossover if they choose to do so,
I doubt this will happen but I wish it would. The leaked Flash pilot even hinted at Crisis in its future. The same actors or older actors would leave that open, but DC/WB doesn’t seem interested in any of that.
Thank goodness! I don’t want movies messing up my TV. And vice versa. This gives the viewer the opportunity to see multiple versions of these characters and not have to keep straight what happened in episode 5 of Season 2 of Arrow while watching the Justice League 6.
Amen.
It’s really disappointing and a huge missed opportunity. Their stable of characters is deeper and more universally known than Marvel’s and they are basically saying they hate money.
I actually think it’s a good idea to separate both series and movies. Even if SHIELD was ok, the correlation between the show and all the Marvel movies kept the show for becoming it’s own thing. Here, with Flash and Arrow, they can really go all in and don’t have to care about what is happening in the movies at all. The most interresting thing they could do is add Batman and/or Superman as a background story to set some events in motion, all unrelated to the movies. With Flash adding the supernatural factor to the Arrow universe, next best thing could be a good Superman show !
But what is a Justice League without the Flash? Or do they just have a different guy playing him in the movies? It will be confusing to people who discover Flash (should he appear in the movies) and decide to watch the show (should it still be on). It seems like an unnecessary change to me.
The Justice League movie will still be the JL just without any restrictions or characters from the tv universe.
Not nearly as straightforward as having Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch in two separate movies with different backstories and played by different actors…
that because fox are fucked in the head mate
A different Flash is definitely in the JL plans. He’s getting a team-up film with Green Lantern. If they made it Wally instead of Barry, I’d kiss all of them.
You clearly stopped watching SHIELD.
I, for one, am glad. As an educator I have a very limited budget. I was lucky I was able to see “Captain America: Winter Soldier” the weekend it came out so I didn’t ruin the movie or ending with my viewing of “S.H.I.E.L.D”which openly integrated the events the following week’s episode. That doesn’t always happen. So, now the pressure is off to have to keep up on opening weekend with EVERY superhero movie to go along with every show I watch.
This is why DVRs are a thing.
They don’t need to directly interact unless they use the tv characters in the movies, and it could save so much back story screen time for the movies with just some small mentions on both.
Huge mistake…
Disappointing! I think they have missed a huge opportunity…
FUBAR
Big mistake!
You make me sad. Yet again, DC fails to even keep up, despite having relatively deep overall characters.