My Thoughts For Justice League 2015

Now that DC has made the official announcement that DC and Warner Bros. are making a Justice League movie to be filmed next year and released in theaters in 2015, it's time to start discussing what we want to see.   I am relatively new to the comic book world, but I have quickly become near obsessed.  DC has said that JL will work opposite of the direction that Marvel's Avengers worked.  Instead of using the individual movies to set up the team up, this team up movie will set up the individual movies to follow it.  So what do we want to see?  Who do we want to see?  Below I share my thoughts on everything from potential directors to JL members and the people that should play them.  Enjoy and please feel free to argue with me in the comments below!



Director:

The most crucial pick.  Whoever directs this movie needs to be working in close conjunction with every other director used in the individual character movies.  This guy will work heavily with Geoff Johns on deciding the future direction of the DC movie universe.

My pick:  Ruben Fleischer

 Ruben is my pick because he is young, fresh, and inventive.  His work in Zombieville was excellent.  Choosing Fleischer would move DC slightly away from the direction of the successful Christopher Nolan Batman series.  The truth is, though, that a good team-up needs to have a little bit more lightness.  The story needs to be big, but I just don't know if I could handle sitting through another 3 hours of Nolan darkness without laughing at least 1-2 times.
 

Other Interesting Picks (in order of my interest)

1. Zack Snyder--He is already directing the new Man of Steel movie.  If you feel he is leading that into a worthy direction than you have to consider giving him the lead on the entire DC universe.  Plus, the 300 was just awesome!

2. Quentin Tarantino--It won't happen, but I just can't help picturing how interesting the movie would be if he was in charge.  Marvel made a big splash by going with Joss Whedon, could this be DC's big surprise choice?

3. Michael Bay--Yes, the Transformers trilogy and recent history have told us that Bay cares more about special effects than story.  However, I have not forgotten that he made one the best movies of the 90's (Armageddon) and always seems to have great success at the box office.

4. Tom Hooper--The brilliant director of The King's Speech.  Could he do action?

5. Simon West--Director of big action movies like Con-Air and The Expendables

6. Sam Mendes--Oscar winner and current Bond director.



Writer:  Will Beall

The writer has already been chosen, and he is already writing the script.  Beall is relatively new, but has done a brilliant job as the primary writer for the show Castle.  He is a young popular pick as he is currently writing scripts for JL, Gangster Squad, and the Lethal Weapon reboot.  Here is to hoping that Beall will be wise with how he builds this JL team.

The Characters

Who should form the Justice League?  I know the most popular answer will be to go with the super 7, the perfect Justice League by most standards, but I would shy away from it.  Why?  I honestly don't know if Aquaman would bring anything to the team on screen and would force the story into more water related areas.  Instead, I would like to see the team add Hawkman as an overly gritty older character who brings the team together.

Superman:  Henry Cavill

Cavill is Superman in the new Man of Steel rendition.  Let's hope the movie succeeds, he rocks, and they are able to keep him on board for Justice League.

Batman:

My pick:  Thomas Jane

Jane has worked with comic book characters in the past, as the voice of Jonah Hex and as the gritty Punisher.  Jane would be a little older than what might be ideal, but I think he would bring the seriousness that Batman needs to bring to this group.  Let the other characters be comic relief, let him just be awesome.

Other options:

1. Bradley Cooper--He could definetely look the part, but can he take on a series role?

2. Josh Lucas--He would be my top pick if I didn't really want to see him play another role on this team.

3. Matt Damon--C'mon!  You know he would be an interesting Bat!

Wonder Woman: 

My pick:  Stana Katic

Stana is awesome as Beckett on the show Castle (which Beall writes for!).  She has that subtle ability to be witty, tough, intellegent, and believable.  All aspects I want from WW.

Other options:

 1. Gemma Arterton--A close second to Stana.  She has displayed her action movie chops as a Bond girl, in Prince of Persia, and Clash of the Titans.

2. Eliza Dushku--Probably won't happen, but she was awesome in Buffy.

3. Megan Fox, Jessica Biel, Kiera Knightley--Not super fond of any of these three, but the movie does need some star power to compete with Avengers cast.


Green Lantern:

My pick:  Josh Lucas

Lucas would b truly awesome for this part.  He is a good actor, passionate, just enough humor to hold up this role.  

Other Option:

1. Bradley Cooper--I think he would excel at this role.  He would be great to bring the funny.


Flash:

My Pick:  Shia Lebeouf

Let's face it, this guy is good at action movies.  He fits the modern dilemma of using people who look common to become the heroes.  He excelled in this role in Eagle Eye and Transformers.  If there is one character in this list that I want to absolutely feel like he is standing among giants, it is Flash.  Make him seem like the one out of place, then let him be integral in winning the day.

Other Options:

1. Ryan Gosling--Let's face it, he would make ladies want to watch this movie.

2. Callan McAuliffe--young  actor with tons of potential.  He could easily be the young man of the group.

Hawkman:

My Pick:  Kiefer Sutherland

Would this not be the perfect pick?  Just imagine his voice, anger, aggression mixed with the awesome Nth metal suit.  He is absolutely perfect for this role.  Also, this is exactly why they need to go with Hawkman.  If they can get him, Kiefer fits the role perfectly.  This gives you one character who automatically gets a solo title after JL, and you know that he can carry a movie lead well.

Other Option:  Harrison Ford

Tell me you wouldn't want to see that?  That's what I thought.

Cyborg:  

My Pick: Dwayne Johnson

This pick may be silly, but the Rock is an amazing athlete.  He would easily bring some awesome hand-to-hand smackdown type moments.  He isn't a perfect fit, but would be a cool one.

Other Option:  Nick Cannon

He would bring a younger, every-man attitude to this role.  It could work, or it could fail miserably.


The Villian:  Despero

While we need to see some of the big name villians of the DC universe to either make appearances or be hinted at, DC needs to start this one with a relatively unknown but very difficult villian to face.  Despero brings toughness, mind-control ability, and the ability to change size and become massive.  He would be a tough out for the JL while still leaving the best fights on the table (Darkseid, Doomsday, etc.)  And who to play Despero than...

David Wenham

A very good actor who could bring more than fictional power to this villian.  He could give him real depth.


Other characters to cameo:

Prometheus:  Gerard Butler
Doomsday:  Andrew Pleavin


Which characters should get solo movies following (in order of my preferred release dates):

Hawkman (2016)

After allowing him to play the integral role of leading the JL to come together, bring Hawkman his solo title.  Allow it to focus on his eternal love for Hawkgirl and have a very fast paced action.  The villian is NOT super important to this movie.  This will also continue to allow Hawkman to gain popularity among the average person, increasing his comic book stock.

Batman (2016)

After introducing the new Batman in JL, the series reboots.  Make it continue with darker themes, and maybe even tie into some of the new themes emerging in the New 52.  This will be the centerpiece for the year after JL.

Man of Steel 2 (2017)

Allow this to be the Luthor v. Superman showdown.  Make Lex a worthy adversary, who fights, invents, and outwits superman until the very end.

Wonder Woman (2017)

Make this the one true origin story of the bunch.  Have Wonder Woman exploring her past and rediscovering why she became a protector of the human race.

Green Lantern (2018)

Make Green Lantern be fighting one villian when he discovers the enemy that will eventually take the whole team to beat in JL.  The enemy is Doomsday.  Make sure that GL loses but lives in this great battle.

Man of Steel 3 (2018)

Release it a little later in the summer, and have it be the great showdown between Superman and Doomsday.  Have Superman die in this one, at the hands of Doomsday, and leave it as a cliffhanger to see if the remaining members of the Justice League can destroy the ultimate killing machine.

Justice League 2:  Revenge (2019)

The Justice League seeks retribution for the death of Superman, but can they find a way to end Doomsday's reign of terror?  Perhaps introduce a new member or two (Aquaman, Martian Manhunter)



So what about you?  What do you hope to see?  Get on IMDB and find some better alternatives!