If DC's planning a Crisis on Infinite Earths DCEU movie before the Warner Bros. Discovery merger.
The iconic DC comic event known as Crisis on Infinite Earths has long been thought of as the natural place for the DCEU to build to. The 1985 event from Marv Wolfman and George Perez brought decades of DC's multiverse storytelling to a head. A multiverse villain known as the Anti-Monitor begins destroying different universes as his good-natured counterpart, The Monitor, begins recruiting heroes and villains from across the multiverse to fight together. It concluded with a clean DC reboot where all the comics going forward could operate out of a single Earth. Since DC's movie plans continue to expand into multiple universes - like Joker's universe, to name a few - the notion of adapting the story as an epic movie event is understandable.
While Crisis on Infinite Earths could have been the DCEU reboot Warner Bros. Discovery could be looking for, the new 10-year DC film plans indicate that Hamada's vision is not happening. His plans for a Crisis on Infinite Earths DCEU movie are being scrapped in favor of this new vision. The decision creates a massive what-if scenario for the DC universe where a Crisis on Infinite Earths movie would help usher in a new era for the franchise.
When Would The DCEU's Crisis On Infinite Earths Have Happened
There is not much information on the DCEU's scrapped Crisis on Infinite Earths movie plans, including when audiences would see the massive event film. Joker: Folie à Deux is coming in 2024, and The Batman 2 is also in development - even though both of these titles are not currently connected to the DCEU. There are also movies like Green Lantern Corps, Zatanna, and a Superman reboot that have creatives attached.
DC's Crisis on Infinite Earths movie would have been years away, it seems. Warner Bros. and DC never publicly hired a writer to begin working on the script. The crossover movie also went against the Avengers: Secret Wars.
How DCEU's Crisis On Infinite Earths Would Have Happened
The DCEU's Crisis on Infinite Earths movie would likely happen similarly to the comics, as well as what happened on The CW when the Arrowverse tackled the same event. One potential difference could be that The Flash is made more responsible for the events and collapse of the multiverse. It is no secret that The Flash movie tells a multiverse story involving multiple versions of Barry Allen, two versions of Batman played by Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck, and Sasha Calle's Supergirl. The crux of Flash's journey is breaking and then resetting the DCEU timeline after he tries to save his mother's life. While The Flash and star Ezra Miller have been marred in controversy, reports indicating DC will recast the role for future appearances could the notion that Flash's ability to travel through time and the multiverse would be critical to a Crisis on Infinite Earths movie.
As the movie would likely revolve around rebooting the DCEU, a villain like Anti-Monitor would be a significant enough threat to gather together DC's biggest heroes from across the multiverse. The Secret Six were also mentioned as a villain possibility. It would be an opportunity to bring Robert Pattinson's Batman to the DCEU or even recast other roles with new actors. Meanwhile, Crisis on Infinite Earths could also get back former DC movie stars like Christian Bale's Batman. All of these elements would collide in a multiverse event that would be teased throughout multiple movies leading up to it, but that would also give the DCEU a fresh start once the dust settled.
What Would DCEU's Crisis Mean For The Justice League
One of the biggest benefits of the DCEU doing Crisis on Infinite Earths would mean an easy path to forming a new Justice League. Even as Ben Affleck's Batman keeps returning, he is not the future of the Dark Knight - and neither is Michael Keaton. Whether it would be recasting the role or bringing Robert Pattinson to the new DCEU continuity, Batman would be able to retain his place as the leader of the Justice League. DC could even use the movie to Justice League movies.
What Movies & Heroes Would The DCEU's Crisis On Infinite Earths Have Set Up?
DC's Crisis on Infinite Earths movie would understandably have massive ramifications on the films and heroes coming in the next phase of the DCEU. There would certainly be room for new solo movies for Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and Flash, as well as Batman, Superman or Supergirl, and Green Lantern. DC heroes like Green Arrow, Static Shock, The Atom, Hawkgirl, Booster Gold, and others could also be positioned to play primary or ing roles in this new DCEU continuity. The studio would then be able to take the franchise in any direction it wanted, whether that be building towards Darkseid, making Lex Luthor an overarching foe, or forming the Legion of Doom to oppose a new Justice League team.
Would The DCEU's Crisis On Infinite Earths Plan Have Worked?
The idea of doing Crisis on Infinite Earths as a DCEU movie is intriguing, but it also would have been risky. There are several movie universes that DC is currently making films in. The main DCEU continuity is messy but also holds plenty of potential for the future. The Batman exists in its own universe with plans to create an entire franchise around Matt Reeves' vision, and the critical acclaim to start means changing course in such a drastic way by sending Robert Pattinson's Batman to the DCEU could be met with a mixed reception. The Joker franchise also is its continuity, and this would be the one most changed by a multiverse event. Meanwhile, the hopes for the SnyderVerse to return makes Crisis on Infinite Earths a polarizing idea, as it would likely mean the death of that universe.
Whether DC's Crisis on Infinite Earths plan would have worked depends entirely on the timing and planning involved. Audiences would recognize if it were rushed as a means to reset the DCEU, and not properly developing such a massive event could make such a crossover extremely messy. DC's lack of planning is one of the reasons the franchise and Hamada would even consider doing Crisis on Infinite Earths at this point. Repeating that mistake with its attempted reset would have been a colossal mistake. However, if the movie had been well-thought-out and secured a talented creative team, the mixture of nostalgia and epic storytelling could have made Crisis on Infinite Earths a massive hit for the DCEU.
Can The DCEU's Crisis On Infinite Earths Still Happen (Eventually)?
Warner Bros. Discovery closing the door on Hamada's original Crisis on Infinite Earths movie plans does not mean it will never happen. Such a movie is not even necessarily dependent on the franchise being able to cultivate a successful cinematic universe in the future. Whether the DCEU 10-year plan helps it thrive as a shared universe or if it continues to struggle to find a cohesive overall vision, a Crisis on Infinite Earths movie will happen at some point. There is too much potential for it to become the highest-grossing DC movie ever for Warner Bros. to ignore it forever. It might take another decade, but Crisis on Infinite Earths could be the culmination of DCEU's new 10-year plan.
