It’s A Bird! It’s A Plane! It’s Chris Nolan! He’ll Mentor Superman 3.0 And Prep 3rd Batman – Nikki Finke on Deadline.com/hollywood

Hollywood Entertainment Breaking News – Nikki Finke on Deadline.com/hollywood

It’s A Bird! It’s A Plane! It’s Chris Nolan! He’ll Mentor Superman 3.0 And Prep 3rd Batman
By NIKKI FINKE AND MIKE FLEMING | Category: Uncategorized | Tuesday February 9, 2010 @ 6:50am

EXCLUSIVE: Warner Bros is trying to ready its DC Comics stalwart Superman to soar again on the Big Screen, and the studio has turned to Chris Nolan to mentor development of the movie. Our insiders say that the brains behind rebooted Batman has been asked to play a “godfather” role and ensure The Man Of Steel gets off the ground after a 3 1/2-year hiatus. Nolan’s leadership of the project can set it in the right direction with the critics and the fans, not to mention at the box office. Besides, Nolan is considered something of a god at Warner Bros and has a strong relationship with the studio after the success of Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. Though he wasn’t obligated to do so, he gave the studio first crack at his spec script Inception, and Warner Bros was able to buy it before other studios even got a sniff. While Nolan completes that Leonardo DiCaprio-starrer for a July 16th release, he’s also hatched an idea for Warner Bros’ third Batman installment. Now his brother and frequent collaborator Jonah Nolan, and David Goyer who co-wrote Batman Begins and penned the story for The Dark Knight, are off scripting it. (See ‘FlashForward’ Showrunner Exits For Features).

Let us emphasize that Superman 3.0 is in the early stages of development. And we doubt Nolan would direct. This wouldn’t be a sequel to Superman Returns but a completely fresh franchise. As one of our insiders reassures: “It would definitely not be a followup to Superman Returns.” Nolan coming on board follows a hiatus period for Superman after that 2006 reboot as the studio tried to figure out whether or not to make a sequel to that version starring Brandon Routh directed by Bryan Singer. As recently as this summer, Warner Bros was still contemplating how to proceed. We were told that “Bryan or Brandon are not completely out of it yet. But Warner Bros doesn’t have a handle yet on it, either. [Producer] Jon Peters is trying to make something happen since he stands to benefit financially. But they [the studio] need to hear a great story that makes sense.” Another insider explained to us, “We know what we don’t want to do. But we don’t know what we want to do. We learned a lot from the last movie, and we want to get it right this time.”

Fans have long been yearning for Superman to finally get the big screen Nolan-ized treatment this classic superhero deserves. Warner Bros clearly has learned from its attempt to follow the mediocre 1978-1985 quartet of movies starring Christopher Reeve and produced by Ilya and Alexander Salkind, with 2006’s underwhelming Superman Returns. That inbetween period was plagued by long delays and budget troubles and script misses. In 1997, original Batman director Tim Burton tried to make a Superman movie starring Nicolas Cage. Around 2004, J.J. Abrams wrote a film that was the first leg of a trilogy. Abrams wanted to direct, but had only directed episodes of his TV series (and wouldn’t make his feature directing debut until 2006’s Mission:Impossible III. McG and Brett Ratner separately were attached to that film. Ratner got closest, but Warner Bros was wary of a budget that swelled to $250 million, and which seemed risky after established star Josh Hartnett turned down the 3-picture deal that could have brought him $100 million in salary. After that, Warner Bros bosses didn’t embrace Ratner’s s choice of soap opera actor Matt Bomer to star.

Other prominent filmmakers were reportedly in the loop, but Warner Bros never pulled the trigger on the picture until Bryan Singer’s involvement. Singer’s Superman Returns was respectably reviewed for the genre. But it turned in only $52 million opening weekend, and $391 million worldwide gross. Problem was it cost too much (the budget was reportedly $270 million), and the promotion was lousy (Joel Silver was brought in at the last minute to inject macho into the marketing campaign). Worse, it left diehard fans only “meh” about a sequel starring Routh. Singer fared better, but it seems doubtful he’ll be asked for an encore now. After all, Singer is now developing the spinoff X-Men: First Class for 20th Century Fox whose bosses were furious when he took on The Man Of Steel reboot instead of helming X-Men 3. But Singer and the studio subsequently made peace and he’s back in the Fox fold and on board.

The restructuring of Warner Bros’ business with DC Comics became Warner Bros Pictures Group president Jeff Robinov’s first priority since having his contract reupped by Time Warner last summer. Problems have plagued the DC Comics-Warner Bros relationship for more than a decade. But the biggest failure has been to leave the most valuable DC Comics characters in movie development limbo by chaotically starting and stopping development on the high profile live action pics. Most recently, Warner Bros and DC Comics are finally getting their act together as evidenced by the progress on Green Lantern.

Superman 3.0 would test Warner Bros veteran executive Diane Nelson, the head of DC Entertainment Inc, that new company founded to fully realize and integrate the power and value of the DC Comics brand and characters across all media and platforms into Warner Bros Entertainment’s content and distribution businesses. Nelson especially was charged with suping up Superman again because it’s way too valuable to leave dormant like this. Besides, the clock is ticking.

Attorney Marc Toberoff, who keeps suing Warner Bros on behalf of creative rightsholders, warns that, in 2013, the Jerome Siegel heirs along with the estate of co-creator Joe Shuster will own the entire original copyright to Superman — “and neither DC Comics nor Warner Bros will be able to exploit any new Superman works without a license from the Siegels and Shusters”. He’s also pointed out that, if Warner Bros does not start production on a new Superman sequel or reboot by 2011, the Siegels could sue to recover their damages on the grounds that the deal should have contained a clause in which the rights returned to the owners after a given time if no film was in development. The heirs of Siegel have already been awarded half the copyright for Superman. And in 2013 the heirs of co-creator Joe Shuster get the remaining half. After that, neither DC Comics nor Warner Bros will be able to use Superman without a financial agreement with the heirs. There are also stipulations on what parts of the origins story can be used in future Superman movies and which require re-negotiations with the creators’ heirs or estates.

At first, Warner Bros felt no pressure to rush out another Superman pic. As Warner Bros chairman Alan Horn told a court hearing about rights to Superman, he hoped to make another Superman movie but no film was in development, no script had been written, and the earliest he foresaw another Superman film released would be 2012. He told the judge: “We had hopes to keep the character alive and to once again reinvent Superman. Our hope is to develop a Superman property and to try again. What hurt us is that the reviews and so on for the Superman movie did not get the kind of critical acclaim that Batman got, and we have other issues with Superman that concern us.”

So Warner Bros is now bringing in Batman’s saviour. What Nolan would do with the Superman character and story is intriguing to say the least. And he has the experience necessary of prepping and pepping a played-out franchise. The 2005 Batman Begins grossed $373 million worldwide on a reported $150 million budget. And of course 2008’s The Dark Knight crossed the $1 billion worldwide gross mark on a reported $185 million budget (and Heath Ledger posthumously won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor).

But Batman has always been The Dark Knight. But there’s a big difference between Superman’s cinematic incarnation and comic-book version. Warner Brothers and DC Comics for a long time weren’t sure which version they liked better. The cinematic version has been squeaky clean, occasionally campy, and has more-or-less unlimited power except when confronted with Kryptonite. The comic book version has some limits on his powers, can be darker, and fights aliens a lot more. Shortly after Dark Knight hit it big, fans assumed that Superman would be taken to the “dark” side as well. That’s because Warner Bros mogul Jeff Robinov stressed post-Dark Knight that “we have to look at how to make these movies edgier”. One of our insiders interpreted this to say: “He meant more sophisticated.”

A more comic-accurate Superman seems like the way to go. No need to worry: Chris Nolan knows what he’s doing

Entire Christopher Reeve Superman Collection for less than $27 on Amazon.com!

You can get the entire Christopher Reeve Superman Collection for 61% off!

Industry Reacts to Levitz, DC Entertainment – Comic Book Resources

The rest of the article at the link below

Industry Reacts to Levitz, DC Entertainment – Comic Book Resources

Posted: 5 hours ago | Updated: 4 hours ago

This morning, DC Comics’ The Source blog lit up with release after release outlining the new shape that the just rechristened “DC Entertainment” will take in 2010 and beyond. Much like last week’s shocker news that Disney plans purchase Marvel, the word from DC’s parent company Warner Bros. on the future of the comics giant represents a game-changer for the comics entertainment landscape.

Compounding that massive change is the fact that legendary writer and longtime DC executive Paul Levitz will step down as the company’s Publisher and President to be a consultant and writer, starting with issue #7 of the recently re-launched “Adventure Comics.”

With the news already burning up the blogosphere, CBR reached out to a raft of DC talent to get their take on Levtiz’s legacy as the leader of DC and what the changes mean for the new DC Entertainment. Be sure to check back throughout the day as we update with more reactions and opinions.

Levitz & Nelson on DC Entertainment – Comic Book Resources

The rest of the article at the link below

Levitz & Nelson on DC Entertainment – Comic Book Resources

News broke Wednesday that Paul Levitz, the President and Publisher of DC Comics since 2002 and a chief architect of the publisher’s success in other roles since the 1970s, had resigned. Levitz saw DC through such publishing milestones as “Watchmen” and “The Dark Knight Returns,” the formation of its influential Vertigo imprint, and guided the publisher through the creation of the direct market. Once a hugely popular writer of such DC titles as “The Legion of Super-Heroes,” Levitz will return to writing comic books full time, beginning with next year’s “Adventure Comics” #7. Levitz will also serve as a multipurpose consultant as the company continues its restructuring, a process which includes hiring a new Publisher.

Concurrently, DC Comics parent company Warner Bros. Entertainment announced the formation of DC Entertainment, a new entity under which DC Comics will continue to operate. DC Entertainment’s stated mission is to strategically exploit the DC brand across all media, such as video games and feature film. DC Entertainment’s President is Diane Nelson, who most recently served as the President of Warner Premiere, WB’s direct-to-consumer brand responsible for the “Green Lantern: First Flight” and “Batman: Gotham Knight” DVD features, among other projects. Most auspiciously, Nelson has managed the Harry Potter franchise for Warner Bros. since 1999, turning JK Rowling’s best-selling novels into a multimedia empire.

To learn more about DC Entertainment’s plans for DC Comics and what role Levitz will play in the newly organized company, CBR News spoke with Levitz and Nelson about all the day’s big news.

CBR Staff Writer Andy Khouri contributed to this story.
Story continues below

Warner Bros. reboots DC Comics in bid to rival Marvel on big screen | Company Town | Los Angeles Times

Warner Bros. reboots DC Comics in bid to rival Marvel on big screen | Company Town | Los Angeles Times

Warner Bros. reboots DC Comics in bid to rival Marvel on big screen
September 9, 2009 | 11:34 am

Warner Bros. is hoping to bring some Harry Potter magic to its DC Comics brand.

Sick of being second banana to comic book competitor Marvel Entertainment in the movie world, the studio has brought DC in-house and appointed Diane Nelson, a brand management executive who has overseen the Harry Potter franchise since 2000 to run the unit.

Along with the move, Warner Bros. is changing DC Comics’ corporate name to mirror that of its rival. The division will now be known as DC Entertainment.

While Warner’s move has been long rumored in Hollywood, it comes just a week after Walt Disney Co. agreed to acquire Marvel for $4 billion.

Warner is hoping Nelson will be able to duplicate Harry Potter’s amazing track record with DC’s rich library of characters across movies, television, video games, the Web and consumer products. The Potter franchise, the most successful in the studio’s history, has generated more than $5.4 billion in worldwide box office and billions more from DVDs, video games and other markets.

DC Entertainment will be a separate division of the studio, with Nelson reporting to Warner Bros. Pictures Group President Jeff Robinov.

While rival Marvel has turned super heroes including Spider-Man, Iron Man and the X-Men into big screen juggernauts, the only DC hero with a hit series of films in the last decade has been Batman. “The Dark Knight” generated more than $1 billion in worldwide box office, while “Batman Begins” grossed $373 million. However, March’s “Watchmen” was a disappointment, 2006’s costly “Superman Returns” wasn’t successful enough to merit a sequel, and 2004’s “Catwoman” was a major flop.

DC Comics’ predecessor company began publishing in 1935 and launched the super hero phenomenon, which came to define the medium, when Superman debuted in Action Comics #1 in 1938. The late media mogul Steve Ross acquired DC in 1968. The next year he bought Warners’ then-parent company Warner Communication and folded DC into it.

Warner currently has several DC projects in development as movies, including “The Green Lantern,” starring Ryan Reynolds, which the studio hopes will be its next super-hero tent pole when released in 2011. Other movies include “Jonah Hex,” a supernatural western that just completed production; “The Losers,” which started shooting in July; and “Lobo,” based on the space-faring anti-hero. It also recently released a direct-to-DVD animated movie about Green Lantern and video game starring Batman. A television series based on DC’s “The Human Target” is on the Fox network’s mid-season schedule.

As part of the corporate reshuffling, DC’s longtime publisher Paul Levitz, who has been with the company since the 1970s and became president in 2002, is stepping aside to become a consultant. He will also serve as a contributing editor and continue writing comic books, which he has done for his entire career.

The news of Warner Bros.’ move was first reported on Deadline Hollywood.

– Claudia Eller and Ben Fritz

Cup O’ Joe: Cup O’ Q&A: The Disney Acquisition – Comic Book Resources

Rest of the article at the link below

Cup O’ Joe: Cup O’ Q&A: The Disney Acquisition – Comic Book Resources

CUP O’ JOE is back with a very, very special Wednesday edition CUP O’ Q&A. Here, for the first time, Joe Quesada, Editor-in-Chief of Marvel Comics, answers questions posed by CBR News and CBR readers regarding the recently announced acquisition of Marvel Entertainment by The Walt Disney Company.

This will be Quesada’s exclusive, one and only interview on the matter for the next several months, until the SEC formalities are concluded and the Marvel-Disney deal is done, as detailed in the lengthy legal statements found at the bottom of this story.

CUP O’ JOE is Executive Produced by Jonah Weiland and Produced by Kiel Phegley.

Busiek.com: Paul Levitz

Busiek.com: Paul Levitz

Paul Levitz

Some years ago, while I was negotiating with DC Comics over their offer to publish Astro City after the initial 6-issue run at Image, I was in Paul Levitz’s office talking over contract terms. I mentioned there were a couple of points that were troubling to me, and Paul told me he couldn’t take them out of the contract, but he could assure me, if it had value to me, that as long as he was sitting in the Publisher’s chair at DC those clauses wouldn’t be activated. I said that no offense meant, but there was no guarantee that he was going to stay in that chair, so while I believed him and appreciated the gesture, I still had to negotiate as if those clauses could be triggered tomorrow. He nodded, and acknowledged that while he had no intention of leaving DC any time soon, that yeah, there were no guarantees. I wound up signing with Wildstorm—and then DC bought Wildstorm, and has published Astro City ever since. Though I’m glad to report that the contract doesn’t have those two clauses that troubled me, because DC bought the Wildstorm contract along with the company.

And I’ve been glad to have Paul at the helm; had it not been for those two minor contractual terms, I’d have happily signed with DC then and there.

Well, today—over a decade since that conversation—the day came. The internet’s abuzz with the news that Warner Bros. is reorganizing DC Comics, creating a new company called DC Entertainment to shepherd DC’s characters and concepts more smoothly into movies, TV and other media. And as part of that restructuring, Paul is stepping down as President and Publisher and will return to writing, as well as being a contributing editor and a consultant to the new management.

As I’ve told a couple of the comics news organizations already, the DC Entertainment news, like the Disney-buys-Marvel news, doesn’t much interest me—it’s all about movies and video games and brand management, and I’m sure it’ll change the way things get done in some ways, but the part of the industry I care most about, the comics—it doesn’t seem to affect that much at all.

But Paul Levitz leaving DC management?

That’s huge. That’s the story that’s going to change things.

Paul has been at the forefront of just about every industry development of the last couple of decades, and has been key to how the industry’s shaped itself over those years. Shifting from a periodicals-only business to a strong backlist-oriented business with trade paperbacks and hardcovers, adding imprints like Vertigo, creating new opportunities for creators and for creator ownership, seeing that DC gave a fair (or at least fairer) deal to the creators who originated the concepts that turned up in DC-based movies, from Arkham Asylum and Lucius Fox to Robin’s motorcycles (yeah, because they called Chris O’Donnell’s ride the “Redbird” in one of the movies, Paul Levitz saw to it that Chuck Dixon got money) and more, Paul was an important part of a huge number of changes that DC’s seen, and that the whole industry’s seen. Some of them big changes everyone’s noticed, some of them behind-the-scenes stuff few people know about.

And some people have been impatient that Paul was cautious, and wanted him to move faster, to leap into new things instead of easing into them. But in an industry where many publishers throw money into the latest cool thing, only to find themselves overextended and floundering, Paul was always careful that growth and change should be sustainable, doing things like building a backlist of trade paperbacks slowly, so the revenue from the existing books would fuel the addition of new ones, and a large library was built over time. And often, when other publishers’ precipitous actions had made things unstable, DC Comics provided a backstop, a stability that let the comics industry ride out the rough waters and get to the next safe haven. To mix metaphors shamelessly.

Paul is one of a very few people who’ve been absolutely key in shaping the comics industry from what it was in the mid-Seventies to what it is today. Staggering changes, built slowly over time, so that DC (and the companies that adopted DC’s innovations) could build from strength to strength.

I don’t know who’ll sit in that chair next, and I don’t know what they’ll do. But whoever they are, whatever their experience, instincts, skill and priorities, they’ll be different from Paul’s, and that’ll change comics. In a good way? In a bad way? Probably a mixture of the two. But this, I’m confident, is where the big changes for comics publishing will be coming from. Not Disney deals and movie plans, but a new guy in what for a long time was the most stable, influential, skilfully-run office in the business.

On the other hand, while the freelancer in me braces for change, the reader part of me is delighted that we’re going to see Paul Levitz writing comics again, starting with Legion of Superheroes, the feature that established his name for so many enthusiastic fans. No door closes but a window opens somewhere, and I can’t wait.

And just to wrap up—I’m reminded of a text feature, back in DC books in the mid-Seventies, one of those “DC ProFiles” or “Meet the Staff” features, that gave a quickie bio of and interview with Paul. At the time, he was attending college and paying his way by working for DC in his spare time, and the bit of it I’ve always remembered is the part where Paul said that he couldn’t see staying in comics after he graduated, that he loved what he was doing, but his career plans would take him elsewhere.

Well, maybe you didn’t see it then, Paul, but your plans changed, and took you along a pretty damn cool career path. And comics has been better off for it. So congratulations on all you’ve done.

And now new possibilities open up, and we’ll get to see what Paul Levitz does next. Whatever it is, it’ll be worth watching.

[And I haven't been able to find that mid-70s DC text feature again, so if anyone knows where it ran, let me know so I can dig it out, huh?]

DC Universe: The Source » Blog Archive » WARNER BROS. CREATES DC ENTERTAINMENT

Speculation is over.  Levitz won’t be leaving altogether, but will be doing more writing

DC Universe: The Source » Blog Archive » WARNER BROS. CREATES DC ENTERTAINMENT

Wednesday, September 9th, 2009

By David Hyde

WARNER BROS. CREATES DC ENTERTAINMENT

Diane Nelson to Serve as President, DC Entertainment

Paul Levitz to Segue from President & Publisher of DC Comics

To Writer, Contributing Editor and Overall Consultant to DC Entertainment

(Dateline – Burbank, CA) Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI) has created DC Entertainment Inc., a new company founded to fully realize the power and value of the DC Comics brand and characters across all media and platforms, to be run by Diane Nelson, it was announced today by Barry Meyer, Chairman & CEO, and Alan Horn, President & COO, Warner Bros.

DC Entertainment, a separate division of WBEI, will be charged with strategically integrating the DC Comics business, brand and characters deeply into Warner Bros. Entertainment and all its content and distribution businesses. DC Entertainment, which will work with each of the Warner Bros. divisions, will also tap into the tremendous expertise the Studio has in building and sustaining franchises and prioritize DC properties as key titles and growth drivers across all of the Studio, including feature films, television, interactive entertainment, direct-to-consumer platforms and consumer products. The DC Comics publishing business will remain the cornerstone of DC Entertainment, releasing approximately 90 comic books through its various imprints and 30 graphic novels a month and continuing to build on its creative leadership in the comic book industry.

In her new role, Nelson will report to Jeff Robinov, President, Warner Bros. Pictures Group, in order to best capitalize on DC Entertainment’s theatrical development and production activities and their importance to drive its overall business with each of the divisions of Warner Bros.

Nelson will bring her expertise and more than 20 years’ experience in creative brand management, strategic marketing and content development and production to ensuring DC Entertainment’s dual mission of marshalling Warner Bros.’ resources to maximize the potential of the DC brand while remaining respectful of and collaborative with creators, talent, fans and source material. Additionally, Nelson will continue to oversee the franchise management of the Harry Potter property, which she has done since 2000, and also continue to represent the Studio’s interests with the author of the Harry Potter books, J.K. Rowling. Nelson will segue from her post as President, Warner Premiere but maintain oversight responsibilities of that division. (An executive succession plan for Warner Premiere will be announced shortly.)

Paul Levitz, who has served as President & Publisher of DC Comics since 2002, will segue from that role to return to his roots as a writer for DC and become a contributing editor and overall consultant to DCE. This transition will take place as expeditiously as possible without disrupting DC’s business operations.

In his new role, Levitz will be called upon for his deep knowledge and more than three-decade history with DC Comics, both as a comic creator and an executive. Besides serving as a writer on a number of DC Comics titles, he will be a contributing editor and consultant to DC Entertainment on projects in various media. Additionally, he will consult as needed on the transition and integration of the DC Comics organization into DC Entertainment and will utilize his unique experience, knowledge and relationships with the comics industry’s creative community to help achieve DC Entertainment’s goal of maximizing the value of DC properties. Further, Levitz will advise DC Entertainment on creative and rights-holder relationships, in particular regarding the legacy relationships that have been a part of DC Comics for decades.

Widely recognized and respected for his support of writers, artists and creators in the comics industry, Levitz is best known creatively for his work with DC Comics, having written most of the classic DC characters, including Batman, Wonder Woman and the Superman newspaper strip. At Comicon International in 2008, Levitz was awarded the Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award as part of the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, the only industry executive ever so honored.

“DC Comics and its super hero characters are truly touchstones of popular culture, and the formation of DC Entertainment is a major step in our company’s efforts to realize the full potential of this incredible wellspring of creative properties,” said Meyer. “Diane knows our studio as a creative executive, a marketer and a senior manager, and this varied background will help her effectively and creatively integrate the DC brand and properties across all our businesses. We’re also thrilled that Paul will remain involved with DC and we’ll be able to tap his expertise to help us reach our goals for this new business.”

“It’s no secret that DC has myriad rich and untapped possibilities from its deep library of iconic and lesser-known characters,” said Horn. “While we’ve had great success in films and television, the formation of DC Entertainment will help us to bring more DC properties across additional platforms to fans around the world, while maintaining brand integrity and authenticity. Diane is a terrific choice to lead DC Entertainment, and with Paul in his new role as a valued consultant and contributing editor, both our company and comic fans win.”

“Based on the great success we’ve had working with DC Comics to create some of the most popular and successful super hero films of all time, I’ve long believed that there was much more we could do across all of Warner Bros.’ businesses with this great body of characters and stories,” said Robinov. “The prioritization of DC and the creation of DC Entertainment is a great opportunity that reaches far beyond the film group. There are endless creative possibilities to build upon the many significant successes already achieved by my colleagues Kevin Tsujihara and the Home Entertainment Group in the videogame, home video and direct-to-platform arenas and Bruce Rosenblum and the Television Group in live-action, animated and digital series. Collectively, we have the ability to grow a body of properties highlighting the iconic characters and the diversity of the creative output of DC Comics.”

“The founding of DC Entertainment fully recognizes our desire to provide both the DC properties and fans the type of content that is only possible through a concerted cross-company, multi-platform effort,” said Nelson. “DC Entertainment will help us to formally take the great working relationships between DC Comics and various Warner Bros. businesses to the next level in order to maximize every opportunity to bring DC’s unrivalled collection of titles and characters to life.”

“After so many roles at DC, it’s exciting to look forward to focusing on my writing and being able to remain a part of the company I love as it grows into its next stage,” said Levitz. “It’s a new golden age for comics and DC’s great characters, and I hope my new position will allow me to contribute to that magic time.”

DC Comics will celebrate its 75th anniversary in 2010 (NEW FUN COMICS #1, the first DC comic, began publishing in 1935), at which time more explicit details regarding DC Entertainment’s corporate and management structure, film and content release slate, creative roster and business objectives will be unveiled at a multi-faceted anniversary celebration and press conference in the first quarter of the year.

Current DC properties in development and/or production at Warner Bros. Entertainment include:

– “Human Target” is being produced by Warner Bros. Television for a mid-season debut on Fox.

– “Midnight Mass” is in series development at Warner Bros. Television for consideration for the 2010-11 season.

– “Jonah Hex,” Warner Bros. Pictures’ supernatural Western starring Josh Brolin, Megan Fox and John Malkovich, recently wrapped production in Louisiana.

– “The Losers,” Dark Castle/Warner Bros. Pictures’ action-adventure drama starring Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Zoe Saldana and Chris Evans, began principal photography mid-July in Puerto Rico.

– “The Green Lantern,” Warner Bros. Pictures’ next big superhero tentpole release, recently cast Ryan Reynolds as the titular character. The film has a projected second quarter 2011 release date.

– “Lobo,” based on the DC Comics anti-hero, has Guy Ritchie attached as a director; Joel Silver, Akiva Goldsman and Andrew Rona are producing for Silver Pictures and Warner Bros. Pictures.

– Warner Premiere’s direct-to-platform DVD animated release of “Green Lantern: First Flight” debuted July 28.

– Warner Bros. Animation currently produces “Batman: The Brave and the Bold,” which airs on Cartoon Network.

– Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment released “Batman: Arkham Asylum” on August 25, a dark, action packed videogame adventure for Xbox 360 videogame and entertainment system, PlayStation3 computer entertainment system and Games for Windows.

Prior to being named President, DC Entertainment, Nelson most recently served as President, Warner Premiere since its founding in 2006. Warner Premiere is a Studio-based production company which develops and produces high-quality, direct-to-DVD and short-form digital content, including the highly successful line of DC Universe animated DVD titles, and also pioneered the development of the motion comics category. Under Nelson’s leadership, Warner Premiere functions as a full-service production entity with its own resources and release schedule, furthering the Studio’s mandate of being a destination for both established and up-and-coming talent to create stand-alone properties as well as experiment in new media.

Before that, Nelson served as Executive Vice President, Global Brand Management, Warner Bros. Entertainment, with the primary responsibility of working cross-divisionally and throughout Time Warner to maximize and optimize all the various windows and outlets available to the Studio’s signature franchises, brands and event properties on a global basis. In this post, Nelson’s primary focus was the management of the Harry Potter brand, which she has overseen since the brand’s launch at the Studio in 1999. These efforts have helped drive the success of the brand to become the most successful film franchise of all time, as well as a respected consumer property that has generated billions of dollars for the Studio.

At Global Brand Management, Nelson and her team of more than 15 employees worked in all media and platforms to support a number of other key franchise properties, including “The Matrix Reloaded,” “The Matrix Revolutions,” “Batman Begins,” “The Dark Knight,” “Happy Feet,” “Polar Express” and “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” among others.

Prior to overseeing Global Brand Management, Nelson had served as Executive Vice President, Domestic Marketing, Warner Bros. Pictures. Nelson rose quickly through the ranks, having also served as Senior Vice President, Domestic Marketing, Warner Bros. Pictures and prior to that, Senior Vice President, Family Entertainment, Warner Bros. Corporate Worldwide Marketing and Planning. She was also Vice President, Worldwide Corporate Promotions, a post to which she was promoted in March 1998, after joining the Studio in September 1996 as Director of Worldwide Corporate Promotions.

Nelson came to the Studio from Walt Disney Records, where she served as Director of National Promotions. She is a graduate of Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Communications.

# # #

Contact: Susan Fleishman/Warner Bros. Entertainment

818/954-1919 susan.fleishman@warnerbros.com

Scott Rowe/Warner Bros. Entertainment

818/954-5806 scott.rowe@warnerbros.com

David Hyde/DC Comics

212/636-5450 david.hyde@dccomics.com

Paul Levitz To Step Down From DC Comics? | Bleeding Cool Comic News & Rumors

Boy do I hope he is wrong on this one…

Paul Levitz To Step Down From DC Comics? | Bleeding Cool Comic News & Rumors

Paul Levitz To Step Down From DC Comics?
Submitted by Rich Johnston on September 9, 2009 – 11:17 am (0) comments

As of last night, I understand that Paul Levitz is telling people he intends to step down as Publisher and President of DC Comics within days.

Working at DC editorially since the mid-seventies, becoming Publisher in 2002, Paul Levitz is, more than anyone, the man responsible for the comics industry that exists in America today.

Alongside then-President Jeanette Kahn, he is responsible for establishing the model with Phil Seuling that would become the direct market, publishers selling comics to comic stores on a firm sale basis, as well as pushing forward creative projects that would initially support it. And he has repeatedly help propped up the direct market as a distributive model for comic books over and above other avenues such as bookstores and digital distribution, and continues to see the comic shop as his primary vendor.

It was his negotiating tactics with Warner Bros that would see DC placed within the company in such a fashion that it wouldn’t have to generate instant sales to justify success, but could be considered as a research and development department for Warner as a whole, the Superman movie justifying that investment. As a result, he is directly responsible for the more experimental aspects of DC, such as Piranha and Vertigo that would, in some cases, create books he disliked but that would open up a new audience to comics.

After Marvel bought the Heroes World distributor and other direct market distributors started to suffer, he chose not to use WEA (Warner/Elektra/Atlantic) as DC’s distributor, instead throwing DC’s weight behind the biggest direct distributor at the time, Diamond. And in doing so, insisted on a clause that saw Diamond guarantee small and self publishers to appear in Previews – a clause that has sadly had to fade of late. Many successful non-DC comics could not have appeared without this direct intervention. His decision not to purchase Diamond Distribution, despite having a option clause in the contracts to do so, also kept the distributor independent.

Under Paul Levitz, DC would also employ many more women across the company, opposed to Marvel which, relatively, is still a boys club. This would also lead to a greater diversity of content at the company. Levitz has seen himself as more than just a publisher, but almost a guardian of Americana, preserving Superman, Wonder Woman and Batman as icons as best as he can (his involvement with work such as The Authority and The Boys, severly criticised by me in the past, can be much more positively reinterpreted in this light), and has rescued abandoned works and characters, such as the Charlton and Fawcett characters, as well as works such as V For Vendetta and Moonshadow.

Levitz also pushed the move to graphic novels and trade paperbacks within the company, providing new income streams for publishers, shops and creators, keeping readers who might have abandoned the form without bookshelf appeal, and presented a modern publishing face to new readers. The term “graphic novel” and its prevalence in bookstores has done more to make the comics format acceptable to a wider demographic than anything else in the last thirty years. And the comic shop is the place where they are stocked in depth.

But things are changing. Two weeks ago, Bleeding Cool reported that Alan Horn had passed responsibility overseeing DC Comics to Diane Nelson (who I understand started yesterday), DC’s biggest competitor is now Disney, the current position seems to demand a public face that Levitz is uncomfortable becoming, and there is even talk of a name change for the company to Warner Bros Comics.

This is of course not an obituary. I understand that Levitz wants to get back into writing, both comics and prose, something he had to abandon when he took on senior roles in the comics industry. It is however a major worry that the industry will be unrecognisable without him at the helm.

If DC change distributor options, if DC shift focus on their sales outlets, if DC lose certain projects because they are not instantly profitable, if DC reduce creator-owned options, if DC are… well… no longer DC. And the comics industry may become a very different beast indeed.

It is likely that Diane Nelson will bring in another Warner corporate figure to replace Paul and facilitate the change. You thought Disney buying Marvel was big? This is bigger.

And Paul? We’ll really miss you. I’ve certainly had my disagreements with the man over the years, but I owe the majority of my comic book enjoyment directly to his oft-controvertial decisions.

Naturally, I could be repeating the mistakes that Nikki Finke made when she reported the dismissal of Dan DiDio last year. And you know what? I wish I was. But right now, I don’t think so.

And talking of Nikki Finke, she is currently reporting other changes at DC Comics, stating that Paul Levitz is staying, that DC will report directly to Jeff Robinov alongside Diane Nelson and that the company is bringing back movie deals from producers with a new strategy in mind.

It’s possible more of this is up in the air than I am currently aware of. But, hell, hasn’t that always been the way? Whatever happens, good luck Paul.

Expect official announcement, whatever it is, soon.

Rich Johnston Vs Nikki Finke. Damn, I’m going to lose, aren’t I?

EXCLUSIVE: Warner Bros’ Jeff Robinov Restructures DC Comics; Diane Nelson Put In Charge Of DC Business; DC Titles In Development Pulled From Producers – Deadline.com

I wonder how long Didio has left at DC now?

EXCLUSIVE: Warner Bros’ Jeff Robinov Restructures DC Comics; Diane Nelson Put In Charge Of DC Business; DC Titles In Development Pulled From Producers – Deadline.com

BREAKING NEWS: I’ve learned that the announcement may be made as soon as later today. The restructuring of the stand-alone DC Comics business is being described to me as Warner Bros Pictures Group president Jeff Robinov’s first priority since having his contract re-upped by Time Warner. I know what everybody is thinking: that this move is in response to the announcement August 31st that Disney is buying Marvel. You can think that, but you would be wrong. This change has been in the works quietly for two years ever since Robinov moved into the top slot. “It was Jeff’s idea to have DC Comics reporting to him, and DC will be his direct responsibility with Diane Nelson,” an insider confided to me. I’ve also learned that Robinov for months has quietly gone to producers like Chuck Roven and Joel Silver and Akiva Goldman and “called back” all their high profile DC titles in development like The Flash and Wonder Woman. Not only was that shocking to the producers, but even more so when they found out this was part of Robinov’s strategy to severely limit the number of gross participants on the projects. Because the producers were told that they may get the titles back to develop, but with far less rich deals. “Jeff always wanted some kind of oversight of DC, and now he wants Warner’s to hold onto ownership,” my insider explains. (My understanding is that Joel Silver, who is buddies with Robinov, was allowed to continue bringing low profile The Losers to the big screen under his Dark Castle banner. But Silver’s 10 years of developing Wonder Woman is history now.)

diane_nelson_bw07_2006I’m told that Robinov went to management as soon as he took over as president of Warner Bros Pictures Group in January 2007 with a proposal to take over DC Comics. It’s taken this long to get it done. Paul Levitz, DC Comics president and publisher, will stay with the company. But in charge and reporting directly to Robinov will be Nelson, the brilliant marketer who beginning in 2000 oversaw the management of the Harry Potter franchise across all platforms and represented the studio’s interests with author JK Rowling. The plan is to have her do the same with DC Comics biz.(Kudos to the website BleedingCool.com, which on August 25th first tipped that Nelson might “take on more new projects at the media empire — including DC Comics”.)

Nelson has served as President of Warner Premiere the studio-based production company which develops and produces direct-to-consumer DVD and short-form digital programming content since its founding in August 2006. She’s already well familiar with DC Comics since it has titles already in development and production and release with Warner Premiere. Prior to that, Nelson served as EVP of Global Brand Management at Warner Bros Entertainment since May 2004, with the primary responsibility of working cross-divisionally and throughout Time Warner to maximize and optimize all the various windows and outlets available to the Studio’s signature franchises, brands and event properties on a global basis. And, before that, Nelson was EVP of Domestic Marketing for Warner Bros Pictures.

Previous to this, DC Comics’ Levitz reported directly to Warner Bros Chairman Alan Horn. But then Horn’s film division was embarrassed by not nailing down the legal rights to Watchmen adequately, with mogul after mogul shaking their heads in disbelief how Warner Bros could even have started filming the graphic novel with 20th Century Fox still laying claim to the pic. Cutting Fox in at the last minute with paramount already an overseas played wrought havoc with Warner Bros’ economics on the movie. But Horn’s biggest failure has been to leave the most valuable DC Comics characters in movie development limbo. Of Superman, Wonder Woman, and the Justice League, only Batman has an ongoing live action franchise. And now that director Chris Nolan is working on back-to-back pics, who knows when the threequel will get a start date. True, Jonah Hex has wrapped, and Green Lantern starts shooting in the spring. That’s the same time period that Human Target debuts on Fox. There’s been some very successful development by DC Comics SVP of Creative Affairs Gregory Noveck. But Horn’s studio has been chaotically starting and stopping work on scripts for the high profile live action pics. Meanwhile, Marvel is exploiting the hell out of its characters with an ultra-ambitious and self-financed (except for Spider-Man at Sony) film slate.

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