The DCEU had a sidekick. A little, televisual buddy. The CW-based Arrowverse. Some might say it was actually more consistently successful than the cinematic DCEU. Arrow, Flash, Supergirl, Legends of Tomorrow, Black Lightning, Stargirl, Batwoman, and Superman And Lois have all formed parts of this universe at various stages.
It culminated in a large-scale crossover – Crisis On Infinite Earths. This pulled together various characters from various shows into a major televisual event. The man behind a lot of this, and co-showrunner of most of Arrow and Legends Of Tomorrow, is Marc Guggenheim. Of this event he said:
“The project, a live action adaptation of a seminal comic book series that made a significant impression on my psyche, was more than a labor of love — it was a labor in every respect and a project where I spent every ounce of capitol I’d amassed in developing DC Comics-related shows for Warner Bros. over an eight-year period. I called in every favor. I used every chit. I burned every bridge. I even spent $10,000 of my own money.
Years before Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness would mainstream the concept of an interconnected multiverse, Crisis brought together characters from the 1966 Batman television show, the 1989 Batman feature, the 1990 The Flash series, the Smallville series, Lucifer, Doom Patrol, Titans, Swamp Thing, the Green Lantern movie, Superman Returns, Kingdom Come… the list goes on and on. Ezra Miller even reprised their feature film role as Barry Allen to meet the Arrowverse incarnation played by Grant Gustin.”
Having executed, broadly successfully, the Arrowverse, been the driving force behind Crisis, and taken proactive, big decisions such as cancelling under-performing shows, Guggenheim is not happy.
He feels unappreciated. A few weeks ago he published his regular newsletter and it is now being shared more widely. In it, he is searingly honest about his feelings on not being contacted by DC Studios as they spin up their new DCU:
“I assumed that they would assemble some kind of brain trust to help facilitate what I assumed – hoped – would be a vision as ambitious as the DC Universe deserves. But I’ll be honest: I would have liked to have gotten at least a meeting.
Not a job, mind you. A meeting. A conversation. A small recognition of what I’d tried to contribute to the grand tapestry that is the DC Universe. I’d only spent nine years toiling in that vineyard, after all.
Although working for DC had been creatively fulfilling, it involved a lot of adversity, challenges, and personal sacrifices – none of which seem to have accrued to any professional benefit. Simply put, the Arrowverse hasn’t led to any other gigs, so it feels – at least on a career level – that I really wasted my time.”
Talking about the response, he says the fans were great but is cutting about the industry itself:
“Hollywood met everything we did with apathy. Actually, apathy would have been a step up.”
He’s not holding back.
Check back every day for new content at Last Movie Outpost.
To like us on Facebook Click Here
To follow us on Twitter Click Here
See our YouTube channel Click Here
