Logan director James Mangold to direct DCU's Swamp Thing movie? Here's what we know

DC Studios co-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran recently announced their vision for the first chapter of the DC Universe. Shortened to DCU, the vision extends to not just movies, but also TV shows, animation, and gaming. The actors will play (or voice) their own characters across mediums. This is something that has not been done before, as even MCU does not include games. One of the projects Gunn announced was a Swamp Thing movie, which he said will be a "very dark horror story and the origins of the monster who is Swamp Thing". And as per reports James Mangold, who wrapped up the story of Hugh Jackman's Wolverine in 2017's Logan, is in talks to direct it. The Swamp Thing movie was the last project unveiled by Gunn. 

Mangold has also directed the upcoming fifth Indiana Jones movie, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, which will serve as the conclusion to Harrison Ford's Indy at least. He is also known for helming Ford v Ferrari, an acclaimed sports drama.

Mangold had tweeted an image of Swamp Thing on his Twitter handle, which was retweeted by Gunn. So his hiring as the writer-director is all but confirmed. 

Also Read: Every upcoming DC Universe movie: Superman Legacy, The Flash, Swamp Thing, and more

Swamp Thing was created by writer Len Wein and artist Bernie Wrightson and first appeared in 1971’s House of Secret No. 92. Due to its popularity the character soon got his own series. But it was not until the 1980s that the character gained popularity when Alan Moore, now a reluctant legend in the medium, wrote stories about the monster.

James Gunn and Peter Safran were appointed co-CEOs of DC Studios, a rebranded DC Films, last year. Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav had wanted a man (or men) like Kevin Feige as in charge of DC properties and do something similar to what Kevin Feige did at Marvel Studios. 

Also Read: Marvel's loss is DC's gain: How DC Studios can cash in on MCU's struggles to outdo competition

Ever since the Marvel Cinematic Universe kicked off with 2008's Iron Man, DC films have struggled to maintain momentum. The half-hearted attempt under Zack Snyder to build a cinematic universe, which began with 2013's Man of Steel, did not pay dividends. The cinematic universe downright failed when 2017's team-up movie Justice League became one of the biggest flops of the 21st century. Since then, Warner Bros (now Warner Bros Disvoery) has tried different things to salvage the DC brand's reputation -- to mixed results. It has not helped that the studio has changed hands multiple times from AT&T to now Discovery after the merger. It is not as if the films are bad, as most of them were good and well-received. But there was no unifying link, nobody like Feige to pull it all together. Until now, that is.

You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.