Warner Bros. CEO praises 'Wonder Woman' and Geoff Johns' leadership of DC Films

The New York Times published a piece about Warner Bros. today, which included an interview with the company's CEO, Kevin Tsujihara. It's a great article, but I'm going to focus on the DC Comics movie portions.

Tsujihara thinks that the financial success of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad has been lost in all of the bad reviews and criticism online, noting that the two movies made a combined $1.6 billion at the box office.

When asked if the negative narrative surrounding those movies could hurt Justice League when audiences have to decide if they'll spend their money on another DC movie, Tsujihara seemed confident, especially now that he put Geoff Johns and producer Jon Berg in charge of DC Films.

Mr. Tsujihara said he was confident that management changes he has been making (putting a pair of executives, Geoff Johns and Jon Berg, in charge of superhero movies, for instance) will make for more satisfied fans. With any luck, even a critic or two could come around.

Wonder Woman is another thing that makes Warner Bros. confident about the future of DC Films. “The thing that really makes me confident is that I’ve seen ‘Wonder Woman,’ and it’s great,” Tsujihara said.

SOURCE: The New York Times

105 comments

Theclaw Yaww

November 7, 2016

Well I belive he said he liked BvS too before it was realesed

Jcool
November 7, 2016
To be fair the BvS he saw and the one in theaters weren't the same.
1. Mark
  November 7, 2016
  Do we think they saw something more akin to the Ultimate Cut version?
  1. Jcool
    November 7, 2016
    I would think so.
  2. residentgrigo
    November 7, 2016
    All signs point to (most) of the TC being a last second decision. An unfortunate one, but even that cut was good. The missing scenes were still felt on my first viewing but it was fun to guess.
    1. Nahuel Benvenuto
      November 7, 2016
      the TC is a mess, anybody (well, almost) with a minimum knowledge of movies can tell it has lots of stuff missing
    2. residentgrigo
      November 7, 2016
      Rises was a bit of a swill cheese yet i liked it, most did. Metropolis has been hailed as a masterpiece (i disagree) but scenes are still left uncovered. You don´t need to have the full puzzle to appreciate the overall picture. A film with Superman in the title needs to keep as many scenes with him as possible though.
  3. jrvc
    November 7, 2016
    Well it was reported the suits liked the movie, then panicked because of the length and cut on their own interest. I'm pretty sure they saw the UC and liked it (most people liked the UC better after release)
    1. sj conker
      November 7, 2016
      Nothing like getting told you can make a 3 hour movie and then months before release when your movie is shot and edited the suits come on down and say "Yea, if you could cut 30 minutes out of your movie that'd be really great...and by 'if' we mean do it now."
2. Joker
  November 7, 2016
  First of all, you don't know that. Second, the huge problems with the film would be in any crappy version, you simply can't ignore them.
3. Theclaw Yaww
  November 8, 2016
  Pretty much the same the UE didnt change any plot it just explained some plotholes
iAbeLincoln
November 7, 2016
It also received standing ovations when shown to the executives. While I believe BvS is worth the standing ovation, I understand some people's issues with it. People seem to think that if more DC movies are badly reviewed, then WB won't make more. Not the case at all. They have been financially successful, and the majority of fans love them. With all the money and energy used so far towards making these films, there's no stopping this train.
1. Nahuel Benvenuto
  November 7, 2016
  MoS was great, BvS is a work of art, and yeah they kinda redefine the genre, they did what the mcu never did and never will do because they dont take the genre and characters serously, what Snyder, being a fan, does, SS was a mess, i am sure that the original movie Ayer did was good, but the TC, is a mess
  1. Aheaney15
    November 7, 2016
    In my opinion, the only DCEU film above average to date is Man of Steel, which in my irrelevant grade book deserves a C+, maybe B- grade. Batman v Superman: The Ultimate Edition gets a C (Theatrical Cut a D+), and Suicide Squad gets a D (hopefully the extended cut is at least a tiny bit better). While none of them deserved to be slammed so much, I can't say any of them redefine any genre. I do hope Wonder Woman is worthy of something above a B to me.
  2. StarTheory
    November 7, 2016
    Would really love to see where they get their stats from when they say "majority of fans loved them".
  3. Matt
    November 8, 2016
    The movies are disliked by critics and fans of the campy Reeves and West versions of the two heroes. True comic book fans (the ones that actually noticed all the neet ways Snyder linked the movies to the comics) they liked the movies. And i can't wait to see Justice League. I do wish the studio let Ayer make Suicide Squad more like End of Watch and less like cool trailer. I love a fun trailer, but that doesn't mean i won't call it misleading when the movie actually makes me feel am emotion other than fun. End of Watch is a perfect example. Trailer made it look fun and action packed. The actually movie was just as fun but had some very sorrowful and intense parts. That is Ayers move. He takes situation that most would find too serious to joke about, makes jokes about it and then smacks you in the face to remind you that it is still serious. Would have loved that version of Suicide Squad.
  4. Zoom
    November 8, 2016
    anything you say is always such a bunch of bullshit. nothing but total blind fanboy crap without a shred of common sense and incapable of criticism. Reading your fanboy shit makes me wanna throw my HD screen against the wall.
  5. That Guy That You Hate To Love
    November 10, 2016
    So... Why do you have picture of Batman from Batman v Superman on your profile? If you dislike the movie, shouldn't you, you know, not have pictures from the movie as your avatar?
    1. That Guy That You Hate To Love
      November 18, 2016
      But Batman is the essential part of Batman v Superman, right? You can even say that the entire plot is build around him. So, if you have such a high opinion on Batman in BvS, I guess you like the movie.
    2. That Guy That You Hate To Love
      November 19, 2016
      The Batman is the one who moves the plot. Without Batman, you would have no plot.
Ripp
November 7, 2016
I liked BVS and SS. It's funny because most social media didn't like BVS before it came out which led to all the haters hating on it.
Maybe if people online would wait for movies to come before saying their opinion.
Movies are an art form weather you hate it or like it it is a form of art, meaning up for interpretation.
So people should let people have their own opinion before even hating on stuff that isn't even out.
1. Nahuel Benvenuto
  November 7, 2016
  why so many people on the internet like to say that art is up for interpretation to defend anything, which is not true at all? just curious, i have been reading comment this a lot, even on shitty movies, art is not subjetive, there is good stuff and bad stuff, and the makers of art make it with a very clear view and message, so i never understand that comment
  1. Ripp
    November 7, 2016
    How are not movies a form of art. And you obviously didn't like BVS or SS and that's fine. I'm not moking you for not liking it because either way it's your opinion. I liked BVS and SS. SS is my favorite comic book movie.
    I also like the MCU to. I think they to much credit because they were nothing in the movie world until Disney bought them.
    But I liked Daredevil and Electra back in the day. I didn't like the Fantastic Four movies.
    But point is don't hate on movies before there out. And if you don't like something that's fine to that's your opinion don't knock other people for something you don't like because they like it.
  2. Matt
    November 8, 2016
    Ask Vincent Van Gogh. Maybe he can explain it to you.
2. Theclaw Yaww
  November 8, 2016
  Lol its funny you think thats the reason peoole hated in it
3. Dumb Cunt
  November 8, 2016
  this goes both ways. how many preople went to IMDB and rated BvS and SS 10/10 before the movie came out?
  also I'm pretty sure most people who didn't like the movie, just didn't like the movie. not everyone is a "hater" for disliking something.
  1. Ripp
    November 8, 2016
    I agree with you on that a hundred percent. It does goes both ways.

Kenny Ok

November 7, 2016

I like him. sometimes its good to have perspective

Kerk Lastnameless

November 7, 2016

I don't think Johns had the time to do much with WW. This one's all on Jenkins, for better or worse.

Jcool
November 7, 2016
Besides you know co-writing the movie...
DATFOOL GREEDY
November 7, 2016
Remember he fucced up green lantern. Now they gotta do it over again
1. jrvc
  November 7, 2016
  He didn't have the position he has now. Pretty sure they didn't listen to him while doing that movie
2. Steph & Ayesha r havin a baby!
  November 7, 2016
  what was Geoff Johns' involvement in GL?
  1. Andrés Torrejón
    November 7, 2016
    From Wikipedia: "Johns served as a co-producer and creative consultant for the 2011 Green Lantern film"
    1. BringerOfRain
      November 7, 2016
      So pretty much nothing of significance
    2. Axxell
      November 8, 2016
      LOL...yeah, producers are nothing of significance to a movie...they're only the ones who make the decisions...
  2. DATFOOL GREEDY
    January 30, 2017
    He was the producer i believe and wrote too
BringerOfRain
November 7, 2016
Johns was always involved in WW, since you know, he co-wrote it as well.

ken

November 7, 2016

Am I the only that be sitting here thinking about those WB or Disney CEO's and be like. "Damn those motherfuckers are rich as fuck" they really are rich as FUCK.

BatmanNewsChris
November 7, 2016
It's a pretty sweet gig. They're richer than the actors they hire, but can still be "normal" when they go out in public and don't have to worry about being recognized.

DATFOOL GREEDY

November 7, 2016

How???? And i heard the batman script was a mess and the big shots said they didnt care.

Steph & Ayesha r havin a baby!
November 7, 2016
"I was talking with two executives who have NOTHING to do with the Batman movie"
- Bret Easton Ellis

razorstar90

November 7, 2016

Kevin Tsujihara on Batman v Superman Dawn of Justice pre-release: "Having seen the movie multiple times, and again last night, I’m extremely confident it was the right decision to make the movie better. And it’s so important for the studio to get the foundation right on DC."

Look what happened there. At this point, I'd be more encouraged if the wB brass didn't like a movie. WB is more about quantity as oppose to quality. They released about 20 movies a year and maybe 4 or 5 of them are good. The DCEU is the Twilight Saga of Superhero franchises. They have no critical merit, they are mocked relentlessly on teh internet, they have a vocal fanbase that's mocked religiously, but even so they make a lot of money. Congrats WB you Twilighted the DC Universe.

Dark Vador
November 7, 2016
https://media.giphy.com/med...

The Doctor

November 7, 2016

As risky as it may be, you really need to go into the WW and JL films with a positive mindset. Just like with anything in life, approach something negatively you're going to have a negative outcome. Who cares what WB brass say about anything, everything we've seen from both Wonder Woman and Justice League look super great. I take anything WB suits or DC heads say with a grain of salt, impress us with the product, not with words.

residentgrigo

November 7, 2016

“Quietly, we’ve been having an amazing year,” he said. “The narrative, over all, has not reflected that.”
Pretty much. This very CEO was the man who finally pulled the trigger on connected films (an idea cooking since the 90s), so he is A-ok in my book. Especially as his predecessor was dead set on the opposite. The bonkers 00s JLA film died way too quickly.

ArtimusGG
November 7, 2016
I say with no reservation that MoS and BvS are among my favorite CBMs of all time. If he's responsible for that, then I'm behind him.
That being said, the studio is going to benefit from Johns being involved. I'm loving it so far, hope it gets better.
1. residentgrigo
  November 7, 2016
  Not wanting Johns here is idiotic, but making him an un-ironic idol will be worse, and he would have gotten this position naturally too. It´s Jon Berg we will have to see about. Weird choice there, but he may be the voice of the common man and the slate grew rather large by now.
  Berg´s credits: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm...

residentgrigo

November 7, 2016

Dunkirk (technically), JLA, Kong, Live by Night, Lego Batman and Wonder Woman. What a lineup for 2017. How is WB a shit studio again? It survived 100 years, yet the armchair bloggers know better... Sigh.
They also currently produces "nearly 80 television series", wow. (Watch Westworld.)
PS: 2017´s Blade Runner 2049 better be good. I don´t want the kiddies to think that my favorite film is not worth going back too. All signs look good so far though.

Your_Mama1
November 7, 2016
2017 may be a great year for WB. Hopefully Wonder Woman and Justice League hit. I look forward to all of the other films as well.

Diego!

November 7, 2016

This is amazing news!!! I'm very confident of Wonder Woman too! In fact, I even dared to bet Chris to rename his site if WW supasses BvS in the box office 😄😝

By the way, Patty Jenkins faved me on Twitter!!! I'm in ecstasy! 😃😃😃😃😃 https://uploads.disquscdn.c...

BatmanNewsChris
November 7, 2016
Wow, that's awesome!
Still can't believe you think the movie is going to make more than BvS though lol.
1. Vine
  November 7, 2016
  because they try to follow Marvel by lighting up their movies, it looks more like marvel's tone
2. Axxell
  November 8, 2016
  The first DCCU film that looked good to me was Suicide Squad...a little disappointed there, but we'll see how WW goes.
3. Diego!
  November 8, 2016
  You're gonna lose the bet. I'm very VERY confident! 😃😃😃
Kerk Lastnameless
November 7, 2016
But..you're white. Too white to be named Diego!
1. Diego!
  November 8, 2016
  ??? I'm actually grandson of native argentine indians and spanish immigrants
  1. Kerk Lastnameless
    November 8, 2016
    Cool! A friend of mine who lived in Mexico most of his life told me once that the Mexicans who have white skin tend to be privileged in their society. I wonder if that's true for the rest of South American nations.
    1. Diego!
      November 8, 2016
      It may be. Skin discrimination is still an issue here.

Nahuel Benvenuto

November 7, 2016

lol, what does he know, also people in suits are very prone to lie so i will trust the movies and not these people

Sammy Boy

November 7, 2016

I don't really care anymore to be honest, that shit died a long time ago, like Harambe.

That Guy

November 7, 2016

Whenever I see or hear about Kevin Tsujihara https://uploads.disquscdn.c...

Your_Mama1
November 7, 2016
This guy is going to be fired soon.
1. Seb
  November 7, 2016
  Probably, he is absolutely deluded, especially when it comes down to the DC property.
  1. Your_Mama1
    November 7, 2016
    Yup, he is a complete clown who has no idea what he is doing.
2. StarTheory
  November 8, 2016
  Hopefully the AT&T deal gets approved soon, the sooner those dumbass executives get replaced, the sooner Warner Bros will improve.

Seb

November 7, 2016

Why would I care about this buffoon? Last I heard, he said the EXACT same words prior to BvS' release. "I've seen the movie 3 times. It's great!". Except it wasn't. It was a mess. This guy obviously doesn't give a shit about quality films, he only cares about the cash... Yeah, BvS was "financially successful". Yet he ignores the fact that if the movie had been good, it would've grossed a billion in no time. BvS severely underperformed in every sense of the word. What a moron.

jrvc
November 7, 2016
Well, it was reported that the suits liked the original run of the movie, before they cut the movie a mere two months before release because they panicked.
1. Seb
  November 7, 2016
  But how does that make sense? "Quick, we are nervous, so let's cut the only decent cut of the film to oblivion". Surely there must have been at least someone with a brain who knew making an inferior cut would not solve their sense of nervousness.
  Besides, WB only became nervous once people saw the film (and that was the theatrical version, not the UC).
  1. jrvc
    November 7, 2016
    Nah, the part where they panicked was when they realized they were going to release a 3 hour-long R rated movie. They thought they wouldn't get as much money so they cut it. In fact even Snyder said he would get a extended cut on blu ray BEFORE they released the movie
    But yeah they left so much good stuff out that I don't believe they did that...
    1. Seb
      November 7, 2016
      From what I heard, the reports that came out that "WB was nervous" was around late February. One month before release. You're right that WB wanted a shorter version to potentially increase profits, but their nervous behavior only became apparent once people saw the mess that was the theatrical cut.
    2. jrvc
      November 7, 2016
      But as I say above, they were reporting that and the extended cut before the release, how could they know what people were going to think about the movie?
    3. Seb
      November 7, 2016
      The test screenings with mixed reactions were clearly from the theatrical cut. Again, these reports only came out late February. There's no way the UC was still the cut they were going to use at that point. And again, how does that even make sense? So people watched the UC according to you, the reaction was mixed (at best), WB is nervous... so what do they do? They make the film even worse? Yeah, that makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.
      The only reason (and Zack confirmed this) why WB wanted a shorter cut is because they didn't have confidence in releasing a 3 hour movie. They wanted a 2.30 hour movie. That's the only reason. I guess, in that sense "WB was nervous". But I am talking about the controversial reports that came out a month before BvS, because WB knew the movie didn't deliver with audiences.
    4. jrvc
      November 7, 2016
      Wait wait wait. You are messing the timeline. The cuts were made BEFORE people got a chance to see it. As you say, only suits saw the UC, the rest saw the other one.
      And yes, I said they were nervous because of the running time and rating
    5. Seb
      November 7, 2016
      Ah I see... Yes, I agree with you then. I thought you meant the opposite.
    6. jrvc
      November 7, 2016
      No problem ;)

jrvc

November 7, 2016

He makes a point though about "good news" dissappearing into "bad news"

Dark Vador

November 7, 2016

He said the same about BvS and not everyone liked it if you know what I mean.

Seb

November 7, 2016

Yeah, but BvS looked freaking fantastic, and look how that turned out.

Seb
November 7, 2016
Yeah, despite my hatred for the TC, I actually liked the UC. But that's not the point. The point is that Kevin actually thought the TC would be well received, or at least, that's what he lead us to believe. And that's the problem. If he thought people would like the TC of BvS, then I don't really think his opinion of WW actually means something.

Because_Im_Batman

November 7, 2016

I know its not on topic but.
https://twitter.com/Greg_We...

Seb
November 7, 2016
YES! Finally some GOOD DC news! Or at least, we know it's going to be good, for sure!
1. Kerk Lastnameless
  November 7, 2016
  I don't know. I watched it mostly because of the villains. I think Teen Titans was better.
  But I am glad that it's back, regardless.
towblerone
November 7, 2016
Pretty tired of seeing this in my Twitter feed. It's literally pages and pages of this graphic.

Ugh

November 7, 2016

When this guy getting the boot?

Arkham Psyche

November 7, 2016

Ok, hands on the table...I'm very cynical/critical of movies. So to a cut a long story short, yes... I walked out of BvS 1st screening underwhelmed, totally. Fast Forward UE, it's freaking spot on, so much more ties in.

The SS pre-reviews sickened me to the point I thought 'I'm sick of this, ain't paying the dues'. Then I eventually watched and was seriously at odds with the bulls**t wrote about its tandem flop. I saw XMen; Apocalypse and felt basically violated ha. But the dirt thrown on SS was sooo overtop. I watched Assault on Arkham a year before, so expected the dynamics. What did people expect? There was some very intense or at least passable good scenes in there. Enchantress trip on Harley n Mr.J's perfect family, Deadshot avenging the Bat, then Diablo cutting that s**t down.

Harshly judged, and that's coming frm someone who's very picky. Shocking.

towblerone
November 7, 2016
I agree. I liked BvS Theatrical Cut. Thought it was a solid 7 film. I thought the Ultimate Cut was an easy 8.5/10. I've seen it probably 20 times since it hit home video. I can watch the third act on a loop.
I really enjoyed SS. Thought it was a solid 7.5/10, even with its clear flaws. I can't wait for the extended cut.

Pathetic b

November 7, 2016

WOw @BatmanNewsCom:disqus having your insensitive mods deleting comments again? Shame.

Flidais

November 7, 2016

Do you ever feel like last time, drifting through the tralier wanting to start again?
Do you ever feel, feel so hopes high? excited under scores & hypes
but no one turnout truly good
If you only knew what the future holds
After the director haves a Snyder
Maybe his reason why all the doors are closed
So you could forget Geoff Johns had a part of Green Lantern

Captain DC

November 7, 2016

The answer is YES, both Wonder Woman and Justice League will definitely be hurt by the negative perception of Batman v Superman, and Man of Steel. Because of those films, many critics will judge the DCEU films more harshly, and many movie-goers will elect to skip WW and JL, during the opening weekends. Or perhaps wait a few more months for the extended cuts. LOL People are even willing to make up rumors, in order to generate negative buzz for Wonder Woman, and most recently, Affleck's Batman movie. That's A LOT to have to overcome.

The key thing for WB, is lowering their expectations. About 550 million at the box-office for Wonder Woman, would be great. And with two well-received trailers, about 900 to 950 million, would be great for Justice League. 💰

Kerk Lastnameless
November 7, 2016
Yeah, with the budget of 100 mln, it can definitely afford to make less then the BvS. Even if the reshoots and ad campaign add another 100 mln to it, 550 mln would still turn a great profit.

BringerOfRain

November 7, 2016

Just don't chop it up in the editing room.

OGmacrazy

November 7, 2016

I hope Wonder Woman turns out great, but we can't really take this as confirmation. BvS also got a standing ovation, and Suicide Squad was supposed to be this great character driven film about bad vs evil (turned out a generic run of the mill super hero movie with "bad guys" as the team of heroes in this case)...
Johns being on the creative helm of this universe instead of Zack Snyder is awesome, but let's not blow the hype out of proportion. That's how people get disappointed.

Guy

November 8, 2016

Of course the CEO would say positive things about the very products he and the studio are selling.

TheHummuss

November 8, 2016

Well, at least Goeff killed it with the DC Rebirth in the comics. The direction that most of the properties are going in now are pretty interesting and positive. For the films, as long as Gal Gadot really inhabits the character of Diana (worldly naivitee and a penchant to kick ass) and the story remains coherent, then I think we will have a winner. The DC Animated Universe Wonder Woman movie was pretty dope (as was the Timmverse's version) so hoping we get a good movie.

I assume the War to End All Wars thing will eventually lead to our Big Bad Mr. Ares. Hopefully he hasn't been overdone in CGI. Considering the Cavetroll we got as Doomsday in BVS, I am hoping Ares doesn't look like Sauron from the first LOTR movie.

Ross Al Ghul

November 8, 2016

Remember that Tsujihara and his WB partners in crime also loved BvS and gave it a standing ovation.

Do not fool yourself WW is gonna be any better than that crap.

Do like I do and just wait patiently for Ben Affleck's The Batman, the ONLY DCEU movie that is pretty much GUARANTEED to be great.

Ross Al Ghul

November 8, 2016

"Tsujihara thinks that the financial success of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad
has been lost in all of the bad reviews and criticism online, noting
that the two movies made a combined $1.6 billion at the box office."

BvS ALONE would have and should have easily made that much money if it were any good.

Who is Tsujihara kidding? BvS was such a huge "success" that it caused massive shakeups over at WB.

At least a little bit more honesty would have been nice.

Axxell

November 8, 2016

Shouldn't it be Johns'

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Warner Bros. CEO praises 'Wonder Woman' and Geoff Johns' leadership of DC Films

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