Arrowverse Boss Reportedly Being Eyed for Role as DCEU's 'Kevin Feige'

Since filmmaker Zack Snyder departed Justice League and the DCEU and controversy swept DC Films, Warner Bros.’ superhero film franchise has been left without a head guiding the shared universe, resulting in a series of standalone films with no common direction. The company is reportedly looking to fix that by appointing someone to act as the “Kevin Feige” of the DCEU.

According to Variety, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav suggested on an earnings call that the company was eyeing Arrowverse head Greg Berlanti to oversee the DCEU and related properties. However, it should be noted Berlanti has not yet been approached for the role and he has not expressed any interest in taking it.

Zaslav directly compared the role to that of Marvel Studios president and chief creative officer Kevin Feige, who has spent over a decade shaping the hugely successful Marvel Cinematic Universe. Reports also suggest the Warner Bros. Discovery CEO did not acknowledge DC Film’s Walter Hamada, who has served as DC Films president since 2018.

Berlanti has been attached to the Arroverse since 2012, when he created, wrote and produced Arrow alongside Andrew Kreisberg and Marc Guggenheim. The show spawned the long-running Flash spinoff and ultimately led to the ensemble series Legends of Tomorrow, as well as Supergirl, Batwoman, Black Lightning and more. While the Arrowverse lives on with Superman & Lois and The Flash, virtually all others have been cancelled. Even The Flash will conclude with its upcoming ninth season.

The State of the DCEU

Since the critical and financial failure of 2017’s Justice League, the DCEU has undergone significant changes, with executives still debating how best to proceed with it. Despite the release of several hits since then, including Wonder Woman, Aquaman and Shazam!, there continues to be uncertainty surrounding the core of the original ensemble, which featured Henry Cavill as Superman and Ben Affleck as Batman.

Moreover, The Flash star Ezra Miller, who has played the character since 2016’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, has been accused of a number of serious crimes including assault, felony burglary, harassment and more. There is speculation Warner Bros. could scrap the $200 million Flash film because of Miller.

Regardless of the ongoing issues, the DCEU has several highly-anticipated films scheduled for release, such as Black Adam, Shazam! Fury of the Gods, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, Blue Beetle and more, which may help to provide the DCEU with a new focus. Black Adam producers Hiram Garcia and Beau Flynn recently stated the upcoming antihero will help to expand the franchise. “Through him as our breaking point, we get to now add in the JSA and who knows what other characters come in,” they explained.