The Hollywood Reporter previously confirmed that director Guillermo del Toro will no longer be helming the upcoming "Justice League Dark" movie, also titled "Dark Universe." A new report from the Tracking Board explains that despite this loss, the film is now a priority for Warner Bros. Pictures and will begin filming by 2016.
According to the report, Warner Bros. has given the responsibility to producer Scott Rudin, who was responsible for producing "Ex Machina" and "Steve Jobs." It is also stated that Warner Bros. is already looking into potential directors while finalizing the script, which may or may not be the same script handed by Guillermo del Toro.
It is pointed out by Screen Rant that this move to prioritize "Dark Universe" may be a result from the pre-release buzz for their other DC Comic ensemble piece, "Suicide Squad," which also has a darker, grittier tone compared to the main DC movie series that includes "Man of Steel" and "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice."
No official plot has been released by Warner Bros., but the report explains that the rumored plot involves a madman stealing ancient tomes in hopes of destroying humanity. In order to stop him, occult specialist John Constantine calls upon the aid of other paranormal and supernatural beings such as Zatanna, Deadman and the Swamp Thing among others.
Where "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" will focus on the main superheroes and "Suicide Squad" will introduce a film focusing solely on the villains, "Dark Universe" aka "Justice League Dark" will introduce the paranormal and magical side of the DC Expanded Universe.
The film will also introduce a new cinematic version of the character John Constantine, who was previously played by Keanu Reeves in the 2005 film "Constantine" and by Matt Ryan in the canceled NBC series, although Ryan will also be appearing in season 4 of the CW's "Arrow."
