There’s a new head of DC Films at Warner Bros. and he’s not who you might expect. Following the disappointment ofJustice League, it was reported that the studio was going to shake things up a bit and restructure the way in which their DC movies are made. As part of that, they’ve decided to hire a new person to take charge ofDC Films. It’s being reported that Walter Hamada, producer ofIT, is the man who’s been tapped to take the reins on future DC movies.
Walter Hamada will serve as president of DC film production, replacing Jon Berg and Geoff Johns, who previously headed up the operation. The new report notes that Johns, acomic book writerturned studio head, will still be a key part of the operation as president and chief creative officer. He will reportedly “work closely” with Hamada in his new capacity. Here’s what head of Warner Bros. Toby Emmerich had to say about the movie in a statement.
“Walter is creative, resourceful, and committed to excellence, and will bring those qualities to his oversight of our superhero films. I’m confident Walter and Geoff, working with our filmmaking partners, will deliver films that will resonate with both broad global audiences as well as DC fanboys and fangirls.”
The fact that there’s a new head of DC Films at Warner Bros. isn’t at all surprising.Wonder Womanmay have been a massive critical and commercial success, but that’s proved to be the outlier for theDCEUso far.Batman V. Superman: Dawn of JusticeandSuicide Squadboth made money at the box office, but were thrashed by critics.Justice League, which had the impossible task of followingWonder Woman, went through a troublesome and very expensive production, which resulted in lukewarm reviews and fan response. Most importantly, the movie has dramatically underperformed, bringing in just $651.1 million to date.
As for Walter Hamada? He’s worked for the last decade at New Line, a division of Warner Bros., and has an outstanding track record as a producer there. He was a key figure in gettingThe Conjuringmade and helped get the spin-offs, such asAnnabelle: Creation, in motion. To date,The Conjuringmovies have made more than $1 billion. He also was a key figure in getting theIT remakemade, which was a massive critical success and outgrossedJustice League, bringing in $698 million worldwide. The big difference? That movie was made for $35 million. Hamada may not be as familiar with DC, but he’s got an excellent track record.
It’s said that Walter Hamada will oversee any comic book movies that Warner Bros. decides to make in the future, DC or otherwise. He also has a great relationship withAquaman director James Wan.Varietyreports that Courtenay Valenti, producer of theHarry Pottermovies, will continue to serve as president of production at Warner Bros., in addition to Diane Nelson, who will still serve as DC Entertainment chief.
