Superhero films sure do love a multiverse story, right? So, let’s take a cue from film studios and venture into the multiverse and take a look at a bizarro world where up is down, left is right, and DC Films has reached the heights of Marvel Studios. How did this crazy world come to existence? Well, this is what would have happened if Kevin Feige jumped ship and left Marvel Studios several years ago and helped craft the DC Film universe, which is something that could have happened, apparently.
According to a new report from Puck, several years ago, Kevin Feige “talked pretty seriously” with the top brass at Warner Bros. about leaving Marvel Studios and coming over to the rival studio to help craft a different superhero universe. The report claims that this potential massive change in studio hierarchy was on the table because, at the time, Feige was deep in his feud with Marvel CEO Ike Perlmutter.
For those that don’t remember, before “Captain America: Civil War,” Marvel was involved in its own pseudo-civil war with one side led by Perlmutter and the other led by Feige. The reports claim that Perlmutter and Feige couldn’t agree on much when it came to the creative side of the films. Perlmutter is rumored to be wanting to cut costs (famously not wanting to pay for Robert Downey, Jr. to appear in ‘Civil War’) and not sold on the idea of diverse superhero films (such as “Captain Marvel” and “Black Panther“). Frictions developed and Feige eventually won, giving himself complete control over Marvel Studios and reporting only to the top Disney executives.
The report from Puck claims that during that time, Feige was being wooed by Warner Bros. to come help that superhero film studio, as it was deep into the development of the DCEU. You probably remember that this is around the time that WB unveiled its hugely ambitious slate of future films, which included features such as “The Flash,” “Cyborg,” “Green Lantern Corps,” and others. But after the debacle of “Justice League,” the slate was wiped clean and many of those projects were retooled heavily or canceled outright. You could argue that WB has yet to fully recover from this era and is still trying to figure things out, as we speak. (Though, to be fair, you can’t argue that there have been some huge hits during that time, such as “Aquaman,” “Wonder Woman,” and “Joker.”)
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And since the resolution of the Perlmutter/Feige spat, Marvel Studios went on to become the biggest film studio on the planet, releasing some of the biggest films of all time and turning itself into a box office juggernaut. This is thanks, in no small part, to the influence and leadership of Kevin Feige. So, while we don’t know how “serious” the discussions between Feige and WB were, at the time, it’s clear Disney did enough to keep the superstar producer happy, and thus, kept the Marvel Cinematic Universe on its record-breaking trajectory.
The Puck report also claims that, over the years, WB has reached out to some of Feige’s “deputies” at Marvel Studios, including Louis D’Esposito, about coming over to the rival studio. However, those inquiries have resulted in nothing serious. So, at this point, it appears that WB is going to need to find someone from outside of the Marvel Studios bubble to lead things, if the studio is hoping to replicate its rival’s success.