When it was announced that JJ Abrams and his Bad Robot production company would have their fingers in a variety of DC superhero projects at WarnerMedia, people just assumed it would end up with the filmmaker taking the reins of one of the films or TV series himself and assume the directorial role. However, even though we’ve seen a number of the projects be announced, including a new “Superman” film written by Ta-Nehisi Coates, Abrams has been listed as a producer only, not a director. And according to the filmmaker, that’s because he’s not interested in directing established IP right now.
Speaking to Collider, JJ Abrams, who is promoting the upcoming Apple TV+ series, “Lisey’s Story,” which he produced, talked about what it means that he and his production company are working closely with WarnerMedia regarding its DC superhero slate. And while he understands being someone who is given the chance to work on an established IP “is no small honor or responsibility or obligation,” he doesn’t believe that’s the type of project he’d like to direct himself.
“I know that Hollywood is a place where it used to be that people would be inspired by something that they would see or an old film or a show or something and think, ‘Oh, here’s my response to that. Here’s a version of that,’” explained Abrams. “It’s become a place where, more often than not, you see something and people get inspired by it and go, ‘Let’s redo that exact thing.’”
He continued, “I feel like, as someone who started writing in television and telling original stories on film and in TV, it is something that I really do miss. The few things that I’m working on now, as a writer, are original ideas. I just feel, as a director, I really would love to have my next projects be things that didn’t pre-exist me necessarily.”
You can completely understand why Abrams would want to step away from directing IP-based projects right now. Out of the six feature films that he’s helmed over the past 15 years, only one of them (“Super 8”) has been an “original” idea. The others were part of franchises such as “Star Trek,” “Mission: Impossible,” and “Star Wars.” You can’t blame the guy for wanting to spread his wings a little.
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Though, if you’re a DC superhero film fan, you are probably bummed by the news. Abrams is a blockbuster filmmaker and would seemingly fit right in with the DC film universe. And maybe after he works on something non-IP, he’ll direct something superhero-focused. But for now, it appears his involvement is purely as a producer.