And I thought she might struggle after Wrinkle In Time! Good move by Warner Bros. or a desperate reach?
http://variety.com/2018/film/news/ava-duvernay-superhero-movie-new-gods-dc-1202725043/
Ava DuVernay to Direct DC’s Superhero Epic ‘New Gods’
Ava DuVernay is stepping into the superhero realm.
The filmmaker has come on board to direct “New Gods” at Warner Bros. as part of the studio’s DC Extended Universe. “New Gods,” based on the comic book series of the same name published by DC Comics, is aimed at creating a new universe of properties for the studio. Created and designed by Jack Kirby, the comic first appeared in 1971.
The movie marks the second major superhero tentpole directed by a woman, following another DC property: Patty Jenkins’s “Wonder Woman.”
DuVernay directed Disney’s “A Wrinkle in Time” and became the first woman of color in Hollywood to helm a live-action film with a production budget of $100 million. The time-travel fantasy has grossed $42.2 million in its first six days in North America.
The New Gods are natives of the twin planets of New Genesis and Apokolips. New Genesis is an idyllic planet ruled by the Highfather, while Apokolips is a ruined dystopia filled with machinery and fire pits and is ruled by the tyrant Darkseid. New Genesis and Apokolips call themselves gods, living outside of normal time and space in a realm known as the Fourth World.
DuVernay tweeted last year that Big Barda, who is one of the New Gods, was her favorite superhero character.
Half a dozen “New Gods” series have been published following the original. The most recent was issued in 2011, “The New 52.”
DuVernay also directed the Oscar-nominated documentary “13th” and the civil-rights drama “Selma” for Paramount. She is also the creator and executive producer of OWN’s “Queen Sugar.”
“New Gods” would be a major addition to the DC Extended Universe, which Warner Bros. launched in 2013 to take advantage of the massive DC library and compete with Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe. The DCEU started with 2013’s “Man of Steel,” followed by “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice,” “Suicide Squad,” “Wonder Woman,” and “Justice League,” which was the lowest grosser of the five titles with $657 million worldwide.
“Aquaman,” starring Jason Momoa, is the next title in the DC Extended Universe, set for release on Dec. 21. The studio is moving ahead with a “Wonder Woman” sequel with Gal Gadot and director Jenkins returning. The pic hits theaters on Nov. 1, 2019.
In the wake of the disappointing box office performance of “Justice League,” Warner Bros. moved to re-organize the DC film operations by promoting Walter Hamada to president of DC-based film production in an effort to exert more quality control over its big-screen efforts. Toby Emmerich, who was promoted in 2016 to president and chief content officer at Warner Bros., worked with Hamada at New Line, which he ran before moving over to the main studio.
DuVernay is repped by CAA and attorneys Gordon Bobb and Nina Shaw.
