Moviegoers have watched with interest as the competition between the Marvel Universe and the DC Universe became entertaining in its own right. Unfortunately for DC, it appears that Warner Bros has suffered a self-inflicted Kryptonite wound. What went wrong for the Worlds of DC?

Filming Conundrums
Warner Bros chose to keep a tight schedule on filming Justice League but ended up switching directors and reshooting large blocks of footage. The attempt to play on the increasing success of Marvel’s team movies didn’t go well for Warner Bros. They didn’t understand the underlying themes of the Justice League canon as it had existed for years.

Is Darkness More Marketable Than Hope?
One of Warner Bros’ greatest missteps was to tap into the wrong cultural trend. Hollywood has been churning out dark movies and gritty television series for some time now. This works for some genres, but not for others. The roots of the superhero mythos are based on themes of hope and satisfactory resolutions to storylines. Warner Bros gambled early on and spun each superhero movie into a knot of dark psychology and intense violence. Even as the obvious success of the Marvel movies continued to grow internationally, Warner Bros’ DC world appeared to become trapped in the makings of its own gloomy world. It’s not that DC utterly tanked. They gave us Wonder Woman. They experimented with mood and thematic elements at their own risk. Warner Bros forgot what superheroes were for.

What Are Movies For?
Producers, directors, actors, and everyone involved in making movies don’t consider their films as actual entertainment. They see it as their work-a-day world. However, it helps if they never lose sight of the people they depend upon the most: their movie-going audience. It’s essential to recognize when a cultural trend is a self-fulfilling prophecy coming out of Hollywood, and when it is a true trend that much of America is responding to. The demographics support superhero movies right now. People aren’t looking for despair. Many a parent has asked why superhero movies have become so inappropriate for children. After all, they’re the only ones who can get away with wearing a cape in public.