It’s not exactly a surprise that Warner is rethinking its slate of DC films in the wake of the lackluster performance of ‘Justice League’ last November. What is surprising is the fact that one of the few formal announcements to come out of the studio in the intervening months has been the revelation that Michael Bay is in talks to direct a Lobo film. Some version of this project has been in the works for years, but it’s hardly the news one expects from a studio in the midst of re-evaluating its superhero strategy.
But as appropriate a choice as Bay might be for a character like Lobo, the film’s real strength may in fact be its writer, Jason Fuchs. Fuchs is best known for his work on ‘Wonder Woman‘, which he co-wrote with Allan Heinberg and Zack Snyder. Speaking at the USC Libraries Scripter Awards, Fuchs talked about the direction in which he is taking DC’s Main Man:
“I think when you’re working on comic book characters, especially ones that are near and dear to my heart, like Wonder Woman and Lobo are, you want to create something that’s true to what the original text are. I think ‘Wonder Woman’ really captures the feeling of – not only the original Moulton Marston comics, but the George Perez run in the late-80s. It feels like reading those comics up on the big screen. So for something like ‘Lobo’, without saying too much about it, it’ll feel, I imagine, quite different, because the Lobo comic itself is quite different. What Keith Giffen and Alan Grant put together was something really unique, and hopefully we’ll capture some of that same spirit when we make that movie.”
Not to undersell the all-important contributions of Patty Jenkins and Gal Gadot, but in some respects Fuchs (along with his co-writers) is an unsung hero of ‘Wonder Woman’. After all, even the best directors and performers would find themselves facing an uphill battle without a solid script. And based on Fuchs’ comments, his clear affinity for the comic book source material likely played a part in the ‘Wonder Woman’ script turning out as well as it did. With any luck, he’ll bring some of that same magic to ‘Lobo’.
Be sure to check back with ScienceFiction.com for more on ‘Lobo’ as it becomes available!
