10 Worst Victims Of Comic Book Movie Development Hell

Over the years, a wealth of comic book movies from the MCU, the DCU, and beyond have found themselves stuck in development hell. Over a period of just two decades, comic book movies went from being relatively niche and largely underwhelming to the biggest and most successful spectacles in cinema. The movies of the MCU definitively proved the genre’s potential at the box office, firmly cementing comic book movies among the most popular and anticipated releases in any given year. However, getting comic book movies made is a lengthy and often complex process, and it doesn’t always come off exactly as planned.

There are many obstacles to the movie-making process, and this is especially true of superhero movies. Planning a film around an adaptation of popular source material isn’t always a straightforward feat, often requiring input and permissions from multiple sources – something that can provide a barrier to even the best comic book movies. This is one of the many ways in which a film can find itself stuck in development hell, languishing as unmade projects all thanks to behind-the-scenes issues. Here are the 10 worst victims of comic book movie development hell.

10 Justice League Dark

After rumors began circulating in 2012 of a live-action Justice League Dark movie, it was confirmed in January 2013 that Guillermo del Toro was in fact working on just such an adaptation. Despite regular updates on the script, many of the film’s planned characters, and later its potential place within the then-growing DCEU, the film simply wasn’t forthcoming. As the movies of the DCEU came and went, it became clear that Justice League Dark was stuck in development hell, with del Toro later exiting the project and no official updates on the film since 2020.

9 Batman Beyond

1999 saw the release of Batman Beyond, an animated series conceived as a sequel to the acclaimed Batman: The Animated Series following a teen named Terry McGinnis as he adopted the mantle of Batman from a retired Bruce Wayne in Gotham’s future. The show’s popularity prompted interest in a live-action adaptation to follow the critically disappointing Batman movies of the late ’90s, and in August 2000 the film was announced. However, by 2001, the development of the film had stalled entirely and was later scrapped despite a great deal of promise.

8 Doctor Doom

The cinematic outings of the Fantastic Four haven’t always been entirely successful, but their most infamous villain remains one of Marvel Comics’ most important characters. A Doctor Doom film was announced in 2017 to be directed by Noah Hawley, who described his plans for a film that was more political thriller than traditional superhero fare. Despite the potential of the project and the popularity of the character, the Disney/Fox merger saw the film’s development stall, with it later announced that plans for Doctor Doom’s first solo movie had been scrapped.

7 Batgirl

The DCEU’s history was fraught with development issues, and one of the films that felt this most keenly was Batgirl. Initially planned for a straight-to-streaming release set to work as part of the franchise’s soft reboot, it was later changed to facilitate a full theatrical release after positive reactions. After multiple delays in its release, the finished film was later canceled entirely, with the $90 million film fated never to see the light of day. Though Batgirl came incredibly close to release, it ultimately never managed to escape its turbulent development.

6 Ben Affleck’s Batman Movie

Despite being one of the major players in the DCEU and one of the most iconic superheroes of all time, Ben Affleck’s Batman never actually appeared in his own movie. After Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, plans for a solo Batman movie were announced, with the planned film going through many iterations over a period of years. As interest in the DCEU dwindled, the film slowly morphed into an entirely different project: Matt Reeves’ The Batman. Though the film technically made it out of development hell in a sense, Affleck’s Batman movie suffered greatly and never truly came to fruition.

5 Man Of Steel 2

One of the most anticipated and long-delayed comic book sequels of all time, Man of Steel 2 was a film fated never to be made. Despite 2013’s Man of Steel being one of the most popular films in the entire DCEU, the planned sequel was unfortunately never to be. The film was initially planned as part of Zack Snyder’s vision for the franchise and the character, but behind-the-scenes issues ultimately complicated matters within the franchise until the film’s status became entirely unclear. Any hope of Cavill’s return was swiftly quashed with the announcement of the DCU reboot, and Man of Steel 2 was done after a decade in development hell.

4 Gambit

For a prominent member of the X-Men and a fan-favorite character, Gambit hasn’t received the treatment he deserves in live-action movies. After a brief appearance in X-Men Origins: Wolverine failed to do him justice, a solo Gambit movie was announced in 2014 with Channing Tatum set to star. The film soon found itself stuck in development hell, and after five years of updates on the planned movie, it was summarily scrapped ahead of the X-Men’s much-anticipated introduction into the MCU.

3 The Amazing Spider-Man 3

The Amazing Spider-Man saw Andrew Garfield don the iconic web-shooters of Marvel’s resident wall-crawler, later reprising the role for a sequel in 2014. Both films heavily teased a blossoming franchise, with multiple hints at storylines and characters to appear in a planned third film. Unfortunately, The Amazing Spider-Man 3 wasn’t forthcoming, and the character was subsequently inducted into the MCU. An appearance in Spider-Man: No Way Home seemingly ended Garfield’s Spider-Man arc, heavily hinting that his third film will never make it out of development hell.

2 Hellboy 3

Despite not being part of the Marvel or DC pantheon, Hellboy was cemented as a major movie superhero by Guillermo del Toro’s 2004 movie of the same name. Ron Perlman reprised the titular role in the 2008 sequel, but with plenty more source material to adapt and massive interest in a third film, Hellboy 3 seemed all but certain. Unfortunately, the film simply wasn’t to be, with over a decade of teases from both del Toro and Perlman about a third film going unanswered. Though Hellboy 3 barely made it out of the concept stage, it stayed stuck in the early stages of development hell for more than a decade.

1 Nightwing

Although Nightwing is one of the most prominent members of the Bat Family and one of DC’s most interesting heroes, he’s yet to receive a live-action movie of his own. 2017 saw the film enter development, with Chris McKay attached to direct and Bill Dubuque working on the screenplay. By 2021, despite the script almost being finished, production of the film was put on hold. It remained in development hell for another two years before being canceled altogether ahead of the impending reboot, making it one of the most disappointing instances of comic development hell in the history of the DCU (or the MCU, for that matter).

 Getting comic book movies made isn’t always easy.  Read More