‘Wonder Woman’ and the 5 Words That Saved DC Movies From Darkness (Exclusive)

“Wonder Woman” director Patty Jenkins brought those ideals to life on-screen, and producer Chuck Roven led the charge behind the scenes, in a film with more hope than its often-dark predecessors, “Man of Steel,” Batman v Superman:

Johns and studio veteran Jon Berg, who has a close relationship with new Batman Ben Affleck, plan to carry the more positive tone forward into the upcoming DC films, including this year’s “Justice League.”

[...] Johns’ experience in DC Comics paralleled the changes to DC films.

Like “Man of Steel,” which debuted in theaters two years later, the New 52 titles were supposed to gently relaunch the DC Universe, making concessions to the modern-era and resetting storylines for new readers.

Worldwide Publicity teams worked hard to make Wonder Woman accessible to anyone who loves a heroic, hopeful story — not just people fascinated by the complex, often-evolving mythology of comic books.

The balance we were trying to find was [to market] a superhero film that transcended the genre, that worked both for males and females, and never denigrated the proposition.

Warner Bros. opened its doors with confidence, inviting fans (full disclosure: I was one of them) to a special screening of “Wonder Woman” on the studio lot.

Joby Harold recently delivered a script on “The Flash,” with Robert Zemeckis the frontrunner to direct, a sequel to “Wonder Woman” is in the works, Matt Reeves starts working on “The Batman” after his new film “War for the Planet of the Apes,” and additional photography for “Justice League” is being prepped under the direction of Joss Whedon in time for the film’s Nov. 17 release.