(Las Vegas) Celebrating its 100th anniversary, Warner Bros unveiled a busy schedule for U.S. theaters on Tuesday at CinemaCon, headlining its take on the “Barbie” doll and several superhero movies from the DC Comics universe.
The Hollywood heavyweight took advantage of this high mass of cinema owners, which is held every year in Las Vegas, to reassure exhibitors who are still recovering, despite a gradual return of the public after the pandemic.
“We don’t want to make movies that are just for streaming,” said new CEO David Zaslav, who oversaw Warner’s merger with Discovery last year.
While his predecessor was criticized for producing films that streamed directly to the group’s streaming service, HBO Max, Zaslav now says Warner “is in no rush to bring the films” to that platform.
The studio also presented its title of the summer, the comedy Barbie.
This reinterpretation of the dreamlike and pink universe of the famous blonde doll is due out on July 21. Starring in the role of the figurine with the tireless smile and the unrealistic measurements, the American actress Margot Robbie, who decides to scratch the veneer of her too perfect world and escapes to Los Angeles.
“Everyone knows Barbie, but she had never been brought to the screen before,” summed up director Greta Gerwig. The filmmaker explained that she delivers a vision of the doll influenced by the world of the Wizard of Oz and disco music.
The filming was confined to “delirium”, added Ryan Gosling, who plays the role of Ken, Barbie’s eternal pretender to the irreproachable plastic. “I bleached my hair, shaved my legs, wore custom-made neon outfits, and went rollerblading on Venice Beach. »
Warner is also funding a remake of Steven Spielberg’s flamboyant The Color Purple. After his 1985 melody, the director delivers a new version of this film, which tells the story of black women victims of sexual violence and racism in deep South America at the beginning of the 20th century.
The feature film, expected for Christmas, this time takes the form of a musical, after the Broadway adaptation of the eponymous novel by Alice Walker, on which the plot is based.
“The musical factor is so dynamic” it should appeal to audiences, co-producer Oprah Winfrey promised after starring in the first – a performance that earned her a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination feminine.
Actor Timothée Chalamet presented two new Warner films that rest on his shoulders.
First, Wonka, where he embodies a young and idealistic version of the chocolatier Willy Wonka created by the British writer Roald Dahl. The film, slated for December, has him “swimming in pools of real chocolate.”
Then the second installment of Dune, Denis Villeneuve’s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s cult science fiction novel. The film is due out in November, starring Austin Butler, Léa Seydoux, Christopher Walken and Florence Pugh.
Warner also took advantage of this presentation to highlight its superheroes from the DC Comics universe.
The studio just came up with a “10-year plan” for its franchises, including Batman and Superman, Zaslav said.
Under his office, Warner notably poached James Gunn, from rival Marvel. The Guardians of the Galaxy writer and director now oversees his DC Studios division and is expected to direct a new Superman: Legacy, slated for 2025.
Because if superheroes from the DC universe are popular, the films have recently encountered various production problems and casting changes. They are also suffering from competition with Marvel boxes, which are breaking revenue records.
This year, Warner is due to release The Flash, Blue Beetle and a second installment of Aquaman, its ocean superhero. Films produced before its merger, but which should make it possible to make the transition “perfectly” with the new plan drawn up by the studio from 2024, assured James Gunn.
