Emerald Fennell Explains Her "Demented" DC Movie Script Ahead Of Wuthering Heights Release

The world of DC on the big and small screens has changed significantly over the last couple of years. After the conclusion of the DCEU movie timeline, several projects before James Gunn's DC Universe ended up not going forward.

In an interview with the Happy, Sad, Confused podcast, Emerald Fennell was asked about the Zatanna movie that she had been hired to write prior to the launch of DC Studios. Having previously talked about how "demented" the screenplay was, Fennell shared, "I think it was demented because I was probably going through it at the time. [laughs]"

The Wuthering Heights filmmaker elaborated, "I think the thing I've learned now and then, I [had] just finished Promising Young Woman, and there was this huge thing in this world that I'd never operated in." Fennell stressed that "it was a kind of superhero movie, and I was like, 'Okay, how do I make the version of a superhero movie that I would connect to emotionally,' which is sort of the woman in the middle of a nervous breakdown."

According to Fennell, the Zatanna movie was "a script reflective of the woman in the middle of a nervous breakdown, I would say. And in terms of what that means, well, I suppose it just meant that it was probably too far away from maybe a little too far away from the genre." When asked if she made it maybe too personal, she said, "Maybe. I haven't read it for a really long time because I found it really difficult because also, the thing [is,] I love J.J. [Abrams who was exeuctive producing] and he took a chance on offering me to do it and I really wanted to deliver something amazing for them and I always felt like I hadn't quite maybe delivered the thing that they wanted."

The British actor/writer/director admitted that "I haven't read it since and I wonder if I read it now, I'd be more generous towards myself, but I felt like I wish I'd been able to deliver the thing that they wanted and I think they were really lovely about it. It's just you're making me remember scenes I'm like, 'Oh nobody would have made that! Nobody would have made it.'" The project was announced all the way back in 2021.

When J.J. Abrams was developing his Justice League Dark universe, Zatanna was reportedly one of the properties intended to be part of that franchise, focusing on the supernatural side of the DC lore. A Constantine reboot on HBO Max was also part of Abrams' plans, with a team-up series eyed down the line.

Even though Fennell's Zatanna movie is not moving forward, the character could always appear in Gunn's DCU down the line. DC Studios has multiple movies and TV shows in the works for Chapter 1: "Gods and Monsters" with the slate resuming this summer with the Supergirl film on June 26.

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  Created by Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson

  First Film Man of Steel

  First TV Show Peacemaker

  Cast Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Ezra Miller, Ray Fisher, Jason Momoa, Amy Adams, Jesse Eisenberg, Laurence Fishburne, Jeremy Irons, Will Smith, Jared Leto, Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman, Viola Davis, Jai Courtney, Jay Hernandez, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Cara Delevingne, Chris Pine, Robin Wright, Zachary Levi, Dwayne Johnson, Amber Heard, Patrick Wilson, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Mark Strong, Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Grazer, Djimon Hounsou, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Jurnee Smollett, Rosie Perez, Ella Jay Basco, Ali Wong, Ewan McGregor, Idris Elba, John Cena, Michael Keaton, George Clooney, Xolo Mariduena

  Movie(s) Man of Steel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Suicide Squad, Wonder Woman, Justice League, Aquaman, Shazam!, Birds of Prey, Wonder Woman 1984, Zack Snyder's Justice League, The Suicide Squad, Black Adam, Shazam! The Fury of the Gods, The Flash, Blue Beetle, Superman, The Brave and the Bold

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  The DC Universe is one of the biggest comic book franchises and often competes with Marvel. DC Comics started as National Allied Publications, founded by Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson in 1935. Since then, the franchise has exploded with thousands of comic books, movies, TV shows, and video games. 2013 marked the beginning of the most recent iteration of the superheroes, with Zack Snyder introducing Henry Cavill as Superman. After several movies with mixed reviews, DC underwent a soft reboot under the helm of James Gunn and Peter Safran.

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