The DC Universe keeps getting scarier! James Mangold reveals new details about his upcoming Swamp Thing film.
Out of all the films announced for the initial slate of the DC Universe, Swamp Thing is the one that had fans most perplexed. While he wasn’t the most obscure character to land a project (that honor would go to The Authority), the character just had a cult-hit streaming series that was cancelled after a single season. The film’s director was also announced to be James Mangold, who was barreling toward a career low with Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.
Yet things are looking up for Swamp Thing. In an interview with MovieWeb to promote his recent Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown, James Mangold revealed a few details about the upcoming film. Specifically, that he views the project as a horror film that stands on its own in the DC Universe, regardless of how the brass at the top consider the project for their broader franchise.
“With Bob [Dylan] you have known quantities, yes, but there are ways to interpret them. With other kinds of IP, it gets to a religious level. Swamp Thing at DC, it’s just a matter of – do we find a way on the page to say something original? While I’m sure DC views Swamp Thing as a franchise, I would be viewing it as a very simple, clean, Gothic horror movie about this man/monster. Just doing my own thing with this, just a standalone.”
Will Swamp Thing Be Too Similar To Clayface?
James Mangold’s description may have some fans worrying that Swamp Thing may edge too close to the tone of Mike Flanagan’s Clayface movie set to film later this year. However, despite being two horror films set in the DC Universe, the projects have been described very differently. Flanagan has described Clayface as similar to the body-horror classic The Fly, whereas Mangold has previously described Swamp Thing as being similar to Frankenstein.
Fans shouldn’t get too excited, though. It’ll likely be a while before Swamp Thing finds his way to the DC Universe. With James Mangold wrapping production on A Complete Unknown, he plans to put his full attention into his Star Wars film exploring the Dawn of the Jedi. Assuming the director takes no other projects between that and Swamp Thing, it’ll likely be a minimum of six years before the project hits screens.
Swamp Thing is currently in development at DC Studios. Stay tuned for the latest news regarding the future of the DC Universe and make sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for more content!