List Of Unproduced Television Projects Based On DC Comics

his is a list of unmade and unreleased television projects based on DC Comics.

Fleischer Studios' Batman
Following the success of the Fleischer Superman cartoons, Fleischer Studios communicated with DC Comics over the possibility of adapting Batman. The communication got to the point of budget discussions as illustrated in a letter dated January 25, 1942, and reproduced in longtime Batman executive producer, Michael E. Uslan's 2011 memoir, The Boy Who Loved Batman. It is, however, unknown how far the production of this project went before being abandoned.[1]

CBS' Mike Henry Batman
Prior to the 1966 juggernaut that was the Adam West/Burt Ward Batman series, CBS attempted to launch a live action children's program based on the character. Former Rams linebacker and Tarzan actor Mike Henry was soon approached to appear as the character and even took publicity stills. The project went into limbo, and after a long stagnation, producers attempted to ironically sell it to NBC; they passed on the project in 1965.[2]

Bruce Wayne
Bruce Wayne was a planned television series focusing on a young Bruce Wayne before he became Batman. The idea was conceived as a pitch from screenwriter Tim McCanlies in late 1990s, and went as far into development until being shelved in favor of, at that time, the planned film Batman: Year One.

The concept would later be rethought and turned into the television series Smallville, this time focusing on a young Clark Kent before he became Superman. From 2014 until 2019, Fox aired Gotham, which focuses on a young Bruce Wayne and James Gordon, as well as the origin stories of several Batman villains such as Riddler, Penguin, Poison Ivy and The Joker, among others.

Gotham High
An animated series that reimagines Batman characters as high school students was in development in the late 2000s and early 2010s.[16] A similar idea was used for the DC Super Hero Girls 2015 shorts and the 2019 animated series.

Batman: No Man's Land
In the mid 2000s, an animated TV show based on the acclaimed "No Man's Land" storyline was put in development by producer James Tucker. Coran Stone worked in the project making some designs, but the project was ultimately scrapped for being "too dark", so Warner Bros. Animation and Cartoon Network decided to focus on Batman: The Brave and the Bold instead.[1]In the late 2000s, Tucker made another attempt to use the storyline of "No Man's Land" as a TV series, but now with CGI animation instead of traditional animation. Some artworks were made, but the project was finally cancelled for having a dark premise like the previous attempt

Nightwing: The Animated Series
An animated series featuring Nightwing was in development from Ki Hyun Ryu of The Boondocks and The Legend of Korra fame.[27] The series was rejected in favor for Young Justice.[17]

Catwoman: The Animated Series
In the massive success of theBatman: The Animated Series, Fox Kids approached Bruce Timm on making a spinoff based on Catwoman. The series was scrapped in favor of Superman: The Animated Series.[17]

The Joker vs. the Powerpuff Girls
During the initial run of the Cartoon Network series The Powerpuff Girls, series creator Craig McCracken wanted to do a crossover episode featuring the Joker.[38] On Tumblr, he said:

Untitled Superman spinoff series
In June 2006, during an interview about Superman: Brainiac Attacks, writer Duane Capizzi mentioned a Superman series set in the same universe of The Batman, a possibility supported by Superman's revealed existence during the show's fifth season.[41] Despite this, the expansion was never realized, and Capizzi never again mentioned the spinoff.

The Adventures of Superboy TV pilot
The Adventures of Superboy is a proposed TV series that was put into production in 1961. It was meant to capitalize on the success of Adventures of Superman, which went out of production in 1958. Only a pilot episode ("Rajah's Ransom") was produced, although 12 additional scripts had been prepared, had the series been picked up.

It featured the first non-comic book portrayals ever of Superboy and Lana Lang and stands as a forerunner of later series Superboy, which lasted four seasons and Smallville, which lasted ten seasons.

The Adventures of Superpup TV pilot
The Adventures of Superpup, a 1958 unaired pilot, was meant to capitalize on the success of Adventures of Superman.[1] Superpup featured the first television portrayal of the Superman characters as non-humans.

Metropolis TV series
In January 2018, Gotham producers John Stephens and Danny Cannon and Warner Bros. Television were reportedly given a 13-episode straight-to-series order for the DC Universe series Metropolis, which follows Lois Lane and Lex Luthor as they investigate the world of fringe science and expose the city’s dark and bizarre secrets.[43] In May 2018, the series was being redeveloped.[44]

Untitled Superman Family animated series
In May 2018, Vinton Heuck and Sean Galloway pitched an idea for a Superman Family animated series to Warner Bros. Animation but the pitch was rejected in favor of Harley Quinn animated series.[45]

Who's Afraid of Diana Prince TV pilot (1967)
A proposed 1967 television series, that only resulted in the production of a short pilot.[46] The success of the Batman television series led Batman producer William Dozier to commission a pilot script by Stan Hart and Larry Siegel. Batman writer Stanley Ralph Ross was then asked to perform a re-write, after Hart and Siegel's script was deemed unsuitable.[47][48] A portion of the pilot, under five minutes in length, was filmed by Greenway Productions, the company behind the Batman show under the title Who's Afraid of Diana Prince?[49] The piece starred Ellie Wood Walker (Robert Walker Jr.'s wife) as Diana Prince, Linda Harrison as Diana's Wonder Woman alter ego and Maudie Prickett as Diana's mother. In the proposed series Diana Prince (not Wonder Woman) would have been the focus of the comedy. Diana, an awkward and rather plain young woman, lives with her mother close to a United States Air Force base. Much of the film consists of her mother berating Diana about not having a boyfriend. When her mother leaves the room, Diana changes into her Wonder Woman costume and admires her reflection in a mirror. What she sees is not Diana Prince, but rather a sexy super-heroic figure (played by Linda Harrison) who proceeds to preen and pose as the song "Oh, You Beautiful Doll" plays on the soundtrack. The pilot ends with Diana climbing out a window and flying away, indicating that, despite her apparent delusions regarding her alter ego, she does have some super powers.[50] This pilot episode was never broadcast and the project was abandoned.

Wonder Woman TV pilot (2011)
Main article: Wonder Woman (2011 TV pilot)

A TV series based on Wonder Woman was in the works in 2010 that would have aired on NBC in 2011.

Filmation's Wonder Woman animated series
Animation studio Filmation considered making an animated series based on Wonder Woman in 1968 following the then-massive success of the TV series Batman. But nothing came out of it.[53]

The CW's Amazon
In 2012, The CW, Warner Bros. Television and DC Comics announced that they were developing a new origin story for Wonder Woman called Amazon.[54] In early 2013, the network pushed the pilot back until the 2014/15 season.[55] On May 16, 2013, The CW announced that the show was still in development, with a new script by Aron Eli Coleite, replacing Allan Heinberg, who wrote the previous script for the planned pilot.[56] However, in July 2013 The Flash, by Greg Berlanti and Andrew Kreisberg was fast-tracked instead. Mark Pedowitz confirmed that "Amazon is on pause (as) the script is not exactly what we wanted, and with an iconic character like Wonder Woman, we have to get it right."[57] In January 2014, Pedowitz told The Hollywood Reporter that the project was no longer in development: "We did not go forward with it [...] it all depends on the script. We were very careful with Arrow, and we're being very careful with Flash [...] these are iconic characters, so we're going to be very careful with Wonder Woman. You only get one shot before you get bit."[58] In August 2017, Pedowitz confirmed that the success of the feature film has killed any current attempts to bring the Amazonian warrior to the small screen on their channel.[59]

Justice League of America
Justice League of America is a 1997 television film and an unsuccessful pilot produced by CBS[1] and directed by Félix Enríquez Alcalá, based on a team of fictional DC Comics superheroes from the comic of the same name. The film centers on a female meteorologist who gains superpowers and is later inducted into the "Justice League", while the city of New Metro is held for ransom by a terrorist armed with a weather control device.

Early attempt at a Justice League series
An early attempt at a Justice League television series was to feature lesser known superheroes, like the Question and Doctor Fate, that would have been part of the DC Animated Universe. The series was cancelled in favor of Batman Beyond.[17]

Untitled Batman/Superman TV series
There was plans to make an animated series featuring Batman and Superman. It would have been an origin story.[65]

Hanna Barbera's Teen Titans
In the 1980s, Hanna Barbera planned a TV series for the Teen Titans in the same universe as the Super Friends.

DCAU's Teen Titans TV series
An early plan for the Teen Titans TV series was to include it into the DC Animated Universe. This idea was later abandoned in favor of being its own stand-alone series.[17] This roster would have included Robin, Speedy, Aqualad, Kid Flash, Aquaman, the Flash, and Wonder Girl.

The WB's Flash
In 2003, it was reported that The WB was planning a Flash TV series with Todd Komarnicki signed on to write and executive produce it. Inspired by the 1960s science fiction drama The Time Tunnel, the series would have been a loose adaptation of the Flash, depicting him as a fresh-out-of-college Gotham City resident who uses his powers to travel backwards and forwards in time, going on missions. As with Smallville, the series would have eschewed superhero costumes altogether.[66]

Plastic Man TV series
Several attempts to make a TV series based on Plastic Man were in development, one being in 1967 at Hal Seeger Productions,[71] another at Filmation.[53]

Another attempt was in the 2006 where Warner Bros. Animation and Cartoon Network commissioned an animated pilot titled "Puddle Trouble".[72][73] They ultimately decided not to pick it up as a series, but the pilot can be seen on the Plastic Man: The Complete Collection DVD set.

Aquaman TV pilot (2006)
Aquaman is a television pilot developed by Smallville creators Al Gough and Miles Millar for The WB Television Network, based on the DC Comics character of the same name. Gough and Millar wrote the pilot, which was directed by Greg Beeman. Justin Hartley starred as Arthur "A.C." Curry, a young man living in a beachside community in the Florida Keys who learns about his powers and destiny as the Prince of Atlantis.

The Aquaman pilot was expected to debut in the fall schedule of 2006, but following the merger of the WB and UPN, the resulting CW Network opted not to buy the series. After they passed on the pilot, it was made available online through iTunes in the United States and became the number-one most downloaded television show on iTunes. It received generally favorable reviews, was later released on other online markets, and aired on Canadian television network YTV.

Deadman TV series
Following the success of X-Men in 2000, Warner Bros. Television announced that a Deadman television film for TNT was in development, which was also being considered as a pilot for a potential television series.[81] The project was still in development by 2003, but was later shelved.[82] In 2011, WBTV hired Supernatural creator Eric Kripke to helm a Deadman television series for The CW, as the network was looking to commission a new superhero series.[83] The following year, another superhero series debuted on the network. A Deadman series never materialized and Kripke has since moved on to other projects.

Rōnin TV miniseries
In April 2014, the Syfy channel announced that they are adapting Rōnin into a miniseries.[86]

Static Shock TV series
In October 2014, it was announced that Warner Bros. would be launching a live-action Static Shock program from Reginald Hudlin as part of the company's new Blue Ribbon Content digital division, and are eyeing Jaden Smith for the role of Virgil Hawkins/Static.[88][89][90] On May 24, 2015, actor Tyler James Williams announced in an interview that Jaden Smith was cast as Static, but this has yet to be confirmed by Blue Ribbon Content or by Warner Bros.[91] Hudlin, DC Comics Chief Creative Officer Geoff Johns, and Denys Cowan are collaborating on the live-action project.[92] Since then, there have been no new announcements.

Lobo: The Animated Series
Following his appearance on Superman: The Animated Series, plans for a children's television show based on the character Lobo was in development at Kids WB. But due to executive issues, the series was converted into a vulgar Flash animated web series that was released in 2000.[94][17]

Lobo TV series spinoff
On June 12, 2019, Syfy announced a Lobo spinoff series from season 2 of Krypton with Krypton executive producer Cameron Welsh serving as executive producer/writer.[95] On August 16, 2019, Syfy announced the Lobo spinoff was cancelled along with Krypton.[96]

Blue Beetle TV series
Geoff Johns announced a live action TV series featuring the Jamie Reyes version of Blue Beetle.[102][103] They made a test trailer with stuntman and actor Garrett Plotkin as Jaime Reyes. Scenes of this trailer were shown as part of the upcoming DC Nation block of programming in 2012 on Cartoon Network during the premiere of Green Lantern: The Animated Series. Since then, nothing has been announced about the project.

Hourman TV series
In November 2013, a live action Hourman series was revealed to be in development at The CW. Michael Caleo was writing the script, to executive produce the series alongside Dan Lin, and Jennifer Gwartz. The premise of the series "centers on a brilliant-yet-troubled pharmaceutical analyst who discovers that the visions that have plagued him since childhood are actually glimpses of tragic events occurring one hour in the future. Determined to win back his ex-wife and son, he heroically prevents these tragedies from unfolding, finding both purpose and redemption along the way". Since then, no progress on the series was made after its announcement.[109]

Spectre TV series
Fox announced in 2011 plans to develop a television series featuring the Spectre.[110] There have been no further developments since.

#4Hero Web series
Machinima Inc. and DC Entertainment were producing a live-action web series based on an updated version of Dial H for Hero. Titled #4Hero, the VFX-heavy comedy would have been about a young woman named Nellie Tribble who discovers a smartphone app that allows her to temporarily gain semi-useful superpowers dictated by whatever is trending at the moment.[111] Since then, no production updates were announced.

The original Human Target TV series
The original version of Human Target was created by Warner Bros. Television and Pet Fly Productions, producers of The Flash and later The Sentinel for Paramount Pictures.[113][114] The original pilot for the series was in filmed in 1990[115] but ABC declined to pick up the series for the 1990-91 television season and this pilot never aired.[116] In the original unaired pilot, musician Clarence Clemons who was trying to establish himself as an actor, played Chance's pilot.[115][116][117]

Harvey Shephard, then the president of Warner Bros. Television, told The New York Times in December 1991 that Human Target was intended for both American audiences and the international television market, saying "Hopefully, it's a formula for all tastes that could have a strong foreign market."[118] A different pilot was filmed, resulting in the 1992 short-lived TV series Human Target.[119]

Starman television series
There was a television series planned based on Jack Knight's adventures from the creators of Smallville and Birds of Prey. It would have featured both Jack and his father, been set in Opal City, and attempted to follow the comics as closely as possible. However, in 2003, after the failure of Birds of Prey, it was last referred to as being "indefinitely on hold". There has since been no sign that it will ever be produced.[121][122]

Early attempts at a Mad TV series
A 1974 animated television pilot based on the Mad magazine that used selected material from the magazine was commissioned by ABC, but the network decided to not broadcast it. Dick DeBartolo noted, "Nobody wanted to sponsor a show that made fun of products that were advertised on TV, like car manufacturers." The program was instead created into a TV special, and is available for online viewing.[123]

In the mid-1980s, Hanna-Barbera developed another potential Mad animated television series which was never broadcast.[124]

Sgt. Rock film
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Arnold Schwarzenegger was attached to the title role of a Sgt. Rock film, despite the seeming incongruity of an Austrian actor playing an American G.I. in World War II. Screenplays were written by David Webb Peoples in 1987, Steven E. de Souza in 1988, John Milius in 1993, and Brian Helgeland in 1996, depicting Rock as having a German-American father and being able to speak German (a skill he uses to ambush the enemy). Producer Joel Silver still attempted to make a Sgt. Rock movie. John Cox has written the latest screenplay, which is not based on any of the previous screenplay drafts.[125] Cox has stated that Schwarzenegger is no longer attached to star in the project. In April 2007, David Gambino, VP at Silver Pictures said, "The good news is we have a fantastic screenplay and everybody's really happy with it. It's really just about trying to attach cast right now and really decide what the movie is going to be, how we're going to make it". Bruce Willis was reportedly under consideration for the role.[126] In December 2008, Guy Ritchie reported that the film has been shelved due to his work on Sherlock Holmes, but confirmed that the Sgt. Rock film will indeed be set during World War II and include the members of Easy Company.[127] On February 2, 2010, Silver announced the setting change from World War II to another battle in the near future.[128] Since then, there have been no further announcements.

Project 13 TV series
In October 2017, it was announced that The CW was developing a one-hour drama series based on Traci Thirteen and her father Dr. Terrance Thirteen, titled Project 13, with Elizabeth Banks attached as an executive producer.[130]

Secret Six TV series
In October 2018, Suits’s Rick Muirragui will write and produce a Secret Six TV series with Bill Lawrence’s Doozer Productions for CBS.[131]

Kamandi TV series
In the late 1970s, an animated Kamandi television series was optioned, but was cancelled before entering the production phase.[135]