DC Universe Animated Original Movies
Film series From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The DC Universe Animated Original Movies (DCUAOM; also known as DC Universe Original Movies or DC Universe Movies or DC Animated Movies) are a series of American direct-to-video superhero animated films based on DC Comics characters and stories. From 2007 to 2022, films were produced primarily by Warner Bros. Animation but subsequently fell under DC Studios. Many films are usually stand-alone projects that are either adaptations of popular works or original stories.
| DC Universe Animated Original Movie | |
|---|---|
 Logo from 2017–2024 | |
| Years | 2007–2024 |
| Miscellaneous | |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Paramount Home Entertainment (Watchmen only, international) |
| Country | United States |
From 2013 to 2024, the DC Animated Movie Universe was a subset of this series. The first story arc featured several films that took place in a shared universe, influenced predominantly by "The New 52". Following the first arc's conclusion with Justice League Dark: Apokolips War (2020), the "Tomorrowverse" series was launched beginning with Superman: Man of Tomorrow that same year and ended with a three-part trilogy, Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths (2024). As of 2024, the DCUAOM line released 58 films that made a total of $253 million in sales in the United States and Canada, an average of $5.4 million per film.[1]
Premise
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Unlike earlier animated DC films (most of which also involved Bruce Timm and were part of the DC Animated Universe), the films in the line are aimed at a more adult audience, often containing profane language, stronger violence, sexual scenes, and more mature themes. The art styles for the films are also generally more realistically proportionate. The majority of the films are rated PG-13 by the MPAA except All-Star Superman and Green Lantern: Emerald Knights, which are rated PG, and Batman: The Killing Joke, Justice League Dark, Batman: Gotham by Gaslight, Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay, Justice League Dark: Apokolips War, Batman: Soul of the Dragon, Batman: The Long Halloween, Part Two, Injustice, and Justice League: Warworld, which are rated R. Many of the films are adapted from stories originally featured in DC print comics and graphic novels. As of 2024[update], 53 feature films and fourteen short films have been released.
In terms of continuity, the films are usually stand-alone, with exceptions being Superman/Batman: Public Enemies and its sequel Superman/Batman: Apocalypse, Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths and its sequel Justice League: Doom, the DC Animated Movie Universe and its "Tomorrowverse" arc.
From 2007 to 2015, most of the films were voice-directed by Andrea Romano, the last one being Justice League: Gods and Monsters. Then from 2016 to 2024, duties were handed to Wes Gleason, starting with Batman: Bad Blood up until the three-part Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths trilogy.
The films are generally released direct-to-video, but Batman: The Killing Joke, Batman and Harley Quinn, The Death of Superman and Reign of the Supermen were also given limited releases in theaters.[2]
Released films
Short films
DC Showcase
| No | Title | Release date | Notes | Included in | Collection |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Spectre | February 23, 2010 | Featuring the Jim Corrigan version of the Spectre (Gary Cole). The short has Det. Jim Corrigan investigating the murder of a high-end movie executive, ultimately becoming the Spectre to hunt down his killers. The short features supporting cast members Alyssa Milano, Jeff Bennett, Rob Paulsen and Jon Polito. | Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths | DC Showcase Original Shorts Collection |
| 2 | Jonah Hex | July 27, 2010 | Featuring Jonah Hex (Thomas Jane). Set in the Old West, the short follows Hex as he faces a ruthless swindler to retrieve the body of an outlaw. The short features supporting cast members Linda Hamilton, Jason Marsden, Michael Rooker, and Michelle Trachtenberg.[9] | Batman: Under the Red Hood | |
| 3 | Green Arrow | September 28, 2010 | Featuring Green Arrow (Neal McDonough). The short follows Oliver Queen, who is waiting for his girlfriend at the airport. Ultimately, he must become Green Arrow to foil an assassination plot that sees a young princess become the target of several assailants. The short features supporting cast members Malcolm McDowell as Merlyn, Steve Blum as Count Vertigo, Grey DeLisle reprising her role as Black Canary from Batman: The Brave and the Bold, John DiMaggio and Ariel Winter.[10][11][12] | Superman/Batman: Apocalypse | |
| 4 | Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam | November 9, 2010 | Featuring Superman and Captain Marvel. It features George Newbern and Jerry O'Connell reprising their roles of Superman and Captain Marvel from Justice League Unlimited, as well as featuring Zach Callison as Billy Batson, James Garner as Shazam, Kevin Michael Richardson as Mister Tawky Tawny, Arnold Vosloo as Black Adam, Josh Keaton and Danica McKellar.[13][14] The short film sees a young orphan being targeted by an otherworldly figure. He ultimately discovers an ancient wizard who gives him the ability to transform into a powerful hero, thus allowing him to team up with Superman to properly fight back. The short is 24 minutes. | DC Showcase Original Shorts Collection | |
| 5 | Catwoman | October 18, 2011 | Featuring Catwoman in a continuation of her storyline in Batman: Year One. The short features Eliza Dushku reprising her role as Catwoman, Liliana Mumy as Holly Robinson and John DiMaggio as Rough Cut.[15] The film also stars Kevin Michael Richardson, Cree Summer and Tara Strong. The short was directed and produced by Lauren Montgomery and written by Paul Dini. The short sees Selina Kyle confronting an illegal diamond trafficking operation that has also resulted in the disappearance of several women. A special feature presentation was shown at the New York Comic Con. | Batman: Year One | |
| 6 | Sgt. Rock | August 6, 2019 | Featuring Karl Urban voicing the eponymous character. The short follows the title character, a worn-out veteran, who suddenly finds himself leading a platoon of legendary monsters against an army of Nazi zombies. Keith Ferguson, William Salyers, and Audrey Wasilewski also star.[16] | Batman: Hush | DC Showcase Animated Shorts – Batman: Death in the Family |
| 7 | Death | October 22, 2019 | Featuring Jamie Chung as the title character. The short follows Death as she meets a down-on-his-luck artist named Vincent (Leonardo Nam) to help him make peace with his inner demons.[16] | Wonder Woman: Bloodlines | |
| 8 | The Phantom Stranger | March 17, 2020 | Starring Peter Serafinowicz as the Phantom Stranger. In the 1970s, a young adult named Marcie, along with her friends, attend a party at an abandoned mansion hosted by the enigmatic Seth (Michael Rosenbaum). However, when weird things start to happen, the Phantom Stranger must save her. Supporting cast includes Natalie Lander, Grey Griffin, and Roger Craig Smith.[16] | Superman: Red Son | |
| 9 | Adam Strange | May 19, 2020 | Starring Charlie Weber as the titular hero. The short sees Strange living in an asteroid mining colony with its population seeing him as an interplanetary derelict. He reveals his true nature by saving them from alien insects, while his origin story is revealed in flashbacks. Roger R. Cross, Kimberly Brooks, Ray Chase, and Fred Tatasciore also star. Butch Lukic confirmed in 2022 that the short is part of Tomorrowverse, it shows the backstory of Adam Strange featured in Green Lantern: Beware My Power.[17] | Justice League Dark: Apokolips War | |
| 10 | Batman: Death in the Family | October 13, 2020 | An interactive, long-form animated short that is based on the comic storyline of the same name by Jim Starlin and Jim Aparo, and is a sequel to Batman: Under the Red Hood. Reprising their roles are Bruce Greenwood (as Batman), Vincent Martella (young Jason Todd), John DiMaggio (Joker) and Gary Cole (Commissioner James Gordon), respectively. Cole also provides the voice for Two-Face. Additionally, Zehra Fazal joins the cast as Talia al Ghul.[16][18] | DC Showcase Animated Shorts – Batman: Death in the Family | |
| 11 | Kamandi: The Last Boy on Earth! | April 27, 2021 | Starring Cameron Monaghan as the titular hero. The short that is based on Kamandi #29 follows Kamandi and his friends Prince Tuftan (Steve Blum) of the Tiger Kingdom and nuclear man Ben Boxer (Armen Taylor) as they are kidnapped by a gorilla cult led by Golgan (also voiced by Blum) dedicated to finding the reincarnation of their god The Mighty One. From there, they're forced into a series of harrowing challenges alongside their representative Zuma (Adam Gifford) that serve to prove their belief.[19][20] Jeremy Adams confirmed in 2022 that the short is part of the Tomorrowverse, and connects with Justice Society: World War II.[21] | Justice Society: World War II | DC Showcase Animated Shorts – Constantine: The House of Mystery |
| 12 | The Losers | June 22, 2021 | The short tells the story of the titular team consisting of World War II outcasts Captain William Storm (Dean Winters), Johnny Cloud (Martin Sensmeier), Henry "Mile a Minute" Jones (Eugene Byrd), Gunner (Dave B. Mitchell), and Sarge (also voiced by Mitchell), as they find themselves marooned on Dinosaur Island and they work with Fan Long (Ming-Na Wen) to rescue the scientists that were studying the space-time anomaly there. | Batman: The Long Halloween, Part One | |
| 13 | Blue Beetle | July 27, 2021 | Starring Matt Lanter as the titular hero. The short, in a parody of the 1967 Spider-Man animated series, features Blue Beetle collaborating with Captain Atom (Jeff Bennett), Nightshade (Ashly Burch), and Question (David Kaye) to fight Doctor Spectro (Tom Kenny).[22] | Batman: The Long Halloween, Part Two | |
| 14 | Constantine: The House of Mystery[23] | May 3, 2022 | Immediately following the ending of Justice League Dark: Apokolips War,[24] where the Flash traveled back in time to create a new Flashpoint, John Constantine (Matt Ryan) wakes up in the House of Mystery with no recollection of how he got there. In each room he enters, he is set upon and killed by his friends, who have become demons. When Constantine escapes from the House of Mystery, the Spectre (Lou Diamond Phillips) appears and explains that he put Constantine in the House to protect him from the punishment the universe had prepared for his time-travel violations. The House was intended to be peaceful, but Constantine's deep self-hatred and guilt transformed his friends into demons as a subconscious form of self-punishment. Subsequently, Constantine is dragged screaming into the light as he begs Spectre to kill him. After Constantine is far away, Spectre quotes "Woe to you, John Constantine". | DC Showcase Animated Shorts – Constantine: The House of Mystery |
Other short films
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Nightwing and Robin | A 45-second short film set during the events of the DC Animated Movie Universe film Justice League: Throne of Atlantis. The two main characters are called upon by Batman to find and capture the Scarecrow (Michael Rosenbaum) since he had to help the Justice League. While Jason O'Mara reprises Batman in this short, only his voice is heard while Nightwing and Robin have no dialogue. Talon (who would be featured in Batman vs. Robin) makes a silent cameo in the film.[25] |
Other projects
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Unannounced projects
Beyond the list of announced projects, creators involved in various levels at DC Comics have brought up names of possible future projects.
- Bruce Timm has said that he would like to do a full-length animated Green Arrow film following the positive reception of DC Showcase: Green Arrow.[26]
- DC's ex-executive editor Dan DiDio has expressed interest in seeing the popular 2007–2008 Sinestro Corps War comic storyline adapted.[27]
- In 2009, Timm also expressed his interest to make an animated JLA/Avengers adaptation.[28]
- Geoff Johns revealed that Warner Bros. would like to use unproduced screenplays as a basis for new animated films, such as J. J. Abrams' Superman: Flyby.[29]
- Producer James Tucker has spoken about wanting a Wonder Woman-centered Justice League film.[30]
- At Comic-Con, Timm also had expressed interest in an animated adaptation of the Batman R.I.P. storyline.[31]
- Batman: The Killing Joke screenwriter Brian Azzarello had stated that he would like to adapt his graphic novel Joker into an animated film.[32]
- Timm has mentioned that another Batman Beyond film is a possibility,[33] and in August 2017, Tucker stated in his Twitter account that discussions about a possible Batman Beyond film occur several times at the studio,[34] while he also stated that a potential Static Shock film set in the DC Animated Universe is possible as the studio is always interested in Static.[35]
- J. M. DeMatteis expressed interest in scripting an adaptation of his Batman story arc Going Sane and a New Gods film set in the DC Animated Movie Universe.[36][37] This partially came into play with the film Justice League: Gods and Monsters, visually and aesthetically invoking the DCAU, confirmed to be in an alternate timeline to it.
- Filmmaker and comic book writer Kevin Smith mentioned at Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo that he met with Johns, where he pitched an animated Plastic Man film that he wrote for DC.[38]
- An animated film featuring characters from the Milestone Media imprint was announced at DC Fandome in October 2021. The film was set to be written by Brandon Thomas and will feature "more than one character" according to Milestone co-founder Denys Cowan. The announcement included promotional concept art of Static, Hardware, Icon, and Rocket.[39]
Cancelled projects
- Plans for sequels to the 2009 films Wonder Woman and Green Lantern: First Flight were shelved, as well as a planned film based on the 2003 miniseries Batgirl: Year One. Slower sales of the Wonder Woman film were cited,[40][41] although sales figures indicate that it was at least the #8 best-selling of the 25 DC Universe films released as of August 2015[update] (4 of the films that ranked higher than it include Blu-ray sales which have not been released for Wonder Woman).
- In 2010, Timm stated that the production team originally planned to make an Aquaman film,[42] but at the end, the executives of Warner Bros. cancelled the project because their expectations about marketing were very low.[43]
- During an interview in October 2016, Jay Oliva revealed that he had an idea for a sequel to Batman: Assault on Arkham,[44] but following Oliva's departure from Warner Bros. Animation in 2017,[45] as well as the film's apparent decanonization in Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, the project may have been pulled.
- In 2023, the creative team for Justice League: Warworld planned to develop a film adaptation of the Kingdom Come comic book miniseries, but the idea was discarded by James Gunn and Peter Safran after they were named CEOs of DC Studios.[46]
Reception
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Sales performance
Sales figures below represent, when available, DVD and Blu-ray sales in the United States. Theatrical ticket, digital, and rental sales are not included.
| Title | Release date | Gross | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Superman: Doomsday | September 18, 2007 | $10,102,202 | [47] |
| Justice League: The New Frontier | February 26, 2008 | $5,735,377 | [48] |
| Batman: Gotham Knight | July 8, 2008 | $8,539,068 | [49] |
| Wonder Woman | March 3, 2009 | $9,904,313 | [50] |
| Green Lantern: First Flight | July 28, 2009 | $8,484,729 | [51] |
| Superman/Batman: Public Enemies | September 29, 2009 | $11,014,346 | [52] |
| Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths | February 23, 2010 | $8,636,868 | [53] |
| Batman: Under the Red Hood | July 27, 2010 | $12,411,958 | [54] |
| Superman/Batman: Apocalypse | September 28, 2010 | $8,839,887 | [55] |
| Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam | November 9, 2010 | $5,983,521 | [56] |
| All-Star Superman | February 22, 2011 | $7,539,076 | [57] |
| Green Lantern: Emerald Knights | June 8, 2011 | $5,749,225 | [58] |
| Batman: Year One | October 18, 2011 | $6,137,182 | [59] |
| Justice League: Doom | February 28, 2012 | $7,539,282 | [60] |
| Superman vs. The Elite | June 12, 2012 | $3,184,408 | [61] |
| Batman: The Dark Knight Returns – Part 1 | September 25, 2012 | $6,006,141 | [62] |
| Batman: The Dark Knight Returns – Part 2 | January 29, 2013 | $4,315,736 | [63] |
| Superman: Unbound | May 7, 2013 | $3,523,760 | [64] |
| Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox | July 30, 2013 | $5,260,646 | [65] |
| Justice League: War | February 4, 2014 | $5,802,728 | [66] |
| Son of Batman | May 6, 2014 | $7,023,969 | [67] |
| Batman: Assault on Arkham | August 12, 2014 | $5,946,258 | [68] |
| Justice League: Throne of Atlantis | January 27, 2015 | $4,657,085 | [69] |
| Batman vs. Robin | April 14, 2015 | $4,657,085 | [70] |
| Justice League: Gods and Monsters | July 21, 2015 | $2,972,092 | [71] |
| Batman: Bad Blood | February 2, 2016 | $4,865,442 | [72] |
| Justice League vs. Teen Titans | March 26, 2016 | $4,865,442 | [73] |
| Batman: The Killing Joke | October 10, 2016 | $8,994,247 | [74] |
| Justice League Dark | January 24, 2017 | $3,318,438 | [75] |
| Teen Titans: The Judas Contract | March 31, 2017 | $3,272,927 | [76] |
| Batman and Harley Quinn | August 15, 2017 | $2,247,876 | [77] |
| Batman: Gotham by Gaslight | January 23, 2018 | $4,697,126 | [78] |
| Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay | March 27, 2018 | $2,865,568 | [79] |
| The Death of Superman | July 24, 2018 | $6,546,576 | [80] |
| Reign of the Supermen | January 13, 2019 | $3,773,664 | [81] |
| Justice League vs. the Fatal Five | April 16, 2019 | $2,185,458 | [82] |
| Batman: Hush | July 20, 2019 | $3,597,264 | [83] |
| Wonder Woman: Bloodlines | October 5, 2019 | $1,718,374 | [84] |
| Superman: Red Son | February 25, 2020 | $2,032,174 | [85] |
| Justice League Dark: Apokolips War | May 5, 2020 | $5,513,095 | [86] |
| Superman: Man of Tomorrow | October 5, 2020 | $3,400,133 | [87] |
| Batman: Death in the Family | October 13, 2020 | $3,675,151 | [88] |
| Batman: Soul of the Dragon | January 12, 2021 | $2,421,468 | [89] |
| Justice Society: World War II | May 10, 2021 | $3,617,118 | [90] |
| Batman: The Long Halloween, Part One | June 22, 2021 | $3,607,779 | [91] |
| Batman: The Long Halloween, Part Two | July 27, 2021 | $2,551,203 | [92] |
| Injustice | October 29, 2021 | $2,668,958 | [93] |
| Catwoman: Hunted | February 8, 2022 | $406,379 | [94] |
| Constantine: The House of Mystery | May 3, 2022 | $401,011 | [95] |
| Green Lantern: Beware My Power | July 26, 2022 | $775,269 | [96] |
| Batman and Superman: Battle of the Super Sons | October 18, 2022 | $1,356,148 | [97] |
| Total | $253,209,813 | — | |
| Average | $5,167,547 | — | |
Critical response
Each film is linked to the "Critical response" section of its article.
Continuities
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Stand-alone films
The following films are stand-alone, and do not share continuities with each other or other films (note exceptions).
- Superman: Doomsday (2007)
- Justice League: The New Frontier (2008)
- Wonder Woman (2009)
- Green Lantern: First Flight (2009)
- Batman: Under the Red Hood (2010)
- Batman: Death in the Family (interactive short) (2020)
- All-Star Superman (2011)
- Green Lantern: Emerald Knights (2011)
- Superman vs. The Elite (2012)
- Superman: Unbound (2013)
- Justice League: Gods and Monsters (2015)
- Justice League: Gods and Monsters Chronicles (web series) (2015)
- Batman: The Killing Joke (2016)
- Batman: Gotham by Gaslight (2018)
- Superman: Red Son (2020)
- Batman: Soul of the Dragon (2021)
- Injustice (2021)
- Catwoman: Hunted (2022)
- Batman and Superman: Battle of the Super Sons (2022)
- Batman: The Doom That Came to Gotham (2023)
- Watchmen (Two Parts) (2024)
Superman/Batman
This continuity is based on the Superman/Batman storyline.
- Superman/Batman: Public Enemies (2009)
- Superman/Batman: Apocalypse (2010)
Justice League (JLA)
This continuity is based on JLA storylines published in 2000.[144][145]
- Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths (2010)
- Justice League: Doom (2012)
Dark Knight Returns
This continuity is based on Frank Miller's Batman: Year One arc[146] and The Dark Knight Returns.[147]
- Batman: Year One (2011)
- DC Showcase: Catwoman (short film) (2011)
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns Pt. 1 (2012)
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns Pt. 2 (2013)
DC Animated Movie Universe
A shared universe, with influences from The New 52 continuity and various DC eras and productions.
- Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox[5] (2013)
- Justice League: War (2014)
- Son of Batman (2014)
- Justice League: Throne of Atlantis (2015)
- Nightwing and Robin (45 second short film) (2015)
- Batman vs. Robin (2015)
- Batman: Bad Blood (2016)
- Justice League vs. Teen Titans (2016)
- Justice League Dark (2017)
- Constantine: City of Demons (web series later compiled into a film) (2018)
- Teen Titans: The Judas Contract (2017)
- Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay (2018)
- Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay (sequel comic) (2018)
- The Death of Superman (2018)
- The Death of Superman: Part 1 (prequel/sequel comic) (2018)
- Reign of the Supermen (2019)
- Batman: Hush (2019)
- Wonder Woman: Bloodlines (2019)
- Justice League Dark: Apokolips War (2020)
- Constantine: The House of Mystery (short film) (2022)
- "Tomorrowverse"
- Superman: Man of Tomorrow (2020)
- Adam Strange (short film) (2020)
- Justice Society: World War II (2021)
- Batman: The Long Halloween, Part One (2021)
- Batman: The Long Halloween, Part Two (2021)
- The Losers (short film) (2021)
- Kamandi: The Last Boy on Earth! (short film) (2021)
- Blue Beetle (short film) (2021)
- Green Lantern: Beware My Power (2022)
- Legion of Super-Heroes (2023)
- Justice League: Warworld (2023)
- Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part One (2024)
- Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part Two (2024)
- Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths – Part Three (2024)
DC Animated Universe
This continuity is set in the DC Animated Universe (although the canonicity is open-ended)[7][8]
- Batman and Harley Quinn (2017)
- Justice League vs. the Fatal Five (2019)
Other universes
- Batman: Gotham Knight (set in the Nolanverse, although it is not necessarily considered canon) (2008)
- Batman: Assault on Arkham (set in the Arkhamverse, although Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League causes a few continuity contradictions)[6] (2014)
- Justice League x RWBY: Super Heroes & Huntsmen (set in the RWBY universe) (Two Parts) (2023)
References
External links
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