The staring match between Warner Bros./DC and Disney/Marvel is over. After the former dated its superhero match-up Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice on the same US release date as the latter's Captain America 3, we wondered whether one of the companies would blink. Warners just decided to do the sensible thing for everyone and moved their film to March 25, 2016{
That leaves the third **Captain America **sitting on May 6, where it had already been positioned when Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne ambled up, looking to pick a fight. But that’s not all that Warner Bros. announced today. Laying down a gauntlet, the studio as now dated DC Comics titles through 2020, matching a similar announcement Marvel made shortly before Comic-Con this year.
Warners’ announcement, which like Marvel’s carried no distinct titles, lists August 8, 2016; June 23, 2017; November 17, 2017; March 23, 2018; July 27, 2018; April 5, 2019; June 14, 2019; April 3, 2020; and June 19, 2020 as claimed slots.
We can expect at least one Justice League film in that time and various solo outings, including the long-awaited Wonder Woman movie.
Not content with that numerical soup, the studio also pencilled in November 15, 2018 and November 20, 2020, which The Hollywood Reporter posits will be the release dates for two more Fantastic Beasts films from J.K. Rowling and company.
Moving Batman V Superman from the clashing date is a smart move, especially given Marvel's current chest-beating status as the box office behemoth of the moment. After all, if the “gamble” that was Guardians Of The Galaxy can open huge, we can only imagine that a third Cap outing, following not only this year’s successful **The Winter Soldier **but next year’s Avengers sequel, will (assuming it’s great) be a big hit. Prepare for the debate about superhero overkill to roar open once again.
In related comic book movie moving news, it would appear that Fox’s Kingsman: The Secret Service is shifting from its current October berth to February 13 next year, displacing the Poltergeist reboot. The move means Colin Firth’s super spy will have to face a much bigger threat than any villain: Fifty Shades Of Grey, with the studio likely hoping it’ll prove an adequate piece of counterprogramming to the kinky romance. The move is apparently to give Fox time to market the movie and for director Matthew Vaughn to finish the special effects. But which film will emerge triumphant in the battle of the impeccable tailored men with a penchant for violence? Only time will tell on that one.