After the recent premiere of “A Wrinkle in Time” and becoming the first African-American woman to direct a live action film with a budget of $100 million or more, Ava Duvernay has already switched gears and signed on to direct her next big project. Warner Bros. just recently announced that DuVernay will direct DC Comics’ “The New Gods,” based on a science-fiction comic book that originally made its debut in 1971.
The film will follow a group of Gods who are natives of twin planets, New Genesis and Apokolips. While New Genesis is a more idyllic planet ruled by the High Father, Apokolips is ruled by the tyrant Darkseid and filled with fire pits and heavy artillery. The people of both planets refer to themselves as “gods” and exist outside of normal time and space in a realm known as the Fourth World.
DuVernay’s appointment comes at a time when Warner Bros. is re-thinking their DC film division after disappointing box office performances of their last two projects, “Suicide Squad” and “Justice League.” As Director of “The New Gods,” Duvernay also becomes the second woman director of a DC superhero film after Patty Jenkins’ “Wonder Woman.”
“The New Gods” will be a major addition to the DC Extended Universe, which Warner Bros. launched in 2013 to rival Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe. Past DCEU projects have also included “Man of Steel,” “Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice,” and “Justice League,” further establishing DC’s presence on the big screen.
DuVernay’s résumé also includes the Oscar-nominated documentary “13th” and the civil rights drama “Selma.” She is also the creator and executive producer of the OWN series “Queen Sugar.”
Keep shining Ava and congratulations!