Everyone has forgotten this, but Steven Spielberg had to make a superhero movie

What is Blackhawk?

Published in 1941 by Quality Comics, Blackhawk follows the adventures of a small team of ultra-fighter pilots during World War II. As in Top Gun, they each have their own nickname and are commanded by a certain… Blackhawk. Their hideout is on an island, and soldiers are flown in at every point to fight crime or serve justice.

They were published by Quality until 1957, when DC Comics bought them and distributed the collection themselves until the 1980s.

Before Blackhawk, discover Spielberg’s new war series starring Elvis!

Spielberg’s first attempt

In the early 1980s, there were rumors in the corridors of Hollywood that a director wanted to make a Blackhawk adaptation that aimed to faithfully represent the team on the big screen. The idea was for the characters to fight the Axis powers during World War II. Among the same rumors circulating in the corridors, comedian Dan Aykroyd is said to be interested in playing the lead role.

But as well will confirm Years later, comic book writer (especially Blackhawk) Mark Evanier, at the time no concrete offer emerged.

But at the time, the director instead went on to make Raiders of the Lost Ark, which also pits his hero Indiana Jones against the Third Reich, proving he was particularly interested in the historical period. Spielberg would certainly return to it throughout his career, especially with the famous and acclaimed Schindler’s List.

Second attempt after 40 years

In 2018, the DC brand announcement with great fanfare on his site that Steven Spielberg will give his Blackhawk adaptation project another shot. Buoyed by the success of his Ready Player One, the filmmaker plans to produce and direct this feature film adapted from the largely forgotten comic book.

Screenwriter David Koepp, who worked with Spielberg on four of his films, including Jurassic Park, writes. Two years would pass before Koep Give some news Project in August 2020: “I hope it gets done because it’s a lot of fun; It’s a World War II movie about a squadron of fighter pilots: how can you not have fun with that?”

difficulties and hope

In in December of the same year, shows that it is still working. March 22, 2022, Koep believe it And blames the project’s dramatic slowdown on a change in direction from a DC-related universe to a global one. Indeed, Warner had a string of failures during this period, and Blackhawk didn’t really find its place in that ecosystem, especially since James Gunn was about to announce a complete reboot of the DCverse.

A detail that is not one: the budget is estimated at 200 million and therefore requires the validation of many people to start the project – it is worth saying -! We haven’t had any news since 2022, and the end of the DCEU with Aquaman 2 seems to have shelved the project.

But as Hollywood is the king of remakes, we can hope to see Blackhawks one day, especially after the recent success of Top Gun 2 and the announcement that Top Gun 3 is in the works!