Geoff Johns - President and Chief Creative Officer of DC Entertainment - is stepping down from both executive positions, effectively immediately. The legendary comic creator is not leaving the company, however, having just signed an exclusive writer-producer deal with both DC Comics and Warner Brothers.
A lifelong fan of superheroes, Johns had a long and varied career in both film production and comic books. He broke into the business by cold-calling the office of Superman director Richard Donner to ask about an internship - a call that accidentally led to a conversation with Donner himself and a paid job as a production assistant. Johns later got a foot in the door at DC Comics in 1997, with his proposal for Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E. - a spin-off of Starman, which renovated the classic patriotic characters Star-Spangled Kid and Stripesy. This, in turn, led to a co-writing spot on JSA with screenwriter David Goyer and Johns’ own critically-acclaimed runs on comics like The Flash, Teen Titans and Green Lantern, before Johns took over the Chief Creative Officer position in 2010.
The Hollywood Reporter broke the story of Johns’ new production deal, which will see Johns exclusively producing content for DC Entertainment’s film, television and comic book lines. Johns’ work will be produced under the new Mad Ghost banner, which will include new and reimagined works as well as the projects Johns’ was already working on as CCO. Johns issued a statement on the matter:
Ever prolific as a writer, the announcement confirmed several of the upcoming projects which Johns will be working on. Chief among these is the film Green Lantern Corps - a property Johns is intimately familiar with, having revitalized the Green Lantern mythology in 2005 with his story Green Lantern: Rebirth. Johns will act as screenwriter and producer on the film, having already worked on the scripts for the upcoming Aquaman movie as well as Wonder Woman 2.
“I took on a role at DCE because I love the characters and this universe more than anything. But, I want to spend my days writing and on set. I’m thrilled to get back to a more hands-on creative role. It’s a dream job on dream projects, reaching even deeper into DC’s vast pantheon of characters.”
On the television side, Johns will act as an executive producer on the new Titans series being produced for the DC Universe streaming service, as well as writing the episode “Doom Patrol”, which will set up another new series based around the titular team of misfits. For DC Comics, Johns will write a new Shazam monthly series, as well as a new series titled The Killing Zone, which will tell stories utilizing original characters created by Johns as well as more obscure and dormant DC Comics creations. Johns will also be producing a new mini-series with artist Jason Fabok, Three Jokers, which will presumably address the question of how there are three Jokers in the current DC Comics Universe.
More: Green Lantern Corps Movie Sets Geoff Johns as Writer & Producer
Source: Hollywood Reporter
