Arrowverse Producer Marc Guggenheim Regrets Decade Spent Making DC Shows: “I Really Wasted My Time”
JB Augustine
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Alongside Andrew Kreisberg and Greg Berlanti, Marc Guggenheim crafted a shared DC universe that lasted a decade on The CW though it wavered in quality over time. However, despite the upside of his track record, the producer’s phone isn’t exactly ringing off the hook with fresh offers. He lamented this fact in a blog post that’s going viral in entertainment news circles.
Green Arrow (Stephen Amell) confronts Deadshot (Michael Rowe) in Arrow Season 1 Episode 3 “Lone Gunmen” (2011), The CW
Guggenheim expresses regret for his tenure at the head of the Arrowverse as it took a turn after the “labor” that was the Crisis On Infinite Earths crossover. “The project, a live-action adaptation of a seminal comic book series that made a significant impression on my psyche, was more than a labor of love,” he said via Entertainment Weekly.
“It was a labor in every respect and a project where I spent every ounce of capital I’d amassed in developing DC Comics-related shows for Warner Bros. over an eight-year period,” he continued, adding, “I called in every favor. I used every chit. I burned every bridge. I even spent $10,000 of my own money.”
Kevin Conroy as Bruce Wayne in Batwoman Season 1 Episode 9 “Crisis on Infinite Earths Part Two” (2019), The CW
For all the effort and cost, “Afterwards, my phone did not, in fact, ring. ‘Off the hook’ or otherwise,” Guggenheim said. “Fans loved what we did. There were tweets. There were posts. There were memes. There was much discussion. All of which I was — and remain — deeply grateful for.” He celebrated the love and lack of apathy but the response was one-sided.
The fans were impressed but those in Hollywood weren’t, Guggenheim claims, including DC Studio heads James Gunn and Peter Safran. Their perceived indifference to him is why he took his frustrations public. “James Gunn announced that he assembled a ‘writer’s room’ to help chart out what the new ‘DC Universe’ under his and…Safran’s leadership is going to be.”
The Flash (Grant Gustin) travels back in time to save his mother in The Flash Season 1 Episode 23 “Fast Enough” (2015), The CW
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Guggenheim’s lament goes on, “Suffice it to say, I am not among that group. I’m not particularly surprised. In fact, I assumed that they would assemble some kind of brain trust to help facilitate what I assumed — hoped — would be a vision as ambitious as the DC Universe deserves. But I’ll be honest: I would have liked to have gotten at least a meeting.”
He clarified he isn’t begging for a job, just a meeting. “I’d only spent nine years toiling in that vineyard, after all. (Not including many more years co-writing the Green Lantern movie, a Green Lantern streaming series, and comic books like The Flash, Batman Confidential, Adventures of Superman, and Justice Society of America.)”
Tomar-Re (Geoffrey Rush) introduces himself to Hal Jordan (Ryan Reynolds) in Green Lantern (2011), Warner Bros. Pictures
Guggenheim declared, “A small recognition of what I’d tried to contribute to the grand tapestry that is the DC Universe,” but, alas, “Simply put, the Arrowverse hasn’t led to any other gigs, so it feels — at least on a career level — that I really wasted my time.” With The CW legacy ending this year, aside from Superman & Lois, his exasperation makes sense.
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