Steven Spielberg Recruited to Direct His First Superhero Movie: DC’s Blackhawk

The DC Universe is adding another prolific director to its lineup. Two-time Academy Award-winning director Steven Spielberg will direct the forthcoming Blackhawk adaptation. Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment is set to produce, with Warner Bros. backing the project.

According to Variety, “Blackhawk was first introduced in 1941 by Quality Comics before the property was acquired by DC Comics in 1957. In the comics, Blackhawk was the leader of the Blackhawk Squadron, an elite group of pilots that fought in World War II.”

The action-adventure adaptation marks the first superhero film to be helmed by Spielberg. The director’s most recent film Ready Player One, also with Warner Bros., has already grossed over $476 million worldwide, helping to propel Spielberg past the $10 billion threshold in career box-office gross. The film will be penned by Spielberg’s frequent collaborator David Koepp, who also wrote Jurassic Park, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, War of the Worlds and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Sue Kroll, who most recently signed on to produce Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn film, will executive produce the Blackhawk film under her Kroll and Co. Entertainment banner.

“We are so proud to be the studio behind Steven Spielberg’s latest hit, and are thrilled to be working with him again on this new action adventure,” said Toby Emmerich, chairman, Warner Bros. Pictures Group. “We can’t wait to see what new ground he will break in introducing Blackhawk to movie audiences worldwide.”

“It was wonderful working with the team at Warner Bros. to bring Ready Player One to the screen,” Spielberg said. “They bring a blend of passion and professionalism to everything they do and have a tremendous history in this genre. I am excited to reunite with them on Blackhawk.”

It is not yet clear when production will start on the project, given that Spielberg is quite a busy man as of late. He is currently in-development on Indiana Jones 5, recently making headlines when he stated he would be open to casting a female Indiana Jones in the future, and he’s also currently in pre-production on his remake of West Side Story and has a slew of forthcoming films he’s producing. It’s rumored that production on Blackhawk will begin after Spielberg completes Indiana Jones 5, which has a 2020 release date. Luckily, this means the studio will have ample time to fully develop the film before handing the reigns to Spielberg. In the meantime, Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman 2 and James Wan’s Aquaman will be released this year, so be sure to check them out if you’re a DC fan.