The DC Extended Universe (DCEU) media franchise experienced a turbulent history since its inception in 2013, characterized by highly publicized clashes between studio executives and talent, constantly changing approaches to worldbuilding, and repeated changes in management. Warner Bros. Pictures originally announced plans for a shared universe of live-action films based on the DC Comics, starting with the release of Man of Steel (2013), with director Zack Snyder set to spearhead the franchise. Following the negative reception to Snyder's follow-up film Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), Warner Bros. created DC Films, a new division led by Geoff Johns and Jon Berg tasked with overseeing development of the DCEU. DC Films attempted to correct the course of the franchise, culminating in the troubled production and disastrous release of the crossover film Justice League (2017), which significantly deviated from Snyder's original vision.

After the failure of Justice League, Warner Bros. sought to de-emphasize the DCEU's interconnectivity and transition from the Snyder era, releasing a series of solo films while greenlighting live-action films not set in the DCEU. Walter Hamada was hired as the new head of DC Films, replacing Johns and Berg. Under Hamada's leadership, the studio severed ties with several of its leading talent, including Snyder, Superman actor Henry Cavill, and Batman actor Ben Affleck. In 2020, Warner Bros. parent company WarnerMedia launched its HBO Max streaming service, releasing a director's cut of Justice League entitled Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021) following years of pressuring from Snyder's fans. The DCEU expanded to live-action television with HBO Max's Peacemaker (2022–present), helmed by The Suicide Squad (2021) director James Gunn.

In 2022, WarnerMedia completed its merger with Discovery, Inc. to form Warner Bros. Discovery, led by CEO David Zaslav, whose aspirations for the DCEU differed from those of Hamada, leading to his cancellation of Batgirl (2022) and the subsequent ousting of Hamada. After a months-long search for a replacement, Zaslav selected Gunn and Peter Safran to co-lead DC Studios, the successor to DC Films. In January 2023, the duo unveiled their slate of DC films and television series which were to be part of the DC Universe, a soft reboot and spiritual successor to the DCEU.

Background The first feature film based on a character from American comic books published by DC Comics was Superman and the Mole Men (1951), a B-movie distributed by Lippert Pictures and starring George Reeves as Clark Kent / Superman, which served as a backdoor pilot to the Adventures of Superman (1952–1958) television series. In 1967, DC Comics predecessor National Periodical Publications was acquired by Kinney National Company, later known as Warner Communications, Time Warner, and WarnerMedia. Since then, nearly all DC films have been distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, the flagship film studio of the Warner conglomerate.

In the early 2000s, Warner Bros. was looking to relaunch its Batman and Superman film franchises following the disappointing performances of Batman & Robin (1997) and Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987) both critically and commercially. The studio briefly entertained the idea of a Batman vs. Superman (2004) crossover film directed by Wolfgang Petersen from a script by Akiva Goldsman, but these plans never came to fruition and the film was sent to development hell. The studio instead opted to greenlight Batman Begins (2005) and Superman Returns (2006), standalone stories featuring the two characters that the studio hoped would eventually lead to a Batman–Superman crossover. Batman Begins was a critical and commercial success, leading to two sequels which constitute The Dark Knight trilogy: The Dark Knight (2008) and The Dark Knight Rises (2012). By contrast, Superman Returns underperformed at the box office despite positive reviews, and the studio canceled plans for a 2009 sequel.

In February 2007, Warner Bros. hired Michele and Kieran Mulroney to pen a screenplay for a film featuring the Justice League of America. Christian Bale, who starred as Bruce Wayne / Batman in Batman Begins, was not approached to reprise the role, nor was Brandon Routh, who starred as Clark Kent / Superman in Superman Returns. George Miller signed on to direct the film, reportedly titled Justice League Mortal, with the ensemble cast consisting of Armie Hammer as Bruce Wayne / Batman, D. J. Cotrona as Clark Kent / Superman, Adam Brody as Barry Allen / Flash, Santiago Cabrera as Arthur Curry / Aquaman, Common as John Stewart / Green Lantern, Megan Gale as Diana Prince / Wonder Woman, Hugh Keays-Byrne as J'onn J'onzz / Martian Manhunter, and Jay Baruchel as Maxwell Lord. The project was abandoned in January 2008 after the studio failed to secure tax breaks for filming in Australia and the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike hindered progress on the script. It had been intended to launch a full-fledged franchise, with sequels and spin-offs planned.

2008–2016: Zack Snyder

By June 2008, Warner Bros. was once again seeking to relaunch the Superman film series after the failure of Superman Returns, hearing pitches for a reboot from comic book writers Grant Morrison, Mark Waid, Geoff Johns, Brad Meltzer, and Mark Millar. While discussing the story of The Dark Knight Rises with director Christopher Nolan, screenwriter David S. Goyer shared with him an idea of a Superman film set in a modern context, which Nolan was impressed by and pitched to the studio. On the heels of The Dark Knight critical acclaim and financial success, Warner Bros. quickly hired Goyer to write the film and Nolan to produce. By then, the studio was no longer planning to develop a Batman–Superman team-up film.

In October 2010, Zack Snyder was chosen to direct the Superman reboot. Henry Cavill was announced to star as Clark Kent / Superman in January 2011, and the film was later revealed to be titled Man of Steel (2013). The film was to lay the groundwork for future DC films, containing numerous Easter eggs and references to other DC characters, with the intention of setting up a shared universe of DC characters in film akin to the DC Universe in the comics. Snyder and Nolan considered having Man of Steel share continuity with the Dark Knight trilogy, but ultimately decided against it. Additionally, DC had originally intended for Green Lantern (2011), starring Ryan Reynolds as Hal Jordan / Green Lantern, to kickstart the shared universe, but those plans were discarded following the film's critical and commercial failure. Despite a mixed critical reception, Man of Steel was a financial success, and Warner Bros. unveiled plans for a follow-up film featuring Batman and Superman at San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC) in July 2013, one month after the film's release. The follow-up's title was later revealed to be Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016).

By October 2012, Warner Bros. had restarted development on a Justice League film as work on The Flash and Wonder Woman adaptations continued to stall, with Will Beall attached as screenwriter. Goyer was hired to replace Beall in June 2013, before being replaced himself by Chris Terrio the next year, and Snyder was locked in to direct in April 2014. Casting for the other Justice League members took place throughout 2013, 2014, and 2015, with Ben Affleck set to play Bruce Wayne / Batman, Gal Gadot set to play Diana Prince / Wonder Woman, Jason Momoa set to play Arthur Curry / Aquaman, Ezra Miller set to play Barry Allen / The Flash, and Ray Fisher set to play Victor Stone / Cyborg.

Warner Bros. was keen on emulating the success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), a nascent media franchise based on characters published by DC rival Marvel Comics. In October 2014, the studio announced a slate of 11 films set in their shared DC universe: Suicide Squad (2016), Wonder Woman (2017), Justice League Part One (2017), The Flash (2018), Aquaman (2018), Shazam! (2019), Justice League Part Two (2019), Cyborg (2020), Green Lantern Corps (2020), a sequel to Man of Steel, and a Batman film. Snyder, the de facto head of the franchise, was to direct both Justice League films, later shortening Part One title to simply Justice League. The Flash and Cyborg both suffered multiple delays, with the former eventually securing a 2023 release date. The franchise, which had no name, was humorously dubbed the "DC Extended Universe" (DCEU) by Keith Staskiewicz of Entertainment Weekly in July 2015, which became widely used to refer to DC's live-action Justice League franchise over the years under the erroneous assumption that the name was legitimate. Warner Bros. began using the term officially in 2020.

2016–2017: Geoff Johns and Jon Berg

Despite strong opening weekend box office numbers, Batman v Superman was lambasted by critics and ultimately performed below expectations. In response, Warner Bros. established DC Films to consolidate oversight of the franchise, not dissimilar to the Marvel Studios division led by Kevin Feige, the studio behind the MCU. Johns, the chief creative officer of DC, and Warner Bros. executive vice president Jon Berg were appointed to co-lead the new division. DC Films would not be fully autonomous, as Johns reported to DC Entertainment president Diane Nelson and Berg reported to Warner Bros. president of creative development Greg Silverman. Charles Roven, who had produced every DC film since Batman Begins, was relegated to the administrative position of executive producer. Silverman was ousted from his role in December, with Toby Emmerich promoted to president and chief content officer in his place. By January 2017, Johns and Berg reported to Emmerich.

Hoping to avert another Batman v Superman-esque disaster, DC Films made swift attempts to course-correct the DCEU, with the goal of setting a more light-hearted tone. Director David Ayer was ordered to perform extensive reshoots and re-editing for Suicide Squad based on rewritten material from Johns, resulting in a theatrical cut that vastly differed from Ayer's original vision. Warner Bros. was similarly unhappy with Justice League despite Snyder's considerable efforts to lighten its tone, and Warner Bros. Entertainment CEO Kevin Tsujihara dispatched Johns and Berg to "babysit" Snyder. Joss Whedon, who previously directed the MCU crossover films Marvel's The Avengers (2012) and Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), was brought in by Johns to assist in rewrites and reshoots, but his power grew exponentially and Snyder eventually "lost the will to fight" during deliberations over the script. Johns also performed a rewrite of Wonder Woman with director Patty Jenkins, altering its ending despite resistance from Jenkins.

In May 2017, Snyder stepped down from directorial duties on Justice League to cope with his daughter Autumn's suicide, and Whedon assumed his position to oversee post-production and complete the film. Whedon made significant alterations to Snyder's nearly complete cut, reshooting much of the film with 80 pages of new material while deleting a large number of sequences that had already been filmed. These efforts failed to produce Warner Bros.' desired effect, with Suicide Squad and Justice League both panned by critics. While Suicide Squad was a box-office success, Justice League became a box-office bomb and lost the studio an estimated $60 million. Wonder Woman was released several months prior to Justice League to critical and commercial success. By the end of the year, development on the Man of Steel sequel was in limbo.

2018–2022: Walter Hamada Justice League fallout