Doug Liman Explains His ‘Justice League Dark’ Exit

After having seen Doug Liman‘s latest film, “The Wall” starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson an John Cena, I couldn’t help, but start thinking about the writer-director’s track record and how great his hits to misses ratio has been so far in his 18 year  career. No small feat,  given the current climate of today’s blockbuster-crazed Hollywood standards, Liman is still delvering his own creative vision on-screen and doing so with limited attention directed towards it.

READ MORE: Doug Liman Quits ‘Justice League Dark’

“The Wall” was minimalist, claustrophobic and highly visceral, in the same tradition as one-location thrillers such as “127 Hours,” “Buried,” “Phone Booth,” “Locke,” “Cube,” “Tape,” “All Is Lost,” “Cube,” and “Saw.” This genre of film, with minimal sets, minimal props, and minimal effects are known as Bottle Movies. It takes a highly talented director to pull this “stunt” off. The film can’t feel repetitive. An assortment of well-prepared, elaborately conceived storyboarded shots are a must.

All of this comes as no surprise, Liman has delivered thrilling, studio-built cinema over the last two decades (“Swingers,” “Go,” “The Bourne Identity,” Edge of Tomorrow,” “Fair Game“), but what’s even more impressive about him is how he has never sacrificed his artistry for a big paycheck.

Case in point; His leaving the DCEU‘s live-action “Justice League Dark.” Initially Liman’s excuse was a “scheduling nightmare,” which conflicted with the sequel to his now classic thriller “Edge of Tomorrow.” However, based on a recent interview Liman gave to Cinema Blend, it seems like that was just an excuse for a Warner Bros damage control campaign. According to Liman, there were major problems he had with the “Justice League” screenplay.

“You know, I develop more movies than I make. There’s a weed-out process, and it’s just that when you get to the comic book one, suddenly everybody hears about them. So, the script never got to a place that was special enough for me. Not for lack of trying.”

By the looks of it, DC had taken away too much of the personal and intimate for Liman’s tastes. That’s a real shame because it would have been interesting to have his own take of the superhero genre.  He’s reliable, efficient and incredibly well-seasoned in his filmmaking approach. He’s also an above average filmmaker in regards to shooting action and decently fleshing out character, an important skill to have when you tackle these kinds of movies. At the moment Warner Bros. is still looking for a director to take his slot, but they might have missed the boat here.