You know we’ve reached peak superhero filmmaking when the first question you have about the latest “Harbinger” news is, “How is this going to affect the Valiant cinematic universe?” We are truly witnessing the fall of the Roman Empire, folks.
Now, you either read that introduction and thought “ok, that’s all well and good, but how does it affect the Valiant shared cinematic universe?” or “Who the fuck is ‘Harbinger’ and why do I care?” I’m going to guess many of you are in the latter camp, so before we get to the news, let’s take a step back.
About 7 years ago, Valiant Comics (one of the top comic book publishers, but nowhere near the level of Marvel and DC) reportedly worked out a deal with Sony to launch its own shared comic book superhero universe. The Valiant universe was going to launch with two films — “Bloodshot” and “Harbinger.” But it appears that these plans have already imploded before getting officially underway.
According to THR, “Harbinger” has officially moved from Sony to Paramount in a deal that will see the superhero film go into a short re-development phase with its original creative team, director/co-writer Justin Tipping and co-writer Joshua Beirne–Golden. The film about a group of teen superheroes that rebel against the corporation that is abusing their powers is now set up as a potential new franchise at Paramount, which makes the Valiant/Sony deal that much more awkward.
You see, the other half the initial plans, “Bloodshot,” has already been filmed and is in post-production now, ahead of its February 21, 2020 release date, with Vin Diesel starring. And as we’ve seen with the recent Spider-Man debacle, Sony isn’t really interested in lettings its properties play nice with other studios. Therefore, the proposed Valiant cinematic universe seems to be dead before it begins.
READ MORE: Sony Already Has “Five Or Six” ‘Spider-Man’ Spinoff Shows In The Works
However, there’s the chance that a new universe can sprout from either studio following their own properties, but those plans are way too premature and would likely be contingent on the success of the respective films.
Ultimately, if you’re a comic book fan, you’re likely sad to see the only real independent contender to DC and Marvel with a shared universe struggle to make those ambitious dreams a reality. But hey, as DC/WB is proving with “Joker,” maybe not everything needs to connect?