The expansion of the superhero genre to television isn't even close to being over. Both Network TV and streaming services have been all over the craze with shows like "Heroes: Reborn" (NBC), "Gotham" (FOX), "Supergirl" (CBS), "Arrow" and "The Flash" (CW), "Daredevil" and "Jessica Jones" (Netflix) and that doesn't even count a handful of shows that are still in development.
Now comes word that HBO wants to get in on the fun as well.
Collider reports that "Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice" director Zack Snyder has taken meetings with HBO (who work closely with Warner Bros., the studio behind the DC Extended Universe) about a possible "Watchmen" series. It is unknown if the show would be a prequel to the 2009 movie, a retelling of the original source material, or a sequel.
"Watchmen" was far from a hit as far as superhero films go. The movie brought in just $185 million worldwide (though an R-rating likely had something to do with that) and was divisive among comic book fans. What's funny is that the dark and dour universe that "Watchmen" created was panned by many critics at the time but is now being praised at Warner Bros. and DC for being a logical counterpart to Marvel's happy-go-lucky tone.
Should HBO green light the series (and we really hope they do), it's unknown how involved Snyder would be in its production. It's likely that he would help get the show off the ground for the first episode and then stay on as a nominal producer (a la Martin Scorsese and "Boardwalk Empire" or Peter Berg and "Ballers").
We'll keep you posted as more details begin to emerge.
