Last week's announcement that Warner Bros. was developing a movie version of the classic superhero group the Justice League of America, entitled "Justice League," was a dream many geeks never thought would happen. Even more exciting was that Variety reported the movie wouldn't just include Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman but also possibly longtime JLA members The Flash, Aquaman, Green Lantern and Martian Manhunter. How the screenwriters, Kieran and Michele Mulroney, will make it all work is anyone's guess. More importantly, can the studio convince the current movie versions of Superman and Batman, Brandon Routh and Christian Bale, respectively, to come on board another franchise?

As it currently stands, Christopher Nolan's "Batman Begins" sequel, "The Dark Knight," will begin shooting this spring for a 2008 release. Warner Bros. expects a new "Superman" movie from Bryan Singer in 2009. They also recently announced that "Night at the Museum" director Shawn Levy would take the reigns of "The Flash." New screenwriters were also brought on board for the long-delayed "Wonder Woman" feature. Would that push "Justice League" to 2010 or beyond? Or, could it become the cinematic launching pad for both characters? The studio has experienced this scenario before. It developed a Batman and Superman project, "World's Finest," that Wolfgang Petersen spearheaded, while at the same time investing in the individual features that became "Batman Begins" and "Superman Returns." Ultimately, the solo projects got the go ahead and "Finest" was put on the shelf. It's possible the studio may go with either a "League" movie or solo pictures for the scarlet speedster and the amazing Amazon -- after scripts for all three are worked on. This won't thrill the individual producers working on all these projects, but it might up the ante to churn out something worth spending the big bucks on.

In the meantime, word was circulating that one of the ideas the Mulroneys had was to structure "League" with an older Batman who was guiding a younger Superman and Wonder Woman. The rumor ends with the studio wanting Tom Welling (Smallville) portraying the younger Man of Steel, but that's hard to believe considering Routh is more than two years younger than his TV counterpart. Because both Routh and Bale have multiyear deals to play their respective characters, it wouldn't be surprising to see a "League" movie negotiated as one of their current commitments.

Would you rather see a "Justice League" movie or individual flicks for "The Flash" and "Wonder Woman"? Send your thoughts and comments to buzz@microsoft.com.

Next Column: Ten rumored movies you may not want to happen; Paul Verhoeven returns with a "Black Book"; and more.

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