Avi Arad made a name for himself as the man behind Marvel Comics' breathtaking return to the big screen. Arad recently resigned from Marvel to become an independent producer, but with blockbusters including the "Spider-Man" and "X-Men" franchises, he helped Marvel jump to the forefront of audience-friendly superhero movies. After last year's "Batman Begins" and this summer's "Superman Returns," DC Comics is also getting back into the game. While promoting "Superman," DC Comics President Paul Levitz, Arad's counterpart, took some time to update the press on some of the other DC characters looking to make their way to theaters.

"Wonder Woman"
Status: They are still waiting for a script from "Buffy" creator Joss Whedon.
On producer Joel Silver ("The Matrix"): "I think Joel has a great sensibility for action movies ... and Joel loves comics. He's been a passionate advocate of comic-book projects that I'm aware of for over 20 years, since he was [originally] signed on for 'Watchman' in the mid '80s."

"Flash"
Status: "Batman Begins" screenwriter David Goyer is still working on a screenplay.

"Shazam!"
Status: The adventures of Captain Marvel are being developed under director Pete Segal ("The Longest Yard") at New Line.

"Watchmen" 
Status: After Paramount hit the brakes last year before shooting was to begin under director Paul Greengrass, the rights were picked up by Warner Bros., which is actively looking for a new director.
On why it has taken so long: "I negotiated the 'Watchmen' film deal when the third issue of the maxi-series was coming out in 1985 or 1986. It's been through Fox, Universal and Paramount so far and now it's at Warners. It is a creative property that is very, very specifically designed for the medium in which it is published. I think it's a real challenge to break out and do it. I think they had a very interesting script and certainly Greengrass is a great director, but I hope Warner will be able to put something great around it."

"Aquaman" (the movie)
Status: "We've heard a couple of pitches about it in the last few years. None of them has gotten a studio excited."

"Aquaman" (the TV show)
Status: Dead in the water.
Why it didn't get picked up: "It was started for the WB, and in the combination of the WB and UPN [into The CW Network] a lot of open slots disappeared, so I think it got hard to get anything new on this year."

"Batman" sequel
Status: Levitz was scheduled to meet with producer Emma Thomas that afternoon.
One final tease: "It's going to be really good."