Out of all of DC Universe’s live-action comic book adaptations, Swamp Thing’s been the most shrouded in mystery, which is appropriate given its otherworldly subject matter. Aside from casting news, there’s been little detail about what the series might look like, but today, DC Universe suddenly dropped the first trailer for the series.
Short as the teaser is, it features a good first look at Swamp Thing’s titular hero, DC Comics’ living embodiment of a swamp’s plant life, who’s set to be played by two different performers.
While DC’s decision to drop the teaser late on a Wednesday afternoon with little buildup might seem strange, it could be very intentional. While production for DC Universe’s live-action Swamp Thing series had been well underway, the 13-episode-long series is reportedly being cut short. The local reports out of Wilmington, North Carolina say the production was halted after episode 10 to the surprise of cast and crew.
Early Wednesday morning, actress Virginia Madsen (who portrays Maria Sunderland on the series) wrote in a now-deleted Instagram post that Swamp Thing’s team was being “cut to the core by those who have never set foot in the swamp.” She also wrote, “I am beyond sad. What a terrible decision.”
Given everything that’s happened with Swamp Thing within the past few hours, it’s unclear just what’s going on with the show and what DC’s plans for it are. Dropping a trailer is a strong indicator that Swamp Thing will, at some point, begin streaming on the DC Universe platform. But whether the series we eventually see represents the full vision for what Swamp Thing was meant to be is up for debate.