As DC Entertainment’s president, Geoff Johns has had a hand in the production of some of the company’s most stellar television, film and comics projects in recent memory, including The Flash, Wonder Woman and Doomsday Clock. Now, though, Johns is stepping into a new role that will give him more time for creating content.
Geoff Johns at the NBCUniversal portion of the 2018 Winter Television Critics Association Press Tour. Photo: Frederick M. Brown (Getty)
Today, DC and Warner Bros. announced that Johns – who was serving as president and chief creative officer – plans to step down from his executive position in order to have a more hands-on role in future projects as a writer and producer. In a press release about the latest shakeup, Johns explained the decision came from a personal desire to get back to his creative roots:
I took on a role at DCE because I love the characters and this universe more than anything. But, I want to spend my days writing and on set.
I’m thrilled to get back to a more hands-on creative role. It’s a dream job on dream projects, reaching even deeper into DC’s vast pantheon of characters. I’m also excited to continue to work with the amazing team at DCE and my colleagues at Warner Bros.
What does this mean for your favourite WB/DC creations? After publisher Jim Lee becomes DC Entertainment’s new chief creative officer, Johns will enter into an exclusive writer/producer deal under his newly named banner Mad Ghost Productions, which will have him working on WB properties as well as new properties of his own creation.
The biggest news is that Johns will write WB’s Green Lantern Corps film, based on a franchise the creator is well familiar with from his comic book past. He’ll also produce. No update on a release date was given, however the Mad Ghost Productions website says “the film will feature Hal Jordan and John Stewart”.
Despite (or perhaps because of) his title change, Johns still very much has his hand in a lot of the things DC has in the works for the immediate future. In the comics realm specifically, he’s writing a new Shazam! series, a book titled Three Jokers with illustrations from Jason Fabok, and starting a new comics “pop-up” under the larger DC umbrella called “The Killing Zone” that will focus on “lesser known” characters.
Between all of that, his involvement in Wonder Woman 2, and writing the Doom Patrol episode of the upcoming DC Universe show, Titans, it isn’t really as though Johns is leaving DC. If anything, his voice is only getting stronger, clearer and more influential on what’s next to come from the company.