Guy (and Greg), thanks for the mention and the kind words — you know there were some things I wrote in there that I’m not sure I don’t disagree with, too!

Oscar: Stardust won’t do much for DC or Warner Brothers since it’s being distributed by Paramount and I believe Gaiman owns the rights for the book, which is better known as a novel than its original comics form these days. That said, if it does well, a Sandman movie could follow, which as I mentioned in the comment above, would be the kind of “V for Vendetta” output the WB would like to see between doses of Harry Potter and Batman.

Same for Y (Vaughan, not Bendis, BTW) and the upcoming Preacher TV show, though none of these will do as much for the DC brand as it will for their respective creators. It’s a Catch-22 that, in the end, may find DC getting less credit than it possibly deserves for developing and/or nurturing successful properties.

also, brian michael bendis has started on a Y: The Last Man script.

any thoughts on how this could help/hurt DC’s desire to get more spandez on the movie screens?

One other thing to point out, though, is how the structures of the two companies differ. Marvel is a singular entity, largely dependent on its own devices, and now that it has invested heavily to bring movie production in-house, their future is going to rest on being able to develop a steady stream of successful movies that doesn’t feature Spider-Man or the X-Men.

DC, on the other hand, as a division of Warner Brothers Studios, is in the interesting position of being their overt publishing arm and a covert R&D operation, suggesting that their wider range of offerings is surely intended to ultimately bear more silver screen fruit beyond the spandex set. With Harry Potter having three (?) more movies in the pipeline and a revitalized Batman franchise (I’d argue that the jury is still out on Superman), the WB still needs an occasional V for Vendetta while it develops another tentpole franchise or three. Whether that comes from their stable of B-list superheroes; non-spandex titles like The Losers and DMZ; or adaptations from their new Minx imprint — DC definitely has the potential to easily outdo Marvel at the box office.

Potential, of course, doesn’t mean much if it’s never realized.