Guillermo del Toro details cancelled Justice League Dark film and Batman cameo

Guillermo del Toro discusses cancelled Justice League Dark plans, a Batman cameo and questions over Man of Steel

Guillermo del Toro has shared new details about his abandoned plans for a Justice League Dark film, including a proposed Batman cameo and long-standing speculation about his involvement with Man of Steel.

Speaking on Josh Horowitz’s Happy Sad Confused podcast, the director discussed work carried out between 2013 and 2015 on a Justice League Dark screenplay intended for the DC Extended Universe. Del Toro confirmed the film would have centred on John Constantine, alongside Swamp Thing, The Spectre and Deadman.

“The lead was Constantine, and the plot made absolute, perfect sense,” del Toro said. “I really loved how they got tangled into the Floronic Man as one of the villains, Swamp Thing was really fleshed out.”

He explained that casting discussions had not progressed, adding: “I was not casting yet.” The project had previously been linked to Matt Ryan reprising his role as Constantine from the television series, an idea that did not move forward after the show’s cancellation.

Del Toro also said he had a specific performer in mind for Deadman. “I knew I wanted Doug Jones to be Deadman, only because I knew physically he could do the suit, I knew his mannerisms,” he said. Jones later collaborated with del Toro on The Shape of Water.

One planned sequence involved Deadman moving between bodies during a chase in Central Park. “It would have been an 80-year-old lady in Central Park, running after the antagonist and then jumping into a traffic cop, or mounted cop,” del Toro said.

The director revealed the script was briefly connected to Batman. “There was a moment where Batman came in briefly,” he said, describing a scene set in Bruce Wayne’s office.

When asked about rumours he was considered to direct Man of Steel, del Toro declined to comment, responding only with: “Next.”