By 
In 1998, Warren Ellis and Bryan Hitch introduced the Authority, a new supehero team with one goal: to build a better world. And with members like Apollo, the Doctor, and Jenny Sparks, the Authority had the ability to do it. Moreover, because they existed in the WildStorm Universe and not the DC Universe, no one could really stop them.
Well, almost no one. After initially announcing The Authority as one of the projects in development for Chapter One of his and Peter Safran’s new DCU, James Gunn has confirmed on Threads that the project is no longer in development… for the moment. Though clarifying that he was never planning to be the one who writes and develops The Authority, Gunn went on to say that the “script wasn’t quite there but more importantly, it didn’t work in terms of the larger DCU both in terms of the story and practical concerns.” He ended by saying that the possibility of an Authority movie remains, but “not soon.”
Given his interest in the relationship between superheroes and government agencies and in the more unsavory side of the capes and tights life, Gunn’s plans for an Authority movie make sense. What doesn’t make sense is putting the Authority into the mainline DCU, even if it has happened already in the comics.
When The Authority #1 debuted in 1998, WildStorm was Jim Lee‘s studio, part of the independent publisher Image Comics. However, just months after the issue hit comic stands, Lee sold WildStorm to DC Comics, which initially allowed it to be a separate subsidiary. By 2010, however, DC had shuttered WildStorm and, with the New 52 reboot in 2011, WildStorm characters were fully integrated into the DC Universe.
It’s never been a great fit. The series began as a satire of mainstream superhero comics, giving the Justice League something like a neoconservative global policy (even if their social policies were more liberal, as demonstrated by the genuinely sweet romance between Midnighter and Apollo). Like the Ultimates series that Hitch and Mark Millar (writer of the second Authority run) would do at Marvel, the Authority played like a thought exercise riffing on established characters.
Need proof? Look no further than “What’s So Funny About Truth, Justice, and the American Way,” the Joe Kelly story that pits Superman against the Elite, a DC Universe version of the Authority. Or the sequel miniseries Superman and the Authority, in which Grant Morrison (who has their own rocky history with the characters) turns Apollo and Midnighter into superfans of the Man of Steel.
That latter comic best illustrates the problem with putting the Authority into the DCU. Because the team began as a satire of established heroes, the Authority must always play second tier to the actual Justice League. They can’t show what would happen if the Justice League decided to improve the world by taking proactive action against baddies, because the actual Justice League is there to stop them.
So, for now, it’s not a bad thing that Gunn isn’t bringing the Authority into the main DCU. But the groundwork is definitely there. Not only does he have in place organizations such as ARGUS and Lex Luthor’s PlanetWatch, the latter a riff on the WildStorm team StormWatch, but Superman includes in its cast charter Authority member the Engineer.
As these building blocks and Gunn’s comments show, The Authority isn’t dead—it’s just stalled. They will arrive when the time is right, when the DCU needs to become a better world… or else.
The post James Gunn Confirms The Authority Isn’t Coming to the DCU, Yet appeared first on Den of Geek.
