For most of my life, it was true that DC Comics had the best movies, whereas Marvel’s attempts at doing other media resulted in embarrassing garbage that ended up straight to video or hidden in vaults. But for the last decade, while DC has turned out camp Batman & Robin, Steel and Catwoman (we won’t even mention the Birds of Prey TV series. Oops, just did!), Marvel has rocked our world with X-Men and Spider-Man franchises that could go on forever as well as the passable Hulk, Daredevil and Fantastic Four (and only a few bombs like Elektra).

Marvel’s still going strong, with plenty of sequels on the way and David S. Goyer’s Captain America slated for 2009. The “Hulk vs. Wolverine” movie that was just announced also sounds like a good way to resuscitate the Hulk and see more of Hugh Jackman. Part of the reason for Marvel’s recent success is their ability to entertain interest from many studios, whereas DC is part of the Warner Brothers conglomerate.

However, it sure sounds like DC is on a roll. Batman Begins was a success and the sequel is in the works. Superman Returns is going to be huge, and it looks like the Wonder Woman movie (it’s been in the works for so long that the actresses once in the running for the lead are now too old for the part) may happen. From the list below of movies that are now in production, are scheduled for future release or just in the works, it looks like DC has finally hit on a multimedia strategy. We had inklings of this last year when DC began stamping their new logo on all of their movie/TV properties, followed by their hiring of Buffy/Angel/Firefly creator Joss Whedon to finally make the Wonder Woman picture a reality.

All right, that’s enough of an intro. Click “Extended Entry” for more details on DC’s movie (plus TV and straight-to-DVD) projects.

Cartoon Network has not renewed either Teen Titans or Justice League Unlimited, for reasons that are baffling to all, but it doesn’t sound like the animators are resting on their laurels.

JLU’s new Supergirl and the Legion of Superheroes episode will springboard into a new “Legion of Super-Heroes” TV show on Cartoon Network, with the hopes that the comic book and the TV show will be very similar. (This explains the recent addition of Supergirl and the name change) Bruce Timm and Paul Dini have been pitching a Legion series for ages, ever since a Legion episode on the animated Superman series, so this is a long-awaited dream-come-true for many DC fans. There will be a 90-minute movie (essentially the first three episodes shown all at once, like they did with Superman and Justice League’s pilots) which will be shown in late 2006, but the series itself won’t launch until early 2007.

Remember about a half year back when there was buzz that there would be an Aquaman comedy movie starring Jack Black? Clearly this was just a stupid rumor, especially since Jack Black (currently seen shirtless in his new Mexican wrestler movie Nacho Libre) can’t really pull off the look. Right? It’s just a rumor? No, turns out there is some basis for it. Stop screaming, it isn’t that bad. Jack Black will be the voice of Aquaman in the new animated series of the same name. The idea of it being a comedy is probably from someone who assumed that cartoon + Jack Black = funny. This series will be from the same team who did “Teen Titans”, and while it is reported to not have the same anime style, it will have Wil Wheaton as the voice of Aqualad. (On Wil Wheaton’s web site; he accidentally spoiled DC’s surprise announcement when he mentioned returning from an Aquaman recording session.)

Superman has a one-shot animated movie that will debut straight to DVD (timed to coincide with the new movie, of course) about Brainiac’s return.

The Batman team-up movie (under a JLU title, since Batman as an animated property is licensed to the “The Batman” production unit) featuring team-ups with Green Arrow, Zatanna and Elongated Man, is still in production. Yeah, as you can imagine, I’m thrilled beyond belief. I’ve been wanting to hear more about this for the last year! I wonder if Ralph Dibny will be married in the JLU-verse.

Western fans will be happy to know that one of the new movies currently in production is “Jonah Hex.” Adam Baldwin (who voiced Hex in JLU) has a role in it, although, sadly, not as Jonah Hex. It is filming in Bulgaria. The movie’s style is said to be part-spaghetti western, part horror movie, though it will be down-to-Earth in the style of the original and current comic series, eschewing time travel or the more fantastic tales of Joe Lansdale.

Now that Hal Jordan is Green Lantern again, there is a serious effort at a Green Lantern movie which will be made by the Wachowski brothers’ production company (though probably not directed by them). The completed script has been greenlit, if you’ll pardon the pun. Not much is known about it except that it will have Hal Jordan as GL and Sinestro will be the bad guy.

Dan DiDio mentioned in passing that there is a Hawkman movie scheduled for 2009. Frankly, that sounds like a project that… well, I’ll believe it when I see a poster. I just can’t believe that it’s viable, even if Hawkgirl is a member of the JLU. I’m not saying it couldn’t be good, especially with modern CGI flying scenes. I love the character, and if it was played totally serious it could make for a riveting movie. The problem is getting a worldwide audience to turn out in the millions for it. I bet this is one of those films, like Plastic Man or Deadman or Kid Eternity, that never gets beyond a script treatment and an IMDB listing about being in production.

Now here’s the biggie. I’ve saved the best for last.

You wondered why Firestorm wasn’t available as a member of the Justice League Unlimited, right? Turns out he was under option. Alan Kistler just mentioned in his post yesterday that Firestorm sounds like a great idea for a buddy movie, which just shows that Alan is on the right wavelength.

“Firestorm: The Nuclear Man” (the subtitle is probably because of that dumb Howie Long movie) was put into production soon after “Spider-Man” raked in the bazillions. Since it’s about a high school student who gets superpowers in a freak accident, you can see what the studio was thinking. The CGI flamehead effect is said to look totally realistic, and perfecting it so that it didn’t look pasted-on in post-production was one of the design goals of the SFX crew. Ronnie Raymond is some young “The O.C.” actor I’ve never heard of named Chris Carmack (OK, his IMDb mug shot convinces me he could play it), but Professor Stein is played by…

…and really, this is brilliant casting, since I wouldn’t have ever made this choice but I can totally see it…

…Ben Stiller!

Rounding out the cast is Missi Pyle as Killer Frost. Again, a surprising choice, but in this case it’s because I’m a huge fan of Ms. Pyle. You’ll remember her as the alien chick on “Galaxy Quest”, a doting mom in “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” the teacher who slept with Charlie on “Two and a Half Men” and the obsessive beauty pageant mom on a recent “My Name Is Earl.” Pyle is great at playing disturbed psychos. Plus, she’s gorgeous, and the production photos in the link below make her look really hot. (I know, wrong term for an ice princess.) It looks more like she’s nude with icicle body paint, which is a bit provocative for a PG-13 movie but they pulled off the nude body paint thing in X-Men (Mystique) and The Mummy (Anak Sun-Amun or however that’s spelled). What I like about Missi is that she’s a gorgeous woman who will play weirdo roles, like the unibrowed Eastern Bloc athlete in “Dodgeball.”

Firestorm isn’t a well-known character, so it is going to be up to the trailer to build interest in it. Given the special effects and the opportunities for comedy, that shouldn’t be hard. Carmack and Pyle aren’t household names, so clearly this is going to be Ben Stiller’s top billing and I wouldn’t be surprised if he sells the picture on his name alone. (I also wouldn’t be surprised if the trailer is mostly about him.) Other big name stars in the movie are Queen Latifah, Miguel Ferrer, Sean William Scott and Kevin Kline(!), though I don’t know what roles they play.

“Firestorm: The Nuclear Man” debuts summer of 2007.

Newsarama has more on this, including the Firestorm pictures with a finished CGI still and a couple great shots of Ms. Pyle as Killer Frost (warning for the sensitive: she is for all intents and purposes naked, but painted icy blue).

Comics Continuum has alternative coverage of DC’s announcement event as well as some photos from the convention and a sneak preview of the Wonder Woman costume they’re designing for the movie (just the costume, no actress since it isn’t cast yet).

Be sure to check these out!