10 Comic Book Movies That Damaged Directors' Careers

The comic book movies of the MCU, the DCU, and beyond have occasionally been known to damage the careers of their directors. Before the beginning of the MCU’s movie timeline helped establish superhero cinema as a dominant force at the box office, comic book movies were often considered especially risky endeavors. Even in the years since, there have been notable missteps in the genre, resulting in films that fail to earn their directors any plaudits.

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When comic book movies can’t replicate the success of the movies of the MCU, or otherwise fail to earn critical praise, it reflects poorly on its director. In certain cases, this actually significantly impacts their career, harming their prospects moving forward. In these cases, it would seem that superhero movies have the potential to be just as damaging as they can be successful. With that in mind, here are 10 superhero movies that damaged directors’ careers.

10 Catwoman (2004)

Director: Pitof

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As one of the most infamous comic book movie box office flops, 2004’s Catwoman earned itself a place in cinematic history for all the wrong reasons. The Halle Berry-led DC movie was released amid a slew of early ‘00s superhero flicks, as the genre was gaining considerable traction both at the box office and in the public consciousness. Catwoman proved to be one of the worst entries ever released in the superhero genre, earning the ire of fans and critics alike.

Catwoman was director Pitof’s English-language debut, though he had only one French directorial credit to his name at the time. However, his experience working on major movies was extensive, as he had acted as second unit director for Alien Resurrection, and had served as a producer and visual effects supervisor on multiple notable releases. Even so, the disastrous reception of Catwoman stalled Pitof’s directorial career almost as soon as it had begun.

9 Batman & Robin (1997)

Director: Joel Schumacher

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Looking back on director Joel Schumacher’s career, it’s surprising just how many great films he was involved in creating. That’s because the director’s name has become synonymous with notoriously disappointing movies: Schumacher’s Batman movies are widely considered the worst in the character’s long cinematic tenure. The first, 1995’s Batman Forever, had some merit, though ultimately fell short of the mark. However, 1997’s Batman & Robin was bad enough to damage Schumacher’s entire career.

In spite of a star-studded main cast comprised of George Clooney, Uma Thurman, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Alicia Silverstone, and Chris O’Donnell, Batman & Robin was disastrous for Schumacher. Not only did the film receive critical panning, but it was considered an insult to the source material, failing to capture the complexity or depth of its characters. The poor reception to Batman & Robin did more than damage Schumacher’s career; it also negatively impacted the director’s otherwise impressive legacy of filmmaking.

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8 Hellboy (2019)

Director: Neil Marshall

After Guillermo del Toro’s movies brought Hellboy to life in such epic fashion, the character’s appearance in a 2019 reboot had a high bar to clear. The David Harbour-led movie introduced a slightly different take on the Dark Horse Comics character, and it was one that proved to be far below the standards of its predecessors. Neil Marshall was at the reins of the reboot, and the film’s underwhelming reception was a blow to his career.

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Before 2019’s Hellboy, Neil Marshall had a few notable credits to his name. Dog Soldiers, The Descent, and Centurion all earned Marshall a certain level of prominence, with the director becoming known for his respectable use of visual effects as well as his impressive knack for horror. Hellboy sabotaged Marshall’s reputation, as one of its most criticized elements was its unimpressive visual effects. As a result, Marshall’s status as something of a cult director was seemingly revoked overnight.

7 Judge Dredd (1995)

Director: Danny Cannon

Though Judge Dredd is a prominent figure in pop culture, the character’s cinematic track record is undeservedly poor. The first attempt to adapt Dredd’s story in live-action was 1995’s Judge Dredd, a release that was bolstered by the casting of Sylvester Stallone as the titular lawman. Fans of the comics balked, and even general audiences found the movie unappealing, leading to a disastrous reception that hurt the career of director Danny Cannon.

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At the time, Cannon was a promising up-and-coming director who was offered Judge Dredd as his second feature film. The film’s poor critical reception and box office disappointment set Cannon’s career back considerably, and he largely stepped away from directing movies afterward. Though he has gone on to have an impressive career in TV direction and production, 1995’s Judge Dredd hurt Danny Cannon’s career in a major way.

6 Fantastic Four (2015)

Director: Josh Trank

Long before the MCU’s Fantastic Four, the team were featured in other movie adaptations. After two less-than-stellar movies in 2005 and 2007, the Marvel heroes were rebooted on the big screen in 2015’s Fantastic Four, directed by Josh Trank. The movie was considered the director’s big break, and his first foray into big-budget film-making after the success of his acclaimed low-budget superhero movie, Chronicle.

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Considering the massive success and acclaim earned by Chronicle, the hype surrounding Josh Trank’s Fantastic Four was significant. However, the film was met with negative reviews and a big office failure, becoming a financial disaster and severely damaging Trank’s fledgling career. After Fantastic Four’s failure, Trank took a five-year hiatus from film-making, further evidencing how much the movie impacted him, though he asserted that many issues stemmed from studio interference rather than his own missteps.

5 Jonah Hex (2010)

Director: Jimmy Hayward

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Even before the beginning of the DCEU’s movie timeline, modern DC adaptations were considered hit-and-miss. Much like the franchise, the movies that preceded it were inconsistent in quality: even while Christopher Nolan’s then-ongoing Dark Knight trilogy was earning critical acclaim, 2010 saw the release of Jonah Hex. The supernatural comic book Western boasted a stellar cast, but critical panning led to the film having a negative impact on director Jimmy Hayward’s career.

Before Jonah Hex, Hayward served as an animator on several notable movies, including Toy Story, Monsters, Inc., and Finding Nemo. His major directorial debut came with Horton Hears a Who!, and its success secured him Jonah Hex, his first live-action feature film. The issues with the movie are well-documented and led even its stars to disown the film, and Hayward’s directorial career all but ended as a result.

4 Elektra (2005)

Director: Rob Bowman

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Though 2003’s Daredevil remains one of Marvel’s most memorable cinematic disappointments, the film’s 2005 spin-off, Elektra, is widely hailed as one of the worst movies of all time. With Jennifer Garner reprising the titular role after her appearance in Daredevil, Elektra brought the story of the Marvel character to life in her first solo live-action movie. The movie was considered both a critical and commercial failure, thereby damaging the career of its director, Rob Bowman.

Before Elektra, Bowman had honed his craft in TV, working on many notable shows. He went on to direct The X-Files movie and Reign of Fire, both of which earned him some success. Elektra came along just as he was seemingly breaking through to become a major mainstream movie director, and its failure all but ended Bowman’s career in film. Bowman has since gone on to work on multiple successful TV shows, though he has yet to make another theatrical film after Elektra.

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3 Suicide Squad (2016)

Director: David Ayer

David Ayer is another director who was afforded the opportunity to direct a comic book movie after receiving critical acclaim. After writing the screenplays for movies such as Training Day and The Fast and the Furious, Ayer began his career as a director. 2012’s End of Watch earned Ayer considerable attention, and was nominated for multiple awards. These credentials saw him handed the reins of the DCEU’s Suicide Squad in 2016.

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The movie was met with largely underwhelming reviews and continued a worrying trend in the early days of the DCEU. Despite box office success, the reactions to Suicide Squad were largely negative, and Ayer’s career suffered as a result, though the director has since stated his initial vision for the movie was considerably changed by external forces before its release. His directorial prospects seemingly dried up after Suicide Squad, considerably setting back the career of one of the most promising directors of the time after a single divisive release.

2 The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen (2003)

Director: Stephen Norrington

2003’s The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen was based on the comics created by British comic book royalty Alan Moore and Kevin O’Neill. The film adapted the story of the titular League, comprising notable figures from throughout literary history into a single team of supernatural heroes. With a star-studded cast led by Sean Connery, director Stephen Norrington seemed an excellent choice after his success directing 1997’s Blade.

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Despite Norrington having comic book movie experience, the film was not well-received by critics. While it earned a reasonable sum at the box office, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen was considered a failure, and marked both the last film appearance of Sean Connery and seemingly the end of Norrington’s directorial career. On-set tensions reportedly exacerbated matters, but the poor reception to The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen appears to have significantly impacted Stephen Norrington’s career for the worse.

1 Green Lantern (2011)

Director: Martin Campbell

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By the time he was set to direct 2011’s Green Lantern, Martin Campbell had already achieved much in his film-making career. Notable movies made by Campbell include 1995’s GoldenEye, 1998’s The Mask of Zorro, and its 2005 sequel, The Legend of Zorro. Having achieved critical and commercial success with multiple major releases, Campbell’s ability to direct Green Lantern’s live-action movie debut seemed unquestionable, especially coming as it did after many years of tackling various different types of action in his movies.

The reactions to Green Lantern were less than ideal, and the film was instantly marked a failure. Its underperformance at the box office was overshadowed by the overwhelmingly negative reception to the film, making Green Lantern a particular dark moment in the character’s history. Martin Campbell’s career as a director slowed considerably after the release of the film, and he has yet to direct another high-profile release. It’s a stark example of how the comic book movies of the MCU, the DCU, and beyond can ultimately damage a director’s career.

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