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'Swamp Thing' Director Has a Very Original Vision for DCU Horror Movie
Director James Mangold is currently crushing the box office with his Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown, but with his next act, things are going to get much messier.
Mangold will enter the James Gunn-run DCU for the first time by creating a new world for the character of Swamp Thing in a feature film. The director, however, is no stranger to superhero movies as he directed 2017's critically acclaimed Logan starring Hugh Jackman.
Mangold spoke to Movieweb about what's of the utmost importance to him as he tackles Swamp Thing.
"With Bob [Dylan] you have known quantities, yes, but there are ways to interpret them," he told the publication. "With other kinds of IP, it gets to a religious level. Swamp Thing at DC, it's just a matter of—do we find a way on the page to say something original?"
The Walk the Line director also explained how he's not looking beyond this one entry in the DCU.
"While I'm sure DC views Swamp Thing as a franchise, I would be viewing it as a very simple, clean, Gothic horror movie about this man/monster," he said. "Just doing my own thing with this, just a standalone."
Related: Why the New Bob Dylan Movie With Timothée Chalamet Changed One Big Detail
Mangold has directed in numerous genres (including an upcoming Star Wars movie) and is appreciative of how the varied work has altered his career.
"I've learned a lot, whether it's making an action film, or whether it's making a Western and bringing those energies to a kind of superhero film or Marvel film. You not only learn things making one genre, but then you learn how to carry over lessons from that genre into another one that you might not expect," he said.
DC Studios has not yet announced a Swamp Thing release date.