rewrite this title Emerald Fennell on why DC Studios didn’t want to conjure her “demented” Zatanna movie

I’ve been banging this drum for the better part of five years, but DC Studios made a mistake when they shelved Emerald Fennell’s Zatanna movie. I honestly can’t think of a better filmmaker to capture the Princess of Prestidigitation in a “demented” film that’s just as sexy and strange as Zatanna Zatarra. Here’s an idea, DC: Let Fennell make her movie, then release it under the DC Elseworlds initiative, like Clayface or The Batman. Done. You’re welcome.

Fennell, whose steamy retelling of Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights, starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi, is in theaters now (check out our review), is an excellent showcase of how the Promising Young Woman and Saltburn director brings twisted characters to life with believability and intrigue. While visiting the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Fennell opened up about why DC passed on her Zatanna movie, and again, I can’t help but feel like the studio made a mistake.

Fennell on what happened with her Zatanna movie

According to Fennell, her version of Zatanna was “probably too far away from the genre.”

“I think it was demented because I was probably going through it at the time,” she said on the Happy Sad Confused podcast. “And the thing is, I think what I can’t help but—and then, I’d just finished A Promising Young Woman, and there was this huge thing in this world I’d never operated in. And again, it was a kind of superhero movie, and I was like, ‘How do I make the version of a superhero movie that I would connect to emotionally?’ Which is sort of the woman in the middle of a nervous breakdown, so it’s a script reflective of a woman in the middle of a nervous breakdown. And in terms of what that means, I suppose it just meant that it was probably too far away from the genre.”

Fennell continued, “It was really dark. I haven’t read it for a really long time, because I found it really difficult. Because, also the thing is, I love JJ [Abrams] so much, and he took a chance offering me to do it, and I really wanted to deliver something amazing for them. And I always felt like I hadn’t quite maybe delivered the thing that they wanted. So, I haven’t read it since, and I wonder if I read it now, I’d be more generous toward myself. But I felt like, I wished I’d been able to deliver the thing they wanted. They were really lovely about it, it’s even just remembering. You’re making me remember scenes, I’m like, ‘Nobody would have made that.’”

Give me the script! I want to read it!

Ugh! I want to read Fennell’s script for her Zatanna movie so badly! I positively love the character and think there’s room in the DCU under James Gunn and Peter Safran’s guard for this movie not only to exist but to do well with audiences. Would it be a little out of left field? Sure, but so was Todd Phillips’ Joker. Plus, what did DC think they were going to get when they asked Fennell to give the character a whirl? Of course, she’s going to put her signature on it. Did they think it was going to be anything else? Fools!