David S. Goyer convinced Warner Bros. to scrap plans for a 'Sandman' movie.
David S. Goyer
The 54-year-old screenwriter - who his serving as a writer and executive producer on Netflix's upcoming adaptation of Neil Gaiman's work - told the studio that a feature film was too limiting and not the right medium to tell the story.
He told The Hollywood Reporter: "I was trying to get Warner Bros. to do a streaming serialised show and they wanted to do it as a feature instead.
"So Neil and I worked on a feature, and through the various iterations, it just kept subtly getting more and more deformed, and shifting more and more away from the true north.
"Finally, we just said, ‘Guys, please let’s stop, please kill it, let’s do it as a streaming show.’ Eventually, they did.”
Goyer - who has worked on the likes of both the 'Blade' and 'The Dark Knight' trilogies - thinks he's got a "reputation" for being candid, and he "always" looks to honour the source material.
He explained: "I hope I’ve developed a reputation now for speaking with candor, for being honest.
"My go-to is always ‘what works for the story.’ And if I’m adapting an IP, like a comic book, I don’t try to turn it into something it’s not.
"Because if you do, no matter what, even if you have the best of intentions, it will definitely not work out."
He admitted there have been a number of instances where he's called on bosses to scrap their plans.
He added: "So there were times when I’ve been involved in projects when I’ve actually advocated that the studio not make it.
"I’ve said, ‘It’s going to fail. It’s not worth the money.’ I’ve talked myself out of movies and TV shows being made before.”
Tagged in Neil Gaiman