The release of Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness continues the common comic book movie trend of hiring directors famous for their horror roots. Sam Raimi, James Gunn, James Wan, David F. Sandberg, and with The Flash movie: Andy Muschietti.
It’s enough to make people wonder which horror directors will be next to join the comic book world. These are names that fans might not expect; however, nobody excited Sam Raimi to be the director of Spider-Man nor did they expect James Wan of Saw fame to direct Aquaman.
Adam Wingard
This newer director got his start with the slasher known as Home Sick and has since gone on to direct one of the segments in V/H/S and the 2016 Blair Witch film. He has shown his talent with big spectacle films with Godzilla Vs. Kong which many commented felt like a comic book movie with giant monsters.
Adam Wingard has talent in the director’s chair and could likely bring a comic book character to life. His horror movies were bizarre and outlandish which could easily fit the likes of John Constantine or a new movie about the Hulk.
Julius Avery
Julius Avery made a big splash managing to balance action and horror with 2018’s Overlord, a film that brought back horror to the zombie subgenre. For a debut film, that shows a lot of talent which is why viewers should be excited for his newest film: Samaritan.
Samaritan is an original superhero film starring Sylvester Stallone as a retired hero. If Avery continues to show off his skills as a director with Samaritan, he could easily be invited to join Marvel or DC. His visceral style could be what is needed for a hero such as Green Arrow or the fourth Captain America film.
David Bruckner
The career of David Bruckner has been strong with The Signal, a segment of V/H/S, The Ritual, and The Night House, and he is working on the 2022 reboot of Hellraiser. Each horror film such as The Ritual has equally as many terrifying moments as well as stunning visuals, creating imagery that would belong in the panels of a comic book.
This is fitting considering Bruckner was even the director of two episodes of the Creepshow series on Shudder, which is a tribute to classic horror comics. Bruckner could bring that style of filmmaking to all kinds of franchises from Superman to Ghost Rider.
Robert Eggers
Between The VVitch and The Lighthouse, Robert Eggers has established himself as a unique director all around, let alone in the horror genre. Even with The Northman, he took and made a dark yet fantastical take on a famous story that mixes action, horror, fantasy, and so much more into one movie.
Some of the best comic book films are the ones that mix genres together such as Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Matt Reeves’ The Batman, a film that Eggers was actually a fan of. Eggers could deliver an iconic superhero or supervillain film if allowed creative freedom as a filmmaker.
Kathryn Bigelow
Though she has become more famous for thrillers such as Zero Dark Thirty and The Hurt Locker, one of her first films was Near Dark, one of the most underrated vampire films. She could implement that same talent she used for vampires for darker characters such as Elsa Bloodstone or even a better-executed sequel to Morbius.
One of her more recent films: Detroit featured a different kind of horror, showcasing the terror that humans can bring onto others. This could make her ideal for more grounded superheroes such as The Question or even if they revitalize Charlie Cox’s Daredevil.
Gore Verbinski
Around the same time James Wan got his start in horror, so did Gore Verbinski. Verbinski’s first rise in popularity began with The Ring. After that, his career boomed with the first three Pirates Of The Caribbean films which led to him directing other genres with Rango and The Lone Ranger.
Gore Verbinski returned to horror with A Cure For Wellness but he clearly knows how to handle blockbusters. He even brought horror to Pirates Of The Caribbean with elements like the ever-quotable Davy Jones and the undead crew of the Black Pearl. He could easily deliver a healthy balance of tone and genres to something like a new Justice League film.
Mary Harron
Over the years, Mary Harron has mostly stuck to television with the occasional film. Her first and most famous film is the cult gem American Psycho which met this bizarre yet effective middle ground between slasher and dark comedy.
Oddly enough, the style of American Psycho could easily be used for other supervillain movies. If Venom were to go in a darker direction more akin to the comics, Mary could likely nail the twisted duality of Eddie Brock and Venom or maybe a darker origin for Two-Face in the same vein as 2019’s Joker.
Guillermo Del Toro
Technically, Guillermo Del Toro has been in the comic book industry before with Blade II and his two Hellboy films. However, many fans would love to see him join one of the big companies like Marvel or DC. Years ago, he almost created one of Marvel’s first attempts to give a superhero a TV series.
Guillermo Del Toro was going to create a Hulk television series for NBC, but sadly it never saw the light of day. Since then, he has gone back to horror with The Shape Of Water and Crimson Peak, both providing fantastical styles and creatures that scream comic book artwork. Many fans would likely not argue with the idea of hiring Guillermo Del Toro to take on something like the DCEU’s Justice League Dark.
Leigh Whannell
Since James Wan joined the DC world with Aquaman, many wouldn’t mind seeing what would happen if his longtime friend and partner, Leigh Whannell, took on a comic book film. Insidious Chapter III, Upgrade, and The Invisible Man are all filled with Whannell’s eye for camerawork.
Even Upgrade often feels like a superhero movie at times, even to the point where many fans directly compared the first Venom movie to it. As a result, Whannell could easily be hired for any kind of superhero film: grounded vigilante, bombastic superhero, or even the origin of a super-villain.
Mike Flanagan
Even if someone doesn’t immediately recognize his name, they probably know his work; The Haunting Of Hill House, The Haunting Of Bly Manor, Doctor Sleep, Gerald’s Game, Hush, and Midnight Mass. All of these titles established Mike Flanagan as a modern master of horror akin to James Wan.
Flanagan was able to take simple horror concepts that have been done to death and tell them in ways that keep them fresh and enthralling. Fans have practically rolled out a red carpet for his entrance to Marvel or DC, especially after Flanagan himself proposed the idea for a solo movie about Batman’s villain: Clayface.
