The DC Animated Universe, in its various iterations, was able to develop and adapt a slew of valuable and popular story arcs from the DC canon. These stories were often fan favorites, with great writing and tons of fan service. At test screenings, Crisis on Infinite Earths is a story that came up multiple times, which resulted in it getting adapted into a two-part film for the Tomorrow-verse.
However, this was not the only DC Comics story that fans wanted to see being adapted into an animated film. Given the vast number of runs that exist in the comics, following beloved characters, a few more were bound to appear on everyone’s lists, which was revealed by Jim Kreig, who was part of the team behind the film.
The Long Halloween was a film that fans wanted to see animated too, revealed Jim Kreig
When the question about how Crisis on Infinite Earths made the cut to be adapted arose, Jim Krieg was quick to reveal a secret about how films are usually produced when it came to the DC animated side of things. He said:
“It’s basically a title that kept coming up when they would have these test screenings. People would fill out forms and say, what other DC comic book stories do you want to see? And this one always came up, as did Long Halloween, which became part of the Tomorrow verse”
The Long Halloween is also a story that was adapted in two parts, allowing a more nuanced adaptation of the story, rather than the creators having to condense the story to fit the format. The film adaptation of the story needed to be faithful, given that DC was set to revamp its entire animated lineup, with a new art style and direction in the Tomorrow-verse.
Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths is difficult to adapt
Jim Krieg was also quick to point out what are the problems that come with adapting a story like Crisis on Infinite Earths. The problem starts with the fact that it is very important to juggle cameos and the story, to create a narrative with enough investment and fan service. The creator said:
“Our super talented creators have been loathed to do it because it has so many characters. It is such a giant story to try and adapt. It is so beloved that there’s a certain portion of the audience that is only going to be disappointed because it will not match up to the comic book that they read when they were 11.”
Another part of the issue stems from the fact that these are beloved properties that a lot of characters have fond memories of. This makes the adaptation process difficult, as there are things that are only possible in a comic medium, which might not be suitable for an animated film, which makes it impossible to adapt the story as is or in a manner that appeals to everyone.
