Starting with Bruce Timm’s Batman: The Animated Series, the DCAU has emerged as one of the most revered adaptations of the DC Universe to date. Over time, it has expanded to include numerous series and movies, continually introducing a plethora of DC characters across various projects.
However, not all proposed projects saw the light of day, with some being shelved indefinitely. One such project was an animated series Superman’s Justice League, which was ultimately axed by Warner Bros. executives in favor of prioritizing Superman: The Animated Series.
Bruce Timm Planned to Introduce Justice League Alongside Superman
Following the success of Batman: The Animated Series and Superman: The Animated Series, Bruce Timm introduced Justice League in 2001. However, this was not his original intention for the subsequent TV show featuring the superhero ensemble.
During the mid-1990s, while Timm was immersed in Superman: The Animated Series, he devised plans to introduce Justice League alongside the Kryptonian superhero. The series would have seen Superman collaborating with various members of the Justice League in each episode.
These characters would have ranged from well-known figures like Flash, Supergirl, and Green Lantern to lesser-known heroes such as Black Lightning, Lightray, Dr. Fate, Nightshade, Vixen, Mister Miracle, and the Question.
While Superman: The Animated Series did introduce some of these characters and even flirted with the idea of forming the Justice League, Warner Bros. intervened. DC’s then-President Jenette Kahn reportedly advised Timm to abandon the plans.
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Kahn reportedly argued that the series had too many characters to introduce and suggested Timm concentrate solely on developing Superman: The Animated Series, ultimately leading to the cancellation of the Justice League plans.
Bruce Timm Wanted A Justice Society of America Crossover
Bruce Timm faced another cancellation when he proposed a crossover between the Justice League and the Justice Society of America. And the concern was once again regarding the large number of characters involved in the combined groups.
Talking about his plans for the crossover on ToonZone, the animation producer shared that the DC Comics publisher Paul Levitz expressed concerns about the story. Levitz believed that Timm and his team had not appropriately utilized the JSA characters and felt that the story disrespected them.
“DC Comics publisher Paul Levitz had some concerns with the story. He felt the story as written disrespected the JSA and was overall an inappropriate use of the characters. We pleaded our case, but we could clearly see his point, too.”
Timm acknowledged Levitz’s concerns, particularly regarding their efforts to revitalize the superhero team. As a compromise, they altered the characters’ names and designs slightly, creating the Justice Guild as an homage to the JSA while avoiding direct use of the original characters.
Justice League is available to stream on Max.
