Director Doug Liman, who has scored a critical hit with The Wall, a low budget military thriller set in Iraq that is currently in limited release, has decided not to direct Dark Universe, a key Warner Bros. superhero film that will feature DC Comics’ Justice League Dark.  Liman has chosen instead to helm Chaos Walking, an adaptation of YA science fiction novel series by Patrick Ness that is set in a dystopian world where all living creatures can hear each other’s thoughts.

Guillermo Del Toro was originally attached to direct the Justice League Dark movie, but has long since departed (see "'Sandman' Movie to New Line").  Liman was then announced as the director of Dark Universe last August (see "'Justice League Dark' Film Gets Director").  Variety broke the story that Liman has left the Warner Bros.’ Justice League Dark project, which the trade paper said “would play a major role in the new DC Cinematic Universe."  Scott Rudin remains as the lead producer on the film, and is currently interviewing potential new directors.  The speed at which a new helmer is hired should provide some indication of exactly how important a Justice League Dark film is to Warner Bros. and the DC Cinematic Universe.

The Justice League Dark team for the film is believed to include John Constantine, Deadman, Swamp Thing, Zatanna, and Etrigan the Demon.  A Justice League Dark animated movie was released in February (see "First 'Justice League Dark' Trailer").

Will Warner Bros. stick with "Dark Universe" as the title for its live-action Justice League Dark film?  In addition to its generic nature, the title could create some confusion with Universal’s shared cinematic world for its classic monsters, which is also entitled "Dark Universe" (see "Universal Unveils Its 'Dark Universs'").