As saturated as the current streaming market is, blockbuster franchises are still moving between platforms, including Netflix‘s recent additions from Warner Bros. Pictures and DC Studios. The streaming juggernaut is adding an entire collection’s worth of DC’s contemporary theatrical releases.
These movies range from superhero icons out of DC Comics’ source material to an antihero-themed team-up. Each of these titles offers unique and entertaining flavors of the superhero film genre sure to satisfy fans looking for something moody and atmospheric or some over-the-top action with raunchy comedy. Along with the rest of Netflix’s diverse catalog of movies and shows, these DC features are great standalone stories.
Along with characters like Spider-Man, DC Comics’ Batman is one of the most enduring figures in the superhero genre, and last year’s reboot laid the groundwork for something thrilling. Director Matt Reeves’ The Batman sees Robert Pattinson (Good Time, The Lighthouse, Tenet) don the cape and cowl in a feature that taps back into the pulpy neo-noir roots of the Dark Knight’s comic books.
Depicting a Batman just two years into his vigilante career, the hero meets his tactical match when an elusive serial killer dubbed the Riddler (played by Paul Dano) murders a slew of prominent political figures in Gotham City. Meanwhile, the brooding protagonist finds the mysterious Catwoman (played by Zoë Kravitz) is somehow connected to this grisly case. The Batman is a fantastic mystery-thriller that emphasizes the hero’s “World’s Greatest Detective” traits while also taking cues from gritty noir movies like David Fincher’s Seven and Zodiac.
Completing the DC Trinity alongside Batman and Superman, Wonder Woman finally gets the theatrical spotlight she deserves in director Patty Jenkins’ movie. 2017’s Wonder Woman expands on the Warrior of Truth’s origin story in the — soon-to-be former — DC Extended Universe after featuring in a supporting role for Zack Snyder’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.
Set against the backdrop of World War I, the titular hero (played by Gal Gadot) feels compelled to venture out from her and her fellow Amazons’ world of Themyscira. Diana believes that the war plaguing humanity was started by the Amazons’ long-time enemy, Ares, the Olympian God of War. She partners up with a U.S. pilot named Steve Trevor (played by Chris Pine) to root out this threat. Wonder Woman was well-received thanks to its vibrant visuals, action set pieces, emotional story, and creative use of the “period piece” approach.
Now the co-CEO of DC Studios, director James Gunn first jumped from Marvel Studios to helm The Suicide Squad. A standalone sequel to the 2016 movie by director David Ayer, The Suicide Squad is a solid jumping-on point for the uninitiated viewer. The movie revolves around a group of supervillain convicts agreeing with intelligence officer Amanda Waller’s offer for lighter sentences in exchange for thwarting a secret superweapon plan codenamed “Project Starfish.”
This new task force includes Harley Quinn (Barbie‘s Margot Robbie), Bloodsport (Idris Elba), Rick Flag (Joel Kinnaman), Peacemaker (John Cena), Polka-Dot Man (David Dastmalchian), and Ratcatcher (Daniela Melchior). The Suicide Squad earned a positive critical reception thanks to embracing its bombastic premise, action, and comedic elements. Much like Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy movies for Marvel, this DC feature executes its underdog theme well.
Warner Bros. and DC Studios’ The Batman, Wonder Woman, and The Suicide Squad are all available to stream now on Netflix.
Some of the best shots in Grok Imagine’s AI-made Odyssey don’t contain actors. Ancient landscapes stretch into the distance. Close-ups of grimy hands suggest people who have touched something rougher than a keyboard. For a few seconds, the illusion holds.
https://twitter.com/imagine/status/2113712964419063911
YouTube videos could soon look better without eating quite so much data, right? Thankfully, the platform plans to introduce a new video format called AV2 on its web player in early 2027, promising more efficient streaming and potentially fewer playback hiccups on slower internet connections. The big headline is a roughly 30% improvement in compression efficiency over AV1, YouTube's existing video format. That doesn't guarantee every video will use 30% less data, but it could make streaming a little easier on both internet connections and data allowances.
What is AV2, and why should viewers care?
YouTube is changing how its Home page works, giving viewers more control over what shows up there and making some of the app’s most-used sections easier to reach. Custom Feeds are now replacing the existing topic chips for eligible users, while YouTube is also testing a redesigned top bar on mobile that moves Subscriptions closer to the Home feed.
YouTube first started experimenting with Custom Feeds earlier this year, letting you type out what you wanted to watch and turning that request into its own stream of recommendations. Now, the feature is starting to look less like a side experiment and more like something YouTube actually wants people to use as part of their everyday Home page.