Thought you'd see the last of the DC Showcase animated shorts? Think again...
Newsarama has revealed that Warner Bros. Animation, Warner Home Entertainment and DC are currently in production on five new DC Showcase animated shorts for release during 2019 through 2020.
According to the article, four new shorts will be included on upcoming DC Universe animated movies releases, while the fifth is called an "innovative Batman: Death in the Family long-form animated short," planned to anchor a compilation set for distribution in late 2020.
The five shorts – Sgt. Rock, Adam Strange, Death, The Phantom Stranger, and Batman: Death in the Family – will open with a new, live-action branding sequence featuring a "few Easter Eggs specially added for observant fans." All five new DC Showcase shorts will have Jim Krieg as co-producer, Amy McKenna as producer, and Sam Register as executive producer.
Here's the rundown of each animated short:
Sgt. Rock
Starring Karl Urban (Star Trek, Dredd, Lord of the Rings) as the voice of Sgt. Rock, this short is executive produced and directed by Bruce Timm (Batman: The Animated Series) from a script by veteran comic book writers Louise Simonson & Walter Simonson, and Tim Sheridan (Reign of the Supermen).
"The original tale finds battle-weary Sgt. Rock thinking he has seen everything that World War II can dish out. But he is in for the surprise of his life when he is assigned to lead a company consisting of legendary monsters into battle against an unstoppable platoon of Nazi zombies."
Adam Strange
Charlie Weber (How To Get Away with Murder, Buffy the Vampire Slayer) voices Adam Strange in this short produced and directed by Butch Lukic (Batman Unlimited), who also conceived the original story, written by comics vet J.M. DeMatteis (Constantine: City of Demons).
"On a rugged asteroid mining colony, few of the toiling workers are aware that their town drunk was ever anything but an interplanetary derelict. But when the miners open a fissure into the home of a horde of deadly alien insects, his true identity is exposed. He is space adventurer Adam Strange, whose heroic backstory is played out in flashbacks as he struggles to save the very people who have scorned him for so long."
Death
Jamie Chung (The Gifted, Gotham, Big Hero 6) voices Death, with Leonardo Nam (Westworld, The Flash, Swamp Thing) as Vincent. Inspired by Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman, Death is produced & directed by Sam Liu (Justice League vs. The Fatal Five) and also written by DeMatteis.
"In the story, Vincent, an artist with unresolved inner demons, meets a mysterious girl who helps him come to terms with his creative legacy…and eventual death."
The Phantom Stranger
Peter Serafinowicz (The Tick, Doctor Who, Guardians of the Galaxy) voices The Phantom Stranger and Michael Rosenbaum (Smallville, Justice League Unlimited) voices Seth. The Phantom Stranger is executive produced and directed by Timm and is written by Ernie Altbacker (Teen Titans: The Judas Contract).
"Set in the 1970s, the short follows young adult Jess as she joins her friends at a party in a dilapidated mansion hosted by the mysterious Seth. When odd things begin to happen to Jess and her friends, the Phantom Stranger intervenes to save her from a dreary fate."
Batman: Death in the Family
Unfortunately, more information regarding Batman: Death In The Family won't be available until 2020, according to the article.
Initially launched in 2010, DC Showcase was originally comprised of four animated shorts produced by Timm and directed by Joaquim Dos Santos -- The Spectre (released on 2/23/2010), Jonah Hex (7/27/2010), Green Arrow (9/28/2010) and Superman/Shazam: The Return of Black Adam (11/9/2010). These were later followed by Catwoman (10/18/2011), directed by Lauren Montgomery and executive produced by Timm.