DC Universe’s Swamp Thing earned mostly positive reviews in the days leading up to its premiere. So it came as a surprise when the series was cancelled shortly after the first episode dropped in May. Several cast members and producers have shared their disappointment over the show’s fate in the months since. But now, co-showrunner Gary Dauberman is opening up about what his team was planning for the future.
During an interview with ComicBookMovie.com, Dauberman highlighted the work of his collaborators on the series. He also singled out Alan Moore’s acclaimed Swamp Thing stories. Needless to say, Moore’s stories were a big influence on their interpretation of the character.
“I was heartbroken over [the cancellation] because I think, creatively, we – and I say ‘we’ but mostly mean the other people because Mark Verheiden was really the captain of the ship and he did such a bang up job of it – the show came out of a love for the source material because we really loved the books, especially the Alan Moore run. He’s one of my heroes, of course. Really, everyone involved just fell in love with the source material and the characters and I think that shows in the episodes. I think if you’re interested in what the other seasons were going to be like, you can go back to the source material.”
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Dauberman has also written several films in the Conjuring Universe. Between Dauberman and executive producer James Wan, Swamp Thing leaned more into horror than heroes. The first season was praised for being genuinely scary. According to Dauberman, they would have ramped up these scare tactics in follow-up episodes.
“The swamp is very much the kitchen sink of supernatural terror,” added Dauberman. “And, as you know, you can go into different subgenres of horror with that and I was really looking forward to exploring that in season two and getting into some of the more twisted horror tales from the later comics. It just would have got weirder. For people who don’t know the character, season one was telling people what Swamp Thing was all about. But season two was going to be more about getting into the deeper, twisted, weirder, and gross ideas.”
Are you still holding out hope for a Swamp Thing revival? Let us know in the comment section below!
Recommended Reading: Saga of the Swamp Thing Book 1
