Geoff Johns has helped write and produce many live-action films and TV shows featuring DC heroes over the years. But his role as the creator and showrunner of Stargirl is different because it centers on a character he had a hand in creating. Johns and artist Lee Moder introduced the world to Courtney Whitmore’s star-spangled alter-ego in 1999. Now that she’s finally getting her own TV series, Johns wanted to set her apart from other Arrowverse headliners. Apparently, this required some inventiveness not just in terms of how her story was told, but also in how the show’s visual effects were created.
Johns recently told Entertainment Weekly that Stargirl’s young cast already gives the series a “different feel” from other Arrowverse shows. However, he also wanted the series to feel more like a movie. Perhaps the biggest way he and his crew achieved this was by using previsualization, a process normally saved for big-budget films to map out VFX-heavy action scenes. The VFX team also recruited veterans of Marvel’s Iron Man and Captain Marvel films to help render certain effects.
“We were the first show with Warner Bros. to use pre-viz,” said Johns. “Utilizing all these tools that we used on Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Shazam [allowed us to] not only have these great emotional, heartwarming, fun stories, but also these visuals that you haven’t seen in superhero shows before. I can’t wait for people to see the opening scene. I don’t think people really expect Stargirl to be visually as big as it is.”
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Stargirl also stands out as the first DC show to air on both DC Universe and The CW. Unfortunately, those who can only watch the series premiere on the latter network will be facing something of a loss. According to Johns, The CW is cutting about 10 minutes from the first two episodes to accommodate for commercial breaks.
“We had to lift some scenes out of 1 and 2,” Johns said. “It was painful to do, but I was thrilled it was going to be on broadcast as well as streaming. The more people see the show, the more people get to meet Stargirl and the Justice Society. I really hope the characters connect with people that don’t even know them.”
Stargirl hits DC Universe on Monday, May 18 and will debut on The CW on Tuesday, May 19.
Are you excited to see the series’ visual effects in action? Let us know in the comment section below!
Recommended Reading: Stargirl by Geoff Johns
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