Rumor: Could ‘Dope’ Director Rick Famuyiwa Be Eyeing a DC Film?

It’s a slow holiday weekend, so here’s some fun, social media-based speculation for you to chew over: Rick Famuyiwa, the director of indie fave Dope, has recently been quite busy following several people involved in the DC movie universe on Twitter. One key figure has followed him back, which could mean that Famuyiwa is discussing the possibility of directing an upcoming film, or it might just mean that he’s a big fan of what Warner Bros. is doing with their DC slate.

Batman News noticed that Famuyiwa recently followed several Twitter accounts, including DC Comics, Geoff Johns, Wonder Woman, Gal Gadot, Suicide Squad, Zack Snyder, Ben Affleck, Ray Fisher and Jason Momoa. One of those accounts followed him back, and you might say it’s the most important of them all: Geoff Johns, the chief creative officer of DC Comics who was recently promoted to co-chief of DC Films alongside WB exec Jon Berg.

First of all, it’s downright impressive that someone has taken the time to keep tabs on who’s following who on Twitter. But setting aside that bit of social media detective work, it’s entirely plausible that Famuyiwa has, at the very least, met with WB about potentially directing an upcoming film. If I had to guess, I’d assume it’s the Cyborg standalone film, particularly since Famuyiwa followed Ray Fisher — and everyone else he followed is either a director or already has / is an existing DC movie with a director attached.

With Patty Jenkins on the female-centric Wonder Woman, it’s likely that WB wants a person of color on Cyborg, especially since their rival Marvel Studios has Ryan Coogler — another indie filmmaker who made the leap to blockbusters — on Black Panther. But Famuyiwa would also be a great fit for either The Flash (which recently lost director Seth Grahame-Smith and also features Cyborg) or Green Lantern Corps., and with everyone sort of expecting WB to compete with Marvel and hire a person of color for the Cyborg movie, hiring Famuyiwa for something else would be a smart move — proving that WB isn’t necessarily coordinating the gender and color of directors based on their respective heroes.

As to whether Famuyiwa will actually end up directing a DC movie…this little Twitter exchange confirms nothing, though it is somewhat suggestive and fun to think about.