We know, we know: the Hollywood development cycle is a slow, lumbering beast. It can take anywhere from a couple years (for a "fast-track" project) to a decade for a movie to see the light of day. But given how many people were saying, this time last year, that The Dark Knight had changed everything, you'd expect there to be at least some films in development, if not in pre-production or actually filming.

And there don't seem to be any movies in "the pipeline" that seem consciously influenced by TDK. Here are a few possible contenders:

• Super-Max. Written by TDK co-writer David S. Goyer, this film has obvious elements in common with Knight. From the scraps we've gleaned, it's about the snotty trust-fund superhero Green Arrow, who gets sent to prison, probably for a crime he didn't commit. And he has to escape from the world's toughest, most advanced prison by teaming up with a host of DC Comics supervillains. Gritty dark action? Check. Moral ambiguity? Check. Heroes who cross the line? Pretty much. Too bad that every time we hear about this film, it sounds more and more like it's stuck in limbo.

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• Superman Returns (Again). Every time someone mentions doing another Superman movie in the wake of 2006's underwhelming Superman Returns, they say it'll feature a "dark" take on the Last Son Of Krypton, influenced by Christopher Nolan's take on Batman. Says Warner Bros. president Jeff Robinov, "We're going to go dark, to the extent that the character will allow." More recently, rumored Super-director James McTeigue said something similar. But this "darker" Man Of Steel movie is still stuck in limbo, and Warner Bros. execs told a courtroom that they don't see much box-office potential in another Superman movie. (Granted, they were trying to get out of having to pay Superman's creators' heirs tons of money for Hollywood rights.) In fact, when they talk about doing a "darker" Superman movie, it's usually said with an air of "Well, nobody really wants to make a Superman movie, but if you put a gun to our heads, we'd do a darker one." The confusing copyright situation with Superman means they have to start development on a new Superman film in the next few years, but assuming Warners gets more enthusiasm for the cinematic Man Of Steel again, they'll probably rediscover their love for his fun, escapist side.
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• The Fantastic Four. News sites started claiming last spring that Fox was considering rebooting this super-family series as a darker, "less bubble-gum" version. And now, just the other day, Fox announced it was definitely rebooting the Fantastic Four. On the other hand, they tapped the decidedly non-dark Akiva Goldsman (Batman And Robin, I Am Legend) to produce the new movie, and
  Michael Greene, writer for Smallville, Heroes and the upcoming Green Lantern movie, will write the script. I am having a hard time imagining that team creating a "dark" FF movie. Plus everyone assumes Fox's sudden interest in moving forward with Reed Richards & Co. was motivated by Disney's purchase of Marvel, and the fact that Disney reportedly wants to take back all of the Marvel properties' movie rights as soon as outside deals expire. If Fox wants to impress Disney, a misguided "dark" Fantastic Four doesn't seem a likely approach.
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• Shazam. It's hard to believe, but yes, they were talking about a dark Shazam movie in the wake of The Dark Knight. This is the story of a little boy who discovers a magic cave full of statues of the Deadly Sins, plus an old wizard who teaches him a magic world that will transform him into a big galoot whose nickname is The Big Red Cheese. And then he fights an evil mad-science worm with the help of a talking tiger. Actually, screenwriter John August and director Peter Segal wanted to do a fun, upbeat take on Shazam, but Warner Bros. wanted something more like The Dark Knight. So August rewrote his fun script to make it darker:

  This wasn't "Big, with super powers" anymore. It was Black Adam versus Captain Marvel, with a considerable push into dark territory and liminal badlands like Nanda Parbat. It wasn't the action-comedy I'd signed on to write, but it was a movie I could envision getting made.

  But then Warners pulled the plug on the Shazam movie altogether — remember how I said the enthusiasm for "dark" stories often seems to coincide with a lack of enthusiasm for making the movies at all? And now Shazam is back on track, with Bill Birch writing and comics scribe Geoff Johns pitching in. Says Variety, "The studio is now looking to go back to the original DC Comics source material for inspiration." Going back to the original comics source material is slang for "not fucking it up with a dark reimagining."

So what happened? There are a few theories.

Watchmen happened. You could argue that The Dark Knight changed everything, and then Watchmen changed it all back. Zack Snyder's movie version of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' classic graphic novel was everything the studios were saying they wanted: dark, controversial, morally gray, challenging — and it didn't resonate that well with audiences. It had a so-so opening weekend, followed by a steep drop-off. (Sample headline from the L.A. Times: "Watchmen is going largely unwatched.")

Another "dark" movie that came out this summer, Terminator Salvation, did similarly badly. (It wasn't strictly a superhero film, but it had superhero-ish themes, and starred Bruce Wayne himself, Christian Bale.) And while Frank Miller's The Spirit was more goofy than dark, it did have a noir-ish look to it and was the handiwork of the original "Dark Knight" reinventer.

Meanwhile, movies like G.I. Joe and Wolverine, which were fluffy and bubbly and only challenged you to avoid giggling at their ridiculous dialogue and acting, did great. Audiences didn't suddenly stop liking braindead fun just because they liked one smart, bleak movie.

Also, the economy happened. Suddenly, people were hurting and depressed, and there were a spate of news stories saying that people in an economic shitstorm want upbeat, happy films. They want escapism and a pick-me-up, not a dreadful reminder that life is full of no-win situations and suffering. Whether that theory is true or not, it's one that seems to have a lot of currency in Hollywood.

And finally, looking back through those articles where execs are saying "I want a dark Shazam! I want a dark Dazzler! America needs a dark Howard The Duck!", I can't help noticing that this is usually accompanied by a lack of enthusiasm for whatever superheroic properties they're discussing. Sure, superheroes are big right now, but not every superhero movie is a huge hit, and characters like Superman and the Fantastic Four have fallen squarely into the second or third tier of big-screen spandex-flexers in the past decade or so.

Execs cast about for ways to make those lame fillies run again, and the "dark" thing is one of the ideas they hit on. But at this point, nobody seems to think "dark" is a cure-all for tired superheroes. At least, let's hope not.

Squad, announced by Warners on Wednesday, centers around supervillains who are offered the chance to complete dangerous covert missions for the US Government in exchange for freedom... or, in some cases, their lives. The movie - based on the late '80s, early '90s version of the comics franchise - is, interestingly enough, to be written by Justin Marks... who is also working on Supermax, another DC Comics project for Warners... about incarcerated supervillains. We may be leaping to conclusions here, but we can't help but wonder if some characters introduced in Supermax will make the leap to the Squad after Amanda Waller - DC's very own version of Nick Fury - makes a cameo in the former.

Of course, if that wasn't the plan until I mentioned it, I totally want a cut of the profits for both movies, Warners. I'll hire Fox's lawyers if need be.

Warner Bros. sets up 'Suicide Squad' [Variety]

Obviously, Christopher Nolan's third Bat-film, if it actually happens, stands a pretty great chance of being up there with his second. But since there's officially no word on that project right now, here are the superhero films that are actually in the pipeline:

The movie: The Spirit, Frank Miller's adaptation of Will Eisner's classic comic, coming this Xmas.
Why it could be Knight-ed: It's another off-kilter look at an old-school superhero. And the focus is very much on the dark, dystopian city. (Hence the ad campaign, "My City Screams!" Aaaa!) Frank Miller pretty much invented the Christian Bale/Chris Nolan version of Batman, with The Dark Knight Returns and Batman: Year One. and now he's finally getting to make his own superhero movie.
Why it could fall short: The trailers look campy as hell. The Spirit is not really your "dark knight" kind of hero, and he lends himself more to a certain amount of goofiness. Instead of Heath Ledger's unnerving Joker, the Spirit will give us Samuel L. Jackson in eyeliner and a fur coat, chewing the scenery like never before.

The movie: Watchmen, directed by Zack Snyder based on the graphic novel by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons.
Why it could be Knighted: It's another dark, twisted look at superheroes where the good guys are less than pure. In fact, there's a lot of ethical tangles that could remind people of Bruce Wayne's mass wiretapping in Dark Knight. The psychopathic vigilante Rorschach could be a bit like Heath Ledger's Joker. Nite Owl is like a Batman who can't get it up, according to director Zack Snyder. It'll be visually arresting, judging from the footage I've seen.
Why it could fail:Watchmen is trying really hard to capture the original graphic novel, keeping the 1985 setting and the Cold War themes. So it's more like an alternate historical epic. It's also more of a geek wet dream and less of a mainstream look at crime and retribution in a precarious society. Nothing in the movie will be that shocking or startling, because anyone who cares already knows what happens. I imagine most people's experience of watching Watchmen as being more like ticking stuff from the graphic novel off a mental checklist. One of the great things about Knight was that, even with all the spoilers I'd read, I still had no clue where the sequence with two boats and two detonators was going.

The movie: Wolverine.
Why it could be Knight-ed: It's another dark superhero-ish story that has connections to real-life issues like the War On Terror, thanks to a storyline about young Wolverine joining the military. Plus it includes creepy experiments and stuff, and Wolverine has to face Sabretooth, who's like his dark reflection. And it sounds as though Wolverine's girlfriend probably dies toward the end, if they're following the comics.
Why it could fall short: It's going to be as dumb as X-Men 3. We're already hearing whispers that Fox, the studio that messed up I, Robot, X-Men 3 and so many other movies, has been meddling with Wolverine as well, trying to make it less dark. Plus any actual character development or story has to make room for 1,000 cameos of X-favorites.

The movie: Green Hornet, directed by Stephen Chow and starring Chow and Seth Rogen.
Why it could be Knight-ed: Well, it's another movie that deconstructs the superhero mythos, using a hero who's sort of like Batman: a rich guy who fights crime in a mask. It'll feature a superhero (the Hornet) who's less famous than his sidekick (Kato, played by Bruce Lee in the 1960s).
Why it could fall short: Well, it's a comedy, so it probably won't be that dark. Rogen's co-writing the script, which means it could have some self-conscious superhero humor but it could also be a bit painful.

The movie: Green Lantern
Why it could be Knight-ed: Every DC Comics movie from now on is going to try and be like The Dark Knight. This one sounds like it'll be home run, in any case: a test pilot, struggling with his pain over the death of his father, gets a magic ring from space and gets thrust head-first into the battle against a superbeing named Legion, who's already killed several ring-wearers.
Why it could fall short: It's Green Lantern. It's supposed to be about the wish fulfillment of getting a ring that can do anything, wearing bright green spandex without looking like a doofus, and becoming the galaxy's greatest hero. And co-writer Marc Guggenheim already said it won't be a "dark" superhero movie.

The movies: A whole slate of Marvel comics vehicles, including Captain America, Iron Man II and The Avengers.
Why they could be Knight-ed: With Iron Man, Marvel proved it could make its second-tier characters fun and relatable, by giving them conflicts that connected them to the real world, like Tony Stark's weapons being used by the bad guys in Afghanistan.
Why it could fall short: None of these characters is really that dark, nihilistic or urban. If Marvel tries to make Captain America or the Avengers too much like Dark Knight, they'll just end up with a mess. Want a Marvel version of TDK? Make a new Daredevil movie. He's the other urban vigilante character that Frank Miller revitalized in the 1980s, and his best storylines are very Nolan-esque.

The movie: Superman: The Man Of Steel
Why it could be Knight-ed: See above, with Green Lantern. Warners wants all the DC Comics projects to be like its biggest hit. Warners execs have already suggested the next Super-film will be as dark as the character can get.
Why it could fall short: Come on, it's Superman. He wears bright colors because he's the most optimistic superhero. And the last Superman film, Superman Returns, was underwhelming in large measure because it was kinda dark.

The movie: Kick-Ass, based on the comic by Mark "Wanted" Millar
Why it could be Knight-ed: Wanted brought a kinetic, trippy action movie sensibility to the story of a super-assassin. More importantly, it was crammed with morally gray, self-centered characters and had a stark will-to-power sort of message. Kick-Ass, the saga of a wannabe superhero and a little girl who goes around hacking people to bits, looks like it'll be even more violent and nihilistic.
Why it could fall short: It's gritty, violent and amoral — but will it actually make you think, after you're done watching people get splattered? I'm not convinced there's a point to Kick-Ass, any more than there was to Wanted. (Other than, "People suck, and it's cool to be the baddest.")

The movie: Super-Max, aka Green Arrow
Why it could be Knight-ed: The pet project of David S. Goyer, who cowrote the two Nolan Bat-films. This is the story of a superhero, Green Arrow, who gets accused of a crime he didn't commit. And he gets locked into a super-prison that's chock full of supervillains who want him dead. He doesn't have his gear, and he has no special abilities without it. And he has to break out of this high-tech super-prison, teaming up with criminals along the way.
Why it could fall short: It could fail to get made for some reason. They could cast Hayden Christensen as Green Arrow. There could be an invasion of space monkeys that enslave us and force us to pick their nits.
Ding ding ding! I think we have a winner. If you're judging upcoming superhero films by the Dark Knight yardstick, the most promising of the bunch (apart from the hypothetical third Bat-Nolan outing) is Super-Max.

Terminator Salvation:

UGO has a roundup of Terminator Salvation spoilers, most of which we've already touched on at some point. A few details that jump out at me: T4 will be about the development of the Model 101 Terminator, which looks like Arnie. The T-600s, the ancestors of Arnie's T-800 model, are like Soviet tanks. And it's rumored there will be some Terminators with human brains inside them. [UGO]

Death Race:

Why does Joan Allen's evil prison warden organize a "Death Race" as a spectator sport? Because prisons have all become privately owned corporations, and they're all geared to make money. She's a sort of high-powered CEO type. [Sci Fi Wire]

Super Max:

The movie about superhero Green Arrow inside a supervillain prison features a prison building that's almost a character in its own right, says writer Justin Marks. As you'd expect, the prison has all sorts of special features to contain the super-powered baddies locked up there, such as a cell that can neutralize Icicle's freezing powers. "So to escape from Super Max they have got to go through the most elaborate heist we've ever seen, involving superpowers. Because the prison itself kind of has superpowers!" says Marks. Also, Green Arrow's squeeze Black Canary isn't in the film at this point, but Marks hopes she'll be written in. [MTV via Comic Book Resources]

Game:

So not only does a teenager control Gerard Butler in Game, but the teen doesn't realize that Butler is a real person, a death-row prisoner who's forced to compete in deadly sports. The teen thinks Butler is just a sim character. But somehow, Butler still manages to use his incredible fighting skills to escape the Slayers game and bring down its creator, Ken Castle. [CinemaBlend]

Lost:

Lost season five has already started filming... and the show has been needing Spanish-speaking extras. [Spoilers Lost]

Heroes:

Adam aka Takezo Kensei gets dug up in episode four of the new Heroes season, and he's pissed. Ando, Hiro and the Haitian have one scene together early on in the season that will have you in a fit of giggles. (Really.) And as we've mentioned, William Katt plays a reporter who harrasses Ali Larter's character about her past as a webcam girl, which she's not aware of. [E! Online]

BuddyTV visited the Heroes set during the filming of episode six, and found Ali Larter in a car with Adrian Pasdar. Hiro is shining his sword in a magic shop for some reason, and he makes an Anakin Skywalker reference. Hiro stabs someone in the fifth episode of the season, and it's "not who you'd think." Also, Adrian Pasdar (Nathan) says it's not just about choosing between good and evil, but also between mom and dad. [BuddyTV]

And here's a preview video, that contains revelations such as "this season will be slam-packed with excitement." [Heroes The Series]

Knight Rider:

Just because I know you guys love it when we post Knight Rider stuff, here's another new video, which shows a way better look at KITT's Turbo Boost. [Knight Rider Online]

Chuck:

And speaking of upcoming NBC shows about dweebs who interface with technology, here's another Chuck promo. [Spoiler TV]

Also, apparently the mysterious guy in the Fed-Ex uniform has two targets: Chuck and Sarah. [TV Guide]

And in the Awesomes' wedding episode, Father Awesome offers to walk Ellie down the aisle because her own father isn't around, but this just freaks her out. [E! Online]

Battlestar Galactica:

Was it clear to you from watching BSG's midseason finale that the supposed Earth the fleet found had been destroyed in a nuclear holocaust? Well, apparently that was what had happened. Also, there is still some doubt as to whether it's really Earth, despite everything we've been told. [TV Guide]

Eureka:

So S.A.R.A.H., the smart house on Eureka, has her own Twitter feed. And today, she happened to mention that someone on the show is pregnant. Pressed for details, she clammed up. [Gin200168]

The movie's writer, Justin Marks, was more than happy to share the names of some of the bad guys that will be appearing in the movie that currently calls itself Green Arrow: Escape From Super Max, and they'll not only include the Riddler, but also Green Lantern villain The Icicle, Superman's Lex Luthor and even an in-name-only cameo from the Joker, amongst many others. And the point of bringing all these villains together? To create a movie universe for DC's characters just like Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk have done for Marvel:

What we wanted to do, and I think we'll continue to do as the studio continues to push the movie forward, is to be able to [put Queen] in the center of a much bigger universe... In the same way that Marvel is starting to do, when you're in the [filmed] DC Universe [where] this world and this world and this world — they all exist in an interrelated web.

Does this mean that we may see a crossover between the Green Lantern movie and Super Max? That a sequel to The Dark Knight might include cameos from Brandon Routh's Man of Steel? Time - and the potential tanking of future Marvel movies like Thor and Captain America, which might scare off Warners from this plan - will tell.

Green Arrow to "Escape from Super Max" [MTV Movies]

Latino Review was first to get an insider's look at the script. In Super Max, Green Arrow gets framed for murder, stripped of his super identity and imprisoned as just plain Oliver Queen, in the Super Max Penitentiary For Metahumans. He will be incarcerated with many of the hardened criminals that he helped put behind bars.

So what is the prison like? Latino Review got a quick look at the first part of the script and an report that Super Max is constantly changing its size and shape. Apparently it changes every night to disorient the prisoners. All of the prisoners are separated into groups: mortals, metas and geniuses. There is another group of criminals that are in permanent isolation.

Latino Review also spills that the prison is filled with tons of classic DC Comics villains, including the Joker, the Riddler, Lex Luthor, Blockbuster, Shock Trauma, Gemini, Icicle, Split, Djinn, Tattooed Man, Multiplex, Cascade, Merlyn, Floronic Man, Count Vertigo, Calculator, Iron Cross, Heatmonger, Pied Piper, and Backlash.

Queen has to work with some of these villains to escape from the prison so he can prove his innocence. Rumor has it Matt Damon is in talks take the star role as Oliver Queen. [Latino Review]