Comic-Con 2023: DC Announces Crisis on Infinite Earths and Watchmen Animated Movies

DC has revealed its next two direct-to-video-animated movies, and they’re based on two of the most iconic graphic novels of the 1980s. Both Crisis on Infinite Earths and Watchmen will receive animated adaptations in 2024.

The news came following a screening of Justice League: Warwrld at San Diego Comic-Con. DC didn’t reveal much in the way of details for either project, though we do know the Watchmen movie will be rated R. They also released a teaser for Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths featuring the film’s logo:

Crisis on Infinite Earths revolves around a cosmic destroyer known as the Anti-Monitor seeking to eliminate all universes in the DC multiverse, forcing the heroes of numerous worlds to band together to save what remains.

This will mark the second time Crisis has been adapted, following 2019’s live-action Arrowverse crossover. The animated film may be a follow-up to Warworld, making it the next installment in DC’s ongoing “Tomorrowverse” line of animated films. If this Crisis is anything like the Arrowverse version, we’d expect cameos from a number of past and present DC animated series like Justice League Unlimited, Teen Titans, Young Justice and The Batman.

As for Watchmen, the film will be an adaptation of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ acclaimed graphic novel, which has already inspried a live-action adaptation from Zack Snyder and an HBO sequel series. It’s also worth remembering that the Snyder film was accompanied by an animated short film adapting the “Tales of the Black Freighter” segments from the comic, so there’s already a precedent for Watchmen getting the animated treatment. And let’s not forget Watchmen Babies: V for Vacation.

Are you excited for DC’s next two animated movies? What animated heroes do you hope to see in Crisis? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

IGN’s Hayden Mears gave Justice League Warworld a 6, writing: “Justice League: Warworld boasts the stakes, tension, and scale of an event film but skimps on the emotional payoffs that would’ve made it a more satisfying experience. It isn’t a bad film, but it is a noticeable step down from the quality we’ve come to expect from DC’s animated stories.”

Be sure to check out our breakdown of everything announced at Comic-Con so far.

Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.