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Just how funny can we expect 'Justice League' to be?

Critics noted the dark tone of this year's 'Batman v Superman,' yet the upcoming Warner Bros. superhero film, 'Justice League,' may be trying for a lighter tone.

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Clay Enos/Warner Bros. Entertainment/AP
'Batman v Superman' stars Gal Gadot (l.) and Ben Affleck (r.).

Will the new movie about Superman, Batman, the Flash, and other DC Comics heroes be full of laughs?

“Justice League” is currently in production and is set to be released in November 2017. So far, early footage seems to stress the film's humor, a marked contrast to the film “Batman v Superman,” which was released earlier this year and noted for its dark, gloomy tone. 

Like “Batman v Superman,” “Justice League” will star Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, and Ezra Miller. 

A segment of “Justice” that was shown to reporters seemed to emphasize comedy, with the Flash cutting short a portentous monologue from Batman. At first, the Flash attempts to hide his super-identity from Batman, saying that he has his suit because he enjoys “very competitive ice-dancing,” according to IndieWire writer Sam Adams. 

Meanwhile, Mashable writer Sam Haysom noted that “one recurring theme throughout the set visit was the tone of 'Justice League,' and how the film will be a very different beast to the previous two movies. There was talk of putting more fun in the film.” 

A mix of fun and action was recently restored to another massive franchise, according to some critics. The prequel “Star Wars” trilogy was full of dark events, with Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) becoming the villainous Darth Vader. But in reviewing the newest “Star Wars” film, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” Monitor film critic Peter Rainer wrote that the new film “has much of the spirit and inventiveness of the original two installments, ‘A New Home’ and ‘Empire’ … If the sequels to ‘The Force Awakens’ are as good as this film, that will probably be because they follow the same formula: heavy on the human side, more comedy.” 

Does this mean that perhaps audiences want less doom and gloom? The Marvel movies, arguably the most dominant franchise in Hollywood right now – and likely the chief rival to Warner Bros. in the comic book movie game – are known for their characters' wisecracks.

And “Deadpool,” another superhero movie released by Warner Bros. and one of this year’s biggest hits so far, was full of jokes and riffs on the superhero genre.

Perhaps levity will be the new byword for the biggest franchises in Hollywood.

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