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Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths
Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths is an original direct-to-video animated superhero film released on February 23, 2010. It is based on the abandoned direct-to-video feature Justice League: Worlds Collide, which was intended as a bridge between the then-concluding Justice League animated television series and its then forthcoming sequel series Justice League Unlimited. Crisis on Two Earths was reworked from the Worlds Collide script to remove references to the TV series' continuity. The film is directed by Lauren Montgomery & Sam Liu and written by Dwayne McDuffie.
The premise of Crisis on Two Earths is borrowed from the 1964 Gardner Fox-scripted Justice League of America #29–30 entitled "Crisis on Earth-Three!" and the 2000 Grant Morrison JLA: Earth 2 graphic novel, with a heroic Lex Luthor from an alternate universe coming to the Justice League's universe for help against the Crime Syndicate. The film is the seventh of the DC Universe Animated Original Movies released by Warner Premiere and Warner Bros. Animation. The two-disc special edition also includes an animated short featuring the Spectre.
On August 11, 2015, Warner Home Video re-released the film in a combo pack which includes a DVD and Blu-Ray copy, a digital copy, and the graphic novel on which it was based.
In an alternate universe where the roles of the heroes and villains are reversed from their counterparts in the mainstream DC Universe, heroic analogues of Lex Luthor and Joker (called the Jester) are stealing a device called the "Quantum Trigger" from the headquarters of the Crime Syndicate (villainous analogue of the Justice League). When an alarm is tripped, the Jester sacrifices himself to allow Luthor to escape and kills J'edd J'arkus and Angelique (alternate versions of Martian Manhunter and Hawkgirl respectively) with a bomb. Luthor is nearly captured by the remaining Syndicate members (Ultraman, Superwoman, Power Ring, Johnny Quick and Owlman) but escapes to the Earth of the Justice League by activating a device that enables interdimensional travels.
Luthor locates a police station, but is mistaken for the evil Luthor and ends up strip-searched. The Justice League is summoned and Superman's x-ray vision confirms Luthor's reversed organs indicate that he is from a parallel Earth and that their Luthor is still incarcerated at Stryker's Island. The Justice League take the alternate Luthor to the Watchtower, where they learn of the Syndicate threat. As the Justice League debates the matter, Luthor hides the Quantum Trigger on the satellite. With the exception of Batman, the rest of the Justice League (Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Flash and Martian Manhunter) travel to Luthor's Earth.
In 2004, Bruce Timm revealed that a DCAU direct-to-video Justice League feature was in development to connect Justice League and Justice League Unlimited. The film was titled as Justice League: Worlds Collide. One of the objectives of the film was to explain how Wonder Woman acquired her Invisible-Jet. However, the project was finally scrapped by Warner Bros. In 2008, however, Timm stated that Justice League: Worlds Collide could be released someday in the future.
Finally, Worlds Collide was rewritten by Dwayne McDuffie for DC Universe Animated Original Movies as Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths, but removing all connections with the animated series. Also, John Stewart's Green Lantern was changed with Hal Jordan's Green Lantern.
Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths received positive reviews. The World's Finest stated "... the film ranks up there as one of Dwayne McDuffie's better works in the animated DC world and even though it's reminiscent of stories we've seen in animation before, the brilliant work done by Moi, the directing by Sam Liu and Lauren Montgomery, and story make it more than worth watching again."
It earned $9.2 million from domestic home video sales.
The good performance of the Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths release led Warner Premiere and DC Universe to release the sequel Justice League: Doom. The film is loosely based on "JLA: Tower of Babel", a 2000 comic book storyline by writer Mark Waid. The film's script was adapted by writer Dwayne McDuffie, and it is directed by Lauren Montgomery. The film is dedicated to the memory of McDuffie, who died from complications following open heart surgery shortly after writing the film. IGN gave the film a 7 out of 10, calling it "An immensely enjoyable thrill ride, but also an occasionally frustrating and short adaptation". It earned $6,543,809 from domestic home video sales.
