Last summer Warner Bros. temporarily banished their DC Comics superhero film project Justice League Dark to the bleakest depths of Development Hell following the departure of Hellboy and Pacific Rim director Guillermo del Toro. The project would have brought together the DC Universe’s strangest supernatural heroes including Swamp Thing, the Demon, Zatanna, and John Constantine, but was not intended to be part of the studio’s plans for an extended cinematic universe based on other popular DC characters.

Without del Toro at the helm, the feature looked as good as finished. But although Justice League Dark might never exist as a live-action film, it looks as if we will soon be seeing it in animated form.

Over at the website for the British Board of Film Classification, it has been revealed that a preview for a direct-to-video Justice League Dark animated movie will be included on the upcoming home video release of Batman: The Killing Joke, the next feature-length animated release from DC Entertainment and Warner Home Video. It’s common practice for a DC and Warner Bros. direct to video animated release to carry a teaser for their next offering, but the identity of their Killing Joke follow-up has been kept under wraps until now.

Alternately titled Dark Universe, Justice League Dark was long rumored to be del Toro’s next directorial effort following his Gothic drama Crimson Peak. It is not yet known if he has any creative involvement with the animated feature or if any of the materials developed during his time on the project – script, storyboards, etc. – will be used in its making. More information will be revealed when an official announcement is made.

Batman: The Killing Joke will be available on standard and deluxe edition Blu-ray and DVD beginning August 2, 2016.

[Source: British Board of Film Classification via ComicBook.com]