Development Erik Matti signed to direct a new
Darna film in 2014, with
Star Cinema and Matti's
Reality Entertainment co-producing the project. Matti stated that the film is aimed "to revive not just the people who Darna but also with the people who will know Darna for the first time." Producing a unique storyline posed a challenge to the director, as he did not want to be accused of copying from other big superhero movies such as those produced by
Marvel Studios. Matti envisioned the film, to be titled
Darna, as a
coming-of-age story that is serious in
tone (similar to that of
The Dark Knight Trilogy) but with
gore aplenty.
Angel Locsin, who played Darna in the
2005 TV series, agreed to reprise her role when approached by Matti. Locsin was forced out of the project following a back injury in October 2015, however, much to the consternation of Matti. A
teaser trailer for
Darna was shown during the
2015 Metro Manila Film Festival, whose visual effects were provided by Mothership VFX, the same company that worked on some of Matti's earlier films. On October 4, 2018, however,
ABS-CBN released a press statement announcing that Matti had parted ways with the network as well as Star Cinema "due to
creative differences", and that the studio was closing in on a new director. On October 5, 2018,
Jerrold Tarog came on board to replace Matti. In December 2018, Tarog revealed that he had begun working on a new script and costume for the film, the latter he said would be "more practical". Tarog has said he would retain Matti's vision of making the film a coming-of-age story while also creating a more nuanced
origin story that deviates from the previous
Darna films and their source comic, which he felt "rushes Darna's origins". He also added that his version will eschew the "
campy" portrayal of most Filipino superheroes in favor of telling a nuanced and introspective story where the actions of the superhero have consequences in the real world. With the postponed production of the film, ABS-CBN announced on December 4, 2020, that it will develop a television series titled ''Mars Ravelo's Darna'' slated to air in 2022 and starring Jane de Leon. It is said that the film will push through once the series is finished.
Casting While
Darna was still in development as a film, several actresses had auditioned to replace Locsin when she backed out in 2015, including
Liza Soberano,
KC Concepcion,
Jessy Mendiola,
Nadine Lustre,
Sarah Lahbati, and
Sarah Geronimo. Soberano replaced Locsin by May 2017. On July 17, 2019,
Jane De Leon was unanimously chosen from a pool of over 300 actresses who auditioned. On February 6, 2020, Leo Dominguez,
Paulo Avelino's manager, confirmed that Avelino has been cast in the film. Tarog later confirmed Avelino's casting during a fundraiser. Even as the film was reconceived as a television series, De Leon was kept on board to portray the title character for the series. On August 12, 2021,
Iza Calzado was cast to portray the first Darna and Narda's mother. On October 5, 2021,
Kiko Estrada, Richard Quan,
Simon Ibarra, Levi Ignacio, Joj Agpangan, Mark Manicad,
Young JV,
LA Santos, Yogo Singh, Zeppi Borromeo, Marvin Yap, Tart Carlos, and Gerald Acao were announced as cast additions including
Joshua Garcia as the male lead and
Zaijian Jaranilla as Ding. On November 19, 2021,
Janella Salvador was formally introduced as the one who will play the titular heroine's nemesis, Valentina. On February 17, 2022, behind the scenes photos revealed
Paolo Gumabao has joined the cast of Darna. On March 1, 2022, Gumabao was confirmed to have taken over Kiko Estrada's role as Noah Vallesteros.
Filming Principal photography for the film began on January 19, 2020, shot at
ABS-CBN Soundstage in
San Jose del Monte,
Bulacan. However, on August 21, 2020, ABS-CBN officially postponed production on the film due to the
COVID-19 pandemic, a week after the network announced that it had "scrapped" the project "because of the film's big budget () and the coronavirus pandemic." On December 4, 2020, during the contract signing of
Star Magic artists, it was announced that the
Darna film project will become a TV series in 2021. On December 21, 2020, during the teaser for
Darna in the "Together as One in 2021" video, De Leon said that filming will start in January 2021, but due to De Leon guesting on the series ''
FPJ's Ang Probinsyano, filming for the series was postponed. On February 5, 2021, during a press conference, De Leon stated that the new Darna'' project will be very modern and her Darna character will be very "
millennial". On July 28, 2021, ABS-CBN announced that the series will start filming in early September 2021 but the schedule was changed to November to give more training time for De Leon, meanwhile De Leon is filming her remaining episodes on her guest role in
Ang Probinsyano. On October 4, 2021, ABS-CBN announced that
Chito S. Roño will direct the first two weeks of the series. Avel Sunpongco will act as co-director and Keiko Aquino as head writer. Roño envisions the series to be less soapy and more gritty and real. Principal photography for the series officially commenced on November 15, 2021, at the ABS-CBN Soundstage.
Marketing On December 21, 2020, a teaser was shown in the "Together as One in 2021" video. On May 16, 2022, a new 45-second teaser which has the same clips plus additional scenes that were not in the last teaser was released on social media. On July 7, 2022, the official trailer has been released. On June 13, 2022, a tease image went viral after ABS-CBN's social media pages temporarily changed their profile and cover photos to a different logo which resembles Darna's headdress which indicates that it is nearing its premiere. The tease image asks "Nasaan si Darna?" ("Where is Darna?") which made it viral. It gathered a lot of reaction as well as people commenting their excitement for the show, some having witty responses, while others doing photos with their Darna costumes. On June 16, 2022, a Darna mural was unveiled to showcase empowerment, heroism, and hope dedicated to the frontliners and everyday heroes. The mural also represents a hero on every person bringing hope and positivity to uncertainties and realities. On July 6, 2022, an official teaser poster was released.
Music On July 28, 2022,
BGYO were announced to sing the original soundtrack of the series, entitled "Patuloy Lang Ang Lipad". It was officially released on August 14, 2022. On September 6, 2022, producer Julie Anne R. Benitez confirmed that there are three more songs to be released for the soundtrack. ==International broadcast==