Warner Bros. Discovery is praying that James Gunn succeeds in making the DC universe a true contender to the MCU. Right now things are looking good for the DCU, with hotly anticipated reworkings of Superman, Supergirl, Batman, The Authority, and Swamp Thing on the way.

But the DCU will make its debut for viewers with a much more odd and unique proposition. This is Creature Commandos, a MAX animated series with Gunn as showrunner. The first trailer recently dropped, so check out your first peek at a whole new universe:

As you might have gathered, the Creature Commandos are effectively a Suicide Squad spinoff. The show continues from the events of Peacemaker season one (which I guess makes that show DCU too?), with Amanda Waller (once again Viola Davis) forbidden from endangering human lives in missions. Her solution? Sign up a bunch of monsters instead!

At least judging by this trailer, Gunn’s DCU isn’t a clean break with the DCEU and the Snyderverse. After all, if Creature Commandos is a sequel to Peacemaker, which was a spinoff of The Suicide Squad, which was itself a sequel to Suicide Squad, then there’s clear connective tissue between every prior DCEU movie and this.

Possibly I am thinking about this too hard. Anyhow, a bizarre team of superpowered misfits is home turf for Gunn. The voice cast boasts Frank Grillo as Rick Flag Sr., Indira Varma as the Bride of Frankenstein, Alan Tudyk as Doctor Phosphorus, David Harbour as Eric Frankenstein and (of course) Sean Gunn reprising his role as Weasel and also playing G.I. Robot.

The 7 episode first season will debut on Max in December 2024. Whether it’ll be a self-contained story or set up story strands for the many upcoming movies remains to be seen. Early in production Gunn teased that it would be an “aperitif” for Superman, though we’re not sure if that means plot connections in any way.

Creature Commandos is also notable for demonstrating Gunn’s vision that DCU characters can transition consistently between different mediums, so if any of these characters show up in live-action this is the version we’ll see. In addition, the voice cast was picked so they could transition to live-action if necessary.

Whatever the case it’s nice to see one of DC’s most bizarre superhero teams leaping the page, even if I’m annoyed that the Bride of Frankenstein doesn’t have four arms like in the comics.

In the most true-to-form fashion possible, the brain trust behind The Boys has chosen to announce its brand-new spinoff on the same day as the biggest Marvel Studios release of the year. Indeed, Vought Rising is officially in the works over at Prime Video ⏤ never mind all that Deadpool & Wolverine stuff.

Per Deadline, the prequel will star and be executive produced by Jensen Ackles and Aya Cash, who will reprise their roles as Soldier Boy and Stormfront in a murder mystery-esque story set in the 1950s before Vought became the corporate giant that it is today. It will join The Boys Presents: Diabolical, Gen V, and the upcoming The Boys: Mexico as part of Prime Video’s ever-expanding superhero franchise, and honestly? It picked a pretty bad time to rear its V-shaped head.

Make no mistake, I hope just as much as anyone that Vought Rising establishes itself as great television, but The Boys really needs to start re-evaluating what sort of space it’s occupying in the superhero media zeitgeist. Incidentally, the current zeitgeist is one that The Boys played a significant role in establishing; namely, the idea that superheroes are best used as cynical lampoon fodder and only have merit thanks to their commercial viability.

Even the Marvel Cinematic Universe has adopted its own version of this commercialized cynicism. The She-Hulk: Attorney at Law finale committed the great sin of believing that, by making fun of its own franchise’s formulaic failings, it absolved itself of having to do better. Since then, entries like Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and The Marvels have shown a shameless commitment to being nothing more than products in service to a brand, and even Deadpool & Wolverine, the franchise’s supposed new darling, chose to overstuff itself with sugary gimmicks and call it a day. This is disrespectful to both the film itself and the audiences who watch it. Why settle for a disjointed mess of cameos and references when you could have a collection of cameos and references that are held together by mature storytelling? The Spider-Verse films have done, and are doing, a fantastic job of that, so why are we okay with this direly uncreative standard that the world’s biggest superhero franchise is apparently settling for?

Vought Rising, then, with its downright despicable pair of leads, could very well end up being more of this superhero-sneering trend that, frankly, just feels too easy at this point. It is, for all intents and purposes, trendy to hate and make fun of and ridicule the idea of superhero media. Unless, of course, you’re James Gunn.

While we won’t know anything for sure until next year, the approach that Gunn seems to be taking with Superman — and, indeed, his incoming DC Universe as a whole — is telegraphing some immaculate vibes; vibes that are rooted in a genuine love for superheroes and what they were designed to represent in the first place. Moreover, the DC gaffer has already expressed a commitment to storytelling, and Gunn’s history in the superhero genre, from the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy to his DC work prior to his acclimation of co-chair, suggests an honesty to this new direction that seems all but ready to win people over in a big way.

The DCU represents a way forward for superhero media that aims to nurture the audience’s relationship to this genre rather than exploit or laugh at it. And while, again, I’m crossing all my fingers for Vought Rising to be a great show, it’s also coming at what might be the tail-end of this culture of superhero pessimism. And given that Vought Rising‘s parent series was more or less the ringleader of that culture, it just might be cashing in a bit late here.

And with any luck, that will absolutely be the case.

Oh hello, Henry Cavill-loving DC fans, haven’t heard from you in a while. I’m guessing you’ve been in hiding licking your wounds ever since the awfulness that was Argylle came out.

Yes, once and future daddy Henry Cavill is old news in the superhero world seeing as David Corenswet is currently shooting the upcoming Superman reboot from director James Gunn. As filming continues in Cleveland (mostly without hitch — excepting a recent motorcycle chase mishap), the former Guardians of the Galaxy director has deigned to share with us our first official look at the Man of Steel’s revamped new logo for this brave, new era for the DC universe.

And, because the DC fandom is united at all times and never argues among itself, the people of X are uniformly loving it… Yeah, right, and pigs can fly, the sky is green, and The Flash was a good movie.

Unsurprisingly, SnyderVerse loyalists have been awoken from their slumber and have crawled out of their fortresses of solitude to attack the new Superman logo, voicing their opinion that it is not a patch on the “Kryptonian symbol for hope” insignia — aka the red-colored Shrek logo — sported by Cavill’s Kal-El.

You’d think the more angular, alien shield design would appeal to those who liked the more grounded interpretation of Supes from Man of Steel, but nope, apparently not.

I mean, the man called it.

Others, meanwhile, were much more open to change and could see Gunn’s vision. Don’t forget this is clearly inspired by the S shield design from the acclaimed comic, Kingdom Come.

“It screams HOPE,” reads another positive comment — which is no doubt exactly what Gunn was going for.

The SnyderVerse fandom’s loyalty to Cavill does them credit, and we all know that he was reprehensibly treated by Warner Bros. across his tenure in the tights and cape, but the immediate hatred for this logo seems like a knee-jerk reaction from those predisposed to dislike Gunn’s take on the character. In any case, we can’t even blame the director for this iteration of the logo, as it’s not the first time it’s appeared on screen. The Kingdom Come-shaped shield paired with a yellow background instead of black was previously worn by Brandon Routh during his Superman return in The CW’s “Crisis on Infinite Earths.”

As someone who’s a fan of 99% of on-screen Supermen (why did you have to go and spoil it, Dean Cain?), I too wish Cavill got a better crack at the whip, but that doesn’t mean we still shouldn’t give Corenswet and Gunn’s interpretation of the Last Son of Krypton a fair trial before we go all Lex Luthor on them.

Maybe Superman can turn the naysayers around when it eventually flies into theaters in exactly one year’s time, on July 11, 2025.

Throughout his career, James Gunn has built himself something of a reputation when it comes to cooking hard in the superhero genre. Indeed, ever since he was given the keys to Marvel‘s Guardians of the Galaxy back in 2014, the filmmaker has been putting out hit after hit involving the Suicide Squad, Peacemaker, and now the entire DC library, per his newest position as one of the co-chairs of DC Studios.

Superman is his current muse, and things seem to be chugging along brilliantly so far, judging by recent set photos that have shown off the costumes of Supes and company. One X user, however, has extrapolated a theory from these photos; a theory that, if accurate, means Gunn is cooking far harder than we ever could have thought.

In the tweet, @LanternUpdates suggests that the contrast between Superman’s costume and those of Mister Terrific, Green Lantern, and Hawkgirl (the latter three have far more militaristic costumes compared to the much lighter one worn by the Last Son of Krypton) is indicative of the role that Maxwell Lord will play in the story. Specifically, how he’s corporatizing superheroes and designing their appearances to fit that vision; a sort of spiritual ball and chain that Superman, with his limitless humanity, will inspire everyone to break free from.

If this theory turns out to be true, then Superman could represent an unprecedented paradigm shift in the superhero genre. There’s a certain bleakness that many have come to expect from superhero media at this point; if it’s not doomsaying over the Marvel monopoly and its weakened storytelling ability, then it’s enjoying The Boys for more venomous reasons than one probably should. That’s not to say that The Boys and the MCU are inherently bad media, of course, but as they are in this moment in time, they’re both absolutely products of pessimistic sentiment on superheroes. The Boys drives the pessimism, while the MCU keeps recklessly doubling down on its creative shortcomings, thereby inviting said sentiment.

James Gunn’s Superman, however, might now be responding to this sentiment both textually and subtextually. The genuine, joyous enthusiasm that Superman represents and exemplifies is first apparent in his suit, and second in his character; an ideal for people to strive towards, if you will.

By the looks of it, these people could be Green Lantern, Hawkgirl, and Mister Terrific, but what if that also includes Kevin Feige, whose Marvel machine is quite insincerely putting out stories that have little interest in being anything other than products? What if it also includes everyone who insisted on making Superman evil or edgy over the years, because superheroes apparently had to be gritty and dystopian to be interesting?

Indeed, Superman might end up being a revolutionary comic book movie, and ironically enough, it might do so by being as faithful to the source material as possible.

What’s that? Is it a bird, is it a plane? No, those blurry photos and photos snapped from a distance are our first look at the upcoming Superman reboot! The first chapter in James Gunn’s rebooted DCU has taken to the streets of Cleveland, which is doubling up as Clark Kent’s home city of Metropolis, meaning all kinds of glimpses at the cast in action have flown online.

Most notably, that includes David Corenswet in full costume as the Man of Steel himself. While that strangely composed reveal photo didn’t exactly win over everyone, these leaked pics do a much better job of showing off his new Superman suit. For starters, it’s clear Corenswet’s Kal-El will be a lot more colorful than Henry Cavill’s Kryptonian ever was.

That’s only the beginning of the differences between Gunn’s portrayal of Superman and Snyder’s, however. Thanks to the open-air shoot, fans are starting to deduce the meaning behind the scenes being filmed. One small moment that’s caught folks’ attention is a sequence which appears to depict Superman looking up at a tree with his hands on his hips.

As X user Craig pondered aloud, “Is James Gunn actually going to give us a “Cat stuck in a tree” Superman moment?”

Saving a cat from a tree is famously one of the most archetypal superhero activities, the go-to move of your classic go-gooding caped crusader. That kind of image is one that the DCEU’s Zack Snyder always seemed dead-set on deconstructing and burying forever. His Superman always appeared more likely to be subpoenaed by the government or stand glowering in the rain than rescue people from a crashing train or a burning building.

At this point, however, it’s probably fair to say the superhero fandom’s tastes may have swung back around to a hunger to see a more traditional do-gooding Supes on our screens, after so many years of darker reimaginings of the character. Just look at the popularity of Adult Swim’s wholesome My Adventures of Superman or the success of The CW’s family-oriented Superman & Lois. The people have spoken and they are ready for Superman to save a cat from a tree once again.

If it’s Dwayne Johnson’s Krypto the Super-Dog who’s stuck in a tree, though, he can stay there.

James Gunn and his Superman crew are currently filming the grand opening chapter of the DCU, with the first set photos leaking to the public. These reveal a plethora of iconic characters reborn, including Lois Lane and Perry White.

As played by Rachel Brosnahan and Wendell Pierce, respectively, Lois and Perry’s roles in the film promise a major role for the staff of the Daily Planet, after the old-school DCEU largely sidelined the newspaper’s role in Clark Kent’s life. And with that, we can no doubt expect a return of the oldest, and dumbest, trope in all superhero fiction: the fact that Clark’s co-workers, despite being renowned journalists, can’t tell that he’s Superman. I guess the darkest place in under the candlestick, huh?

In the set photos, both Lois and White are leaving some kind of spaceship. The photos are too vague to tell anything story-related from them, though, a few fans have already made their theories. They believe it could be Mister Terrific’s ship, another superhero, played by Edi Gathegi, who’s confirmed to appear in Superman.

There’s nothing out of ordinary about Lois and White, who look… exactly as you would imagine Metropolis journalists to look like (unless you work from home, I guess). Other photos showcase Brosnahan’s Lois Lane and David Corenswet’s Superman interacting with each other, which, given their romantic relationship, is also all but surprising. Kal-El’s costume looks spot on, though, and Lois is finally wearing her iconic purple-colored blouse, which is her favorite color in the comics. Hell yeah, comic book accuracy!

While both Perry and Lane don’t know Kent’s true identity at first, we expect them both to learn about it throughout the movie. However, you might think bringing a former The Wire detective Wendell Price would bring some investigative flavor to his character. Maybe he’s done with it, or just leaving detective work to another masked vigilante set to appear in the rebooted DC Universe.

Superman is set to fly into the cinemas on July 11, 2025.

While the MCU is arguably over the hill, the newborn DCU stands on the precipice of greatness. With James Gunn at the helm, all the signs are pointing to the Guardians of the Galaxy helmer using the lessons he learned from his time at Marvel Studios to make DC a true rival to Kevin Feige in terms of consistent quality content.

Unfortunately, with the long-awaited first-look unveiling of David Corenswet as the Man of Steel in 2025’s Superman, Gunn has also unwittingly admitted that he’s taken on one of the worst lessons he could’ve learned from Marvel Studios too. The first-look pic shows off the new Last Son of Krypton in his revamped super-suit, but the reaction to the costume has proven to be as muted as its color scheme. And for good reason.

Superman first-look pic proves Gunn has taken the MCU-ification of superhero costumes to heart

On paper, there’s so much to love about the Corenswet Superman suit (see top of page). The combination of the Kingdom Come S shield and the classic red trunks, for instance, shows a brilliant blend of tradition and subversion. What is really leaving fans disappointed, however, is the over-familiarity of the suit’s material and color palette. Not only does it look similar to Henry Cavill’s SnyderVerse uniform, it’s very much in keeping with every hero suit in the MCU as well.

The MCU has done a lot of things right by the superhero genre, but an unfortunate side-effect of its immense popularity is that it seems all superhero suits now have to be grounded and/or muted in order to function. There’s nary a costumed MCU character who goes by without their comic book outfit being toned down or militarized in some way shape or form. Even Hugh Jackman’s outfit in Deadpool & Wolverine — one of the best MCU suits, for sure — has been altered to appear more like armor.

For the DCU, Gunn had the chance to completely rewrite the rulebook and stand out from the crowd. Could a more old-school fabric suit like the one worn by Christopher Reeves’ Supes work nowadays? Personally, I think it could’ve done, given the effectiveness of Brandon Routh’s costumes in both Superman Returns and Crisis on Infinite Earths. Seeing such a suit revealed in a first-look image would’ve promised the world that 2025’s reboot would be truly a new start for the superhero movie medium. Instead, it warns that Superman is going to look like every other entry in the genre right now.

There’s still time to fix this, of course, in future films in the DCU, but it certainly looks like Gunn has been too keen a student of Kevin Feige’s to switch things up now. But, hey, an MCU Superman’s better than no Superman.

Yesterday marks one year since Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 released to cinemas, one year since we saw the swansong of the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s most beloved found family, and one year since comic book movie juggernaut James Gunn bid Marvel farewell for the more fantastical pastures of DC.

To the surprise of no one, however, Gunn’s Guardians memories remain as fresh in his head as they were when he first started making them back in 2012, when he was hired as director and co-writer of 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy. And perhaps it’s just because he’s a veteran tweeter at this point, but the heartfelt sentiment in his recent tribute post comes out in full here.

In the tweet above, Gunn was all too happy to reflect on the “wonderful journey with wonderful people” the he took during his time as the Guardians gaffer, referring to his fellow creatives on the films’ sets as “family,” people who had each others’ backs, and as people that he well and truly loves and misses.

Fans happily joined in on the heartfelt fanfare, recounting their own memories with Star-Lord, Rocket Raccoon, and the rest of Gunn’s colorful cast of characters who remain the centerpieces of some of the MCU’s finest work to this day.

Between gearing up the future of DC’s next (and hopefully best) foray into live-action entertainment, getting the ball rolling on 2025’s Superman movie, and being subject to the bad mojo of the less-savory side of Zack Snyder’s fanbase, Gunn has more than earned a moment of fond, even teary-eyed reflection, and one can only hope that the magic he captures in Superman and beyond isn’t dissimilar to that of the Guardians trilogy.

All three Guardians of the Galaxy movies are streaming on Disney Plus. Superman, meanwhile, is due out in theaters on July 11, 2025.

Superman returns… again! At long last, our first look at David Corenswet as DC’s newest Superman in DC’s new Superman movie, titled Superman, is finally here. And writer/director James Gunn has just two words to say to fans to prepare them for what should be a fresh franchise-defining event next July.

“Get ready,” Gunn summarized, in his caption to the epic promo image. The photo reveals Corenswet in his Supes suit for the first time. Presumably depicting Kal-El in his apartment, the background captures the skyline of Metropolis coming under threat from some kind of dangerous energy beam. What’s the betting that Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor is the one behind that?

David Corenswet’s Superman suit Easter eggs and references

So what does this epic image reveal about Corenswet’s Supes suit? Well, we already knew that the film’s Superman logo would be the angular Kingdom Come version, rather than the traditional S shield, so that’s something we were expecting. The weather-beaten nature of the suit is a surprise, though, as it reminds us that this isn’t an origins story as Clark Kent will already be Superman when the movie begins.

The collar is an interesting addition as well, as this was previously exclusive to the New 52 iteration of the character in the comics and proved to be divisive among DC fans. Something the New 52 also did that was controversial was remove the hero’s traditional red trunks, a decision that then echoed through subsequent on-screen Supes like Henry Cavill and Tyler Hoechlin.

However, this image confirms Gunn will be breaking this trend in Superman. This isn’t something I expected to admit today, but I have closely examined Superman’s crotch, and I can confirm that it is distinctly red (see above image). He’s definitely wearing them trunks.

All in all, this first-look image confirms that Superman will be a perfect blend of the old and the new, of innovation and tradition, which is surely the perfect recipe for any Man of Steel movie. Believe a man can fly all over again come July 11, 2025.

Now that X-Men ‘97 is a major hit, it’d make sense for others to want to capitalize on its success and try to revive other superhero animated shows from the 90s and 2000s, specifically James Gunn, who has the extensive DC catalog at his disposal and the responsibility to make it a success. But he’s absolutely no plan to jump on this train.

Long before its release, X-Men ‘97 was heavily hyped up with merchandise, an epic trailer, endless rumors, and more. Since it hit Disney Plus, fans and critics have only fallen in love with it more, and have given it a near-perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes. Of course, the success of the MCU directs questions at the still-trying-to-find-its-feet DCU.

On X (formerly Twitter), user @iamthelangston asked the powerhouse director and Co-CEO if he’d be willing to give the fans a reboot of Justice League Unlimited because Beau DeMayo gave everyone “the gargantuan hit X-MEN ‘97.” In response, Gunn wrote that X-Men ‘97 “is fun because it’s unique and not desperately trying to follow the trends of everything around it. So I’d rather just keep doing that.” Many other X users backed up Gunn’s response in the replies section, giving him props for wanting to focus on telling great original stories instead of following what’s hot.

The thing that makes X-Men ‘97 great is that it was a totally unexpected serving from Disney. With the countless Marvel movies and shows the studio has released, one would assume that the franchise would follow the same format, and just work on expanding their universe. Instead, they decided to throw a curveball and bring back something that would not only spark nostalgia in Gen X’ers and Millennials but also give younger X-Men fans something fresh and fun (that isn’t tied to the MCU). 

As for James Gunn, if he were to recreate Justice League Unlimited, he likely would be met with scrutiny for it for a variety of reasons, including accusations that he is just copying X-Men ‘97’s success and not genuinely making the show for the nostalgia and love many have for it. While he doesn’t say it, there is also the fact that the animated DC series had a solid run and ended on a perfect note.

Based on more recent moves and comments, it’s obvious that the studio executive truly is focusing on new stories and refuses to be dependent on the old stuff or cater to what everyone else wants. Back in 2022, he was quoted saying that DC would be going through an “unavoidable transitional period” via People. And allegedly, it was he who made the controversial move to cut ties with Henry Cavill, whom fans were expecting to see in another Superman movie, though he denied the same. The same goes for Gal Gadot’s canned return as Wonder Woman.

David Corenswet is now Clark Kent/Superman in a revamped storyline. There’s no news yet about a new Wonder Woman, but when there is one, the person will most likely be introduced to a fresh take on the Amazonian warrior.

Gunn’s assessment of X-Men ‘97 also confirms that Justice League Unlimited won’t be part of his plans for the DCU anytime soon. Now, there is no need to feel all disappointed since he has been busy with other IPs and working on the stories he is passionate about. The newest Superman will be released next July, which many fans are waiting for anxiously. While the director ended his MCU run on a glowing note, it’s the arrival of the man in the red cape that will decide whether his design for the shaky cinematic world of DC will restore stability to its new run.

For the past decade, Warner Bros. Discovery failed to create a cinematic universe that lived up to DC’s beloved comic book characters. That will change with James Gunn and Peter Safran’s new DCU. 

Gunn and Safran were given complete control over DC Studios in 2022 and tasked with creating a decade-long storyline spawning movies, TV shows, and even video games. So far, Gunn and Safran have been keeping the new DCU under an absolute veil of secrecy, and no one can tell what their ambitious storyline will look like. However, we already have an extensive list of movies and TV shows currently in development.

Gunn and Safran revealed that their decade-long storyline will be split into two chapters. The first chapter, aptly named “Gods and Monsters,” comprises five theatrical releases and five TV shows. In addition, DC Studios has confirmed that one more movie and two full seasons will be added to this packed schedule. Here’s every DCU project Gunn and Safran are currently developing.

Creature Commandos

• Release date: Late 2024
• Showrunner: James Gunn

Creature Commandos is based on an obscure DC superteam made entirely of classic monsters. Gunn wrote the script for all seven episodes, and has already proven that he’s the master of using relatively unknown characters to create deeply emotional stories, a feat he managed with both the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy and The Suicide Squad. It’s only fair to assume that he’ll manage to make us also fall in love with the Creature Commandos. 

Although their series will be animated, Gunn and Safran have already decided that whoever voices a DCU character will play the same role in any live-action project reusing the same heroes and villains. Considering that Commandos has a star-studded voice cast, the show will give fans an appetizer of exciting things to come. 

Notable voice talent includes Sean Gunn as G.I. Robot/Weasel, Frank Grillo as Rick Flag Sr., Maria Bakalova as Princess Ilana Rostovic, Alan Tudyk as Dr. Phosphorus, and David Harbour as Eric Frankenstein. Additionally, Steve Agee will appear as John Economos, and Viola Davis will return as Amanda Waller. Since these characters were part of The Suicide Squad, Gunn’s first DC movie will probably be incorporated into the new DCU.

Superman

• Release date: July 11, 2025
• Writer/Director: James Gunn

If Creature Commandos is the new DCU appetizer, Superman is the main dish. Previously known as Superman: Legacy, the next cinematic adaptation of the Man of Steel will set the tone for the whole DCU and potentially show Warner Bros. Discovery that Gunn and Safran can pull off a massive box office haul. Or the movie will flop, and the new DCU might be buried right as it starts. The stakes have rarely been higher for a single cinematic project, so Gunn himself took the task of penning the script and directing the movie.

Instead of a new origin story, Superman takes place years after the Son of Krypton revealed his existence to the world. That explains why the movie will star multiple heroes and villains, including Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardner, Isabela Merced as Hawkgirl, Edi Gathegi as Mister Terrific, Anthony Carrigan as Metamorpho, María Gabriela de Faría as The Engineer, Sean Gunn as Maxwell Lord, and Milly Alcock as Supergirl.

As for the titular character, David Corenswet was chosen as the DCU’s Man of Steel, with Rachel Brosnahan playing Lois Lane. Nicholas Hoult will portray the villainous Lex Luthor.

Peacemaker (Season 2)

• Release date: TBA
• Showrunner: James Gunn

While the first season of Peacemaker was aired before the DCU reboot, Gunn has already written the script for the eight episodes of Season 2. That means Peacemaker will be absorbed into the new DCU, a smart movie from DC Studios. Peacemaker is a direct spinoff of Gunn’s The Suicide Squad, starring John Cena as the titular vigilante. The first season balanced comedy and character growth perfectly, so it would be a shame if the story went to the trashcan after the DCU reboot. 

Since Steve Agee’s John Economos and Viola Davis’ Amanda Waller are coming to Creature Commandos after appearing in The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker, we expect Season 2 of Peacemaker to be more entangled with the general DCU. Furthermore, since the episodes have been drafted, Gunn should tackle Season 2 of Peacemaker as soon as he’s done shooting Superman.

The Authority

• Release date: TBA

In 1992, comic book legend Jim Lee created the WildStorm universe to write superhero stories outside the constraints of Marvel/DC. DC eventually bought the WildStorm universe, using the Multiverse as an excuse to incorporate some characters into their main line of comic books. That’s precisely what happened with The Authority, a superteam getting their own movie in the new DCU.

The members of the Authority believe that the ends justify the means when pursuing world peace, which leads them to take villainous actions against crime, such as killing certain social groups or depositing elected leaders. So, while the Authority thinks of itself as a team of heroes, they are often portrayed as antagonists to the Justice League. The Engineer is one of the core members of the Authority, and she will appear in the Superman movie, played by María Gabriela de Faría. That means even before The Authority hits theaters, Gunn will already use its characters in other stories.

Waller

• Release date: TBA
• Showrunner: Christal Henry & Jeremy Carver

Waller will give Viola Davis her own TV show as the ruthless Amanda Waller, after many years of playing the character in multiple DC projects. The series will follow the titular character after the events of Peacemaker Season 1, when Amanda Waller’s dark deeds were exposed to the whole world.

Waller was initially planned to hit Max before the second season of Peacemaker. However, the series got pushed back due to the writer’s strike of 2023. Now, Waller is expected to premiere after Season 2 of Peacemaker, meaning both stories must be tweaked to become coherent parts of the larger DCU.

The Brave and The Bold

• Release date: TBA
• Director: Andy Muschietti

The Brave and the Bold will introduce a new Batman to the DCU, accompanied by the Damian Wayne iteration of Robin. For those needing a reminder, Damian is the biological son of Bruce Wayne, who was initially trained by the League of Shadows before being rescued and turned into a hero by his father.

The Brave and the Bold will focus on the extended Bat Family and draw inspiration from Grant Morrison’s 2006-2013 run of the Batman comic books. After directing The Flash, Andy Muschietti was chosen to helm The Brave and the Bold. While that might concern fans, since The Flash is horrible, Muschietti deserves the benefit of the doubt. The disastrous result of The Flash was due to many years of development hell and the constant meddling of Warner Bros. Discovery executives. Nevertheless, Muschietti proved to be a good soldier and took the blame for the movie. So, he deserves the chance to show what he can do when granted creative freedom.

Lanterns

• Release date: TBA

According to Gunn and Safran, Lanterns will work as a detective story in which the Green Lanterns investigate a cosmic mystery on Earth. Instead of focusing on a specific iteration of the hero, the TV show will feature Hal Jordan and John Stweart. Hal Jordan is the original comic book Green Lantern, while John Stweart became famous thanks to the fan-favorite animated Justice League animated series. Since Nathan Fillion will appear as Guy Gardner in Superman, he will likely reprise this Green Lantern in the series, too.

While Gunn and Safran have been playing coy about the new DCU, they revealed Lanterns is one of the main projects they are developing. That’s because the mystery the Lanterns will investigate in the show is connected to the overarching threat that will spread throughout the DCU.

Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow

• Release date: TBA
• Writer: Ana Nogueira

Inspired by the comic book miniseries of the same name by King and Bilquis Evely, Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow will follow the tragic story of Milly Alcock as Kara Zor-El, Superman’s cousin. While Superman was sent to Earth to be raised by a loving family, Kara grew up in a fragment of Krypton, watching everyone she loved die while she floated through space. The movie will tell this story and explain the different personalities of the two Kryptonians.

Gunn and Safran described Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow as a “sci-fi epic,” which means the movie will most likely take place in space and explore Kara’s journey. Since Kara already appears in Superman, Supergirl:Woman of Tomorrow might be a prequel.

Paradise Lost

• Release date: TBA

Paradise Lost takes place in Themyschera, the all-female island where Wonder Woman is born. Set before the birth of Diana, the series promises to deliver a gripping political drama not unlike Game of Thrones. The TV show’s title seems to reference Paradise Island Lost, a comic book story by Phil Jimenez and George Pérez that deals with a civil war on the fabled island.

Since Wonder Woman is canonically hundreds of years old, Paradise Lost will take place in the DCU’s far past. The choice to go back in time so much allows Gunn and Safran to create a healthy distance from Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman, who will not be back in the new DCU after Wonder Woman 3 got canceled. So, the new DCU can explore Themyschera’s history and mythology while taking the time to find Gadot’s replacement.

Swamp Thing

• Release date: TBA
• Writer/Director: James Mangold

Swamp Thing explores the origins of one of DC’s most beloved horror characters. The movie will be written and directed by James Mangold, the man behind the fan-favorite Marvel adaptation Logan. 

Swamp Thing is mainly inspired by Alan Moore’s The Saga of the Swamp Thing comic book run, an unsettling body horror story that could result in the scariest DC movie ever. Thanks to Alan Moore, Swamp Thing became a fan-favorite character, so Mangold has the massive weight of expectations over his shoulders. However, according to Gunn, Swamp Thing is a pet project for the director, which is always good to hear. Superhero movies are better when they are made by people who care about the property they’re adapting.

Booster Gold

• Release date: TBA

Booster Gold is the last DCU series in the “God of Monsters” story arc. In DC Comics, Booster Gold is a disgraced football star from the 25th century who travels back in time to gain fame as a superhero. Thanks to the advanced technology he brings back in time, Booster Gold has the power to face supervillains and team up with other superheroes. However, he lacks the know-how of the superhero business, which often leads to comedic situations.

It’s worth noting that Booster Gold frequently teams up with Blue Beetle in the comic books. No one knows if Xolo Maridueña’s version of Blue Bettle will be incorporated into the DCU, but the Booster Gold TV show is an excellent vehicle to bring the hero back.

Teen Titans

• Release date: TBA
• Writer: Ana Nogueira

Even if Gunn and Safran laid out their whole plan for the “Gods and Monsters” arc, a Teen Titans movie is also being developed by DC Studios. That means it might be a while before Teen Titans hit theaters. Even so, the project already has a writer attached to it, Ana Nogueira, who’s also penning the Supergirl movie.

The Teen Titans are a supergroup classically formed by the sidekicks of DC’s greatest heroes and other young crimefighters. While there’s a popular animated series about the team currently airing, Teen Titans Go!, the grounded nature of the DCU indicates the live-action movie should draw inspiration from adaptations such as Young Justice.

Arkham Asylum series

• Release date: TBA
• Showrunner: Antonio Campos

After the success of Matt Reeves’ The Batman, the filmmaker signed a multi-year deal with Warner Bros. Discovery to keep developing his Bat-verse. Reeves is currently working on a spinoff series about the Penguin and two The Batman sequels. At some point, he was also on top of a project about the Gotham Police Department and Arkham Asylum. 

Last we heard about this project, the series had been taken over by showrunner Antonio Campos and refurbished as a DCU project. That means the Arkham Asylum TV show will be set in the central DCU instead of the Elseworlds universe Reeves has been building.

While we have yet to see the first project of James Gunn and Peter Safran’s new DCU, the ambitious reboot of DC’s cinematic universe keeps adding new movies and TV shows to its packed slate. More recently, we learned that the Teen Titans are getting a live-action film.

The idea of a Teen Titans live-action movie is definitely exciting for DC fans. So, of course, the question remains of what previous version of the team will be used as inspiration for the upcoming movie. As it turns out, Gunn already has the perfect blueprint for the Teen Titans movie, and it’s not the one you think.

Who are the Teen Titans?

Created by Bob Haney and Bruno Premiani in 1964, the Teen Titans were initially the sidekicks of some of DC’s biggest heroes, such as Batman and Aquaman. The team didn’t have much success, which led to a long cycle of cancelation of their comic books and revivals. 

The Teen Titans became a staple in DC Comics after a relaunch led by Marv Wolfman and George Perez in 1980. This version of the team not only used DC sidekicks, but also incorporated Beast Boy and created brand-new characters, such as Cyborg, Raven, and Starfire. Wolfman and Perez’s Teen Titans run was a huge success, turning the team into a fan-favorite for comic book readers.

The Teen Titans took another step on the path to stardom with one of the best animated series developed by Cartoon Network. The Teen Titans animated series helped the team to become wildly known and helped all its main characters establish themselves as major DC players. The Teen Titans show was so successful that Cyborg would even go on to become part of the Justice League in the comic books and, later on, Zack Snyder’s DCEU movies.

Thanks to the Teen Titans’ first animated series, the team became mainstream. A second animated series, Teen Titans Go!, is still running after seven seasons and almost 400 episodes. The team also got a live-action series, Titans, set in the same universe as the wonderful Doom Patrol TV show. There are plenty of material the upcoming project can use to see which ideas get better received by the fans. Yet, the Teen Titans DCU movie should actually be based on Young Justice.

The Teen Titans movie should draw inspiration from Young Justice

Young Justice is unanimously acclaimed as one of the best – if not the best – animated adaptations of DC storylines. Expanding beyond the scope of the Teen Titans, the Young Justice team includes dozens of young heroes working together in covert missions for the Justice League. The idea is to let young heroes hone their skills while remaining outside the public eye so that they do not have to worry about the media-facing side of the business and the frequent retaliation by supervillains.

While the original Teen Titans animated series also puts character growth above everything else, Young Justice has a few obvious advantages. For starters, Teen Titans focused on the team independently of a bigger superhero universe. In Young Justice, however, the young heroes are constantly dealing with the senior members of the Justice League, which helps to establish their place in the larger DC universe. Since Gunn and Safran are now working on an interconnected universe that will tell a single story, the Teen Titans movie also needs to position the young team as a piece of the larger DC puzzle.

In addition, since the members of the Young Justice team have to answer to the Justice League in the animated series, the show successfully depicts the differences between the two teams. What changes between the Justice League and the Young Justice are not only the people and powers, but also the level of accountability and the consequences of their mistakes. From projects such as The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker, we can tell Gunn is determined to tell stories grounded in real-world problems and complex characters. Young Justice perfectly captures this tone.

Finally, Young Justice has one more advantage over Teen Titans: it allows its characters to get older and take on new roles in the DC universe. Each new season of Young Justice introduces new young heroes, while the previous team members join the Justice League, retire, or decide to brave their own crimefighting path. Young Justice perfectly balances bringing new people into the fold, and giving old favorites different stories to tell, which is precisely what Gunn needs to do to keep the DCU alive for many years to come.

It’s too soon to know which direction the upcoming Teen Titans movie will take. Still, Gunn is committed to creating a cohesive cinematic universe with a select group of artists he trusts. That’s why Teen Titans will be written by Ana Nogueira, who’s already penning the script for Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow. The first DCU project we’ll watch is the animated series Creature Commandos, expected to hit Max by the end of 2024. The first movie of the cinematic universe, however, is Superman, currently scheduled for July 11, 2025.