The DC Universe hasn’t even fully started and it’s already in a fascinating place. It was just over two years ago when presidents James Gunn and Peter Safran announced their multi-year plan for the future of the DC Studios and the new DC Universe. In that time, rumors and updates have been flying about those 10 original projects, as well as many, many more. Now though, with its first show out in the world and the first movie mere months away, the duo felt it was time for an update—and io9 was among a group of press who went to Warner Bros. in Burbank, CA to hear from Gunn and Safran about what’s happening, how it’s all going, which rumors are true, and which are not.
Besides specific updates, the duo hammered home their vision of not wanting to be beholden to anything except a good script. Not a release date, not a post-credits scene: if they aren’t confident that the film or show they’re putting out will be good, they won’t announce it, make it, or tease it. Within that mantra, the plan is to eventually release two live-action films and one animated movie per year, as well as two live-action shows and one animated show on Max per year. They haven’t quite hit that cadence yet, but with this massive potential line-up, it won’t be a problem.
Below, you can read updates from Gunn and Safran on pretty much everything in the DC Universe—things that already happening like Superman and Supergirl, characters they’re itching to get to, and even a few projects that aren’t going so well. Read more below.
Superman
The DC Universe officially kicks off July 11 when James Gunn’s Superman hits theaters, and the writer-director is currently deep in post-production and editing. They’re cutting a second trailer, doing test screenings, and he may even shoot a few tiny things here and there to heighten the film’s impact. But he and Safran both seem very, very excited about it. “I’ve wanted to make a Superman movie since 1978 and the Superman film that James has made is exactly the one that teenage Peter Safran has been waiting for,” Safran told press.
Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow (with Lobo)
Director Craig Gillespie and star Milly Alcock are about midway through production on Supergirl, which hit theaters next summer—and it’s going to play a massive part in the future of the DC Universe. “We’ve always viewed this transformative story as one of the cornerstones of our vision for the future of the DCU,” Safran said.
The film also co-stars Jason Momoa as Lobo, and Gunn said he had “no problem whatsoever” casting the Aquaman actor as another DC character. In fact, Momoa was the first person to reach out to Gunn when news broke of him taking over and he was basically cast as Lobo immediately. As for what he’ll look like, the duo said “He looks like Lobo,” but we may not see it for ourselves for a while. Since the movie is largely being filmed on soundstages and has heavy visual effects elements, they don’t have immediate plans to release an image for fans… but they will, eventually, give us a look.
Batman
When Gunn and Safran took over DC, they immediately made it clear that Batman in their DC Universe would be different from Batman as played by Robert Pattinson. Recent rumors and delays, however, seemed to suggest that idea may have changed—but Gunn and Safran swear it hasn’t.
“It’s certainly not the plan,” Gunn said when asked about Pattinson potentially becoming the DCU’s Batman. “And we love him,” Safran added. “But we’ve got to introduce a Batman into the DCU. It’s imperative. And so that’s the plan with The Brave and the Bold.”
As for The Brave and the Bold, they’re in “very active development” on it, which Gunn said he personally is “very, very actively involved in.” Once that script is ready, they’ll see if director Andy Muschietti feels he’s a fit and go from there. Stay tuned to io9 for more on Gunn’s bat-plans later today.
Wonder Woman (Paradise Lost)
At their original DC announcement, there was no specific word on when Wonder Woman herself would be introduced into the DCU. It was only revealed that her people, the Amazons of Themyscira, would be the focus of Paradise Lost, a Max show exploring the origins of the secluded island. Since then there hasn’t been much public movement on the project, but Gunn stressed that the show is “totally still important” to their plans. Work is still in progress, and the pilot is being written right now.
Gunn’s Favorite Project, and His Next Project
Two of the most tantalizing teases at the event both involved Gunn himself. When asked what he was going to do after Superman, he said “I’m writing something else now that would be the next directing thing.” That statement, very specifically, didn’t confirm or deny that it’s a Superman sequel. Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t. Gunn also teased that his favorite upcoming DC project is one that “nobody even knows about yet.” “It’s been my favorite project for a few months,” he said. Is that the project he’s writing to direct? We don’t know.
Swamp Thing
Gunn and Safran said that before they announced their DC slate, Swamp Thing wouldn’t have been one of the titles they picked. But when writer-director James Mangold came to them with his desire to make a Swamp Thing movie, they loved the idea. Since then, Mangold went off to make his Oscar-nominated film A Complete Unknown, and the duo is completely fine to wait for when he’s ready. “We love him as a filmmaker, so we’re happy to wait for him,” Safran said. Plus there’s no rush because “Swamp Thing is not integral to the larger story that we’re telling,” Safran said. It’s happening mainly because Mangold wanted to, and his ideas were good.
Lanterns
The big Green Lantern TV show Lanterns just started filming recently and the pair are super psyched about it. “I’ve been watching dailies,” Gunn said. “It’s so cool because it is connected to Superman because we’ve got Guy Gardner in that. And then we’ve got these Green Lanterns over here. And it’s just such a different tone from what Superman is. And [those different tones] is exactly what I want to bring to the DCU.”
The first season of the show will be eight episodes but “It could easily be a continuing series,” Safran said.
Clayface
A film that wasn’t on Gunn and Safran’s radar when they started DC was Clayface, described as “an incredible body horror film that reveals the compelling origin of a classic Batman villain,” according to Safran. Writer Mike Flanagan wrote a script both the guys love and, with director James Watkins almost set to direct, casting will begin soon aiming for a summer start day and fall 2026 release.
“Clayface might not be as widely known as the Penguin or the Joker but we really feel that his story is equally resonant, compelling, and in many ways more terrifying,” Safran said. Gunn said this is a movie he would’ve loved to make in his indie days because it’s such a cool, standalone horror movie. But “the fact that it’s in the DCU is just a plus.” “It was important that Clayface be part of the DCU,” Safran added. “It’s an origin story for a classic Batman villain that we want to have in our world.”
Dynamic Duo
Another film that’s officially on the way is Dynamic Duo, an animated puppet movie made in conjunction with Swaybox. The film, set for a 2028 release, is currently in pre-production and Safran described it as “a coming-of-age crowd pleaser.”
“This animated tale of two Robins really provides a perfect on-ramp for the family audiences into the world of Gotham,” he said.
As of now, the story is not set in the DCU, so whoever is cast as Dick Grayson and Jason Todd in the film will have no impact on the Robin of The Brave and the Bold. But that could potentially change. “There might be a way it might fit into the DCU,” Gunn said. “I would love for this animated puppet movie to be a part of the DCU. That’s really appealing to me. But the story is unique. And so it may not work with our universe.”
Peacemaker
Season two of Peacemaker is currently being edited and Gunn describes it as “much more about the characters and the interconnectivity between the characters and their personal lives,” adding “and it’s more about Chris Smith than it is about Peacemaker.”
As as result of that shift, Gunn said he went through “a lot of permutations of potential songs” to use in the opening credits. He finally settled on one everyone is very happy with. And no, it’s not just a different version of “Do You Want to Taste It?” though he did consider doing that. “We ended up with something else that I think works,” Gunn teased. The season also will tie directly into Superman in a few ways, including Frank Grillo’s Rick Flag, Sr., who is also in Creature Commandos. Speaking of which…
Creature Commandos
Season two of the Max animated series is on the way, and preliminary conversations about what that will entail are happening now. As for if any of these characters (besides Flag) could appear in live action, the answer is yes… just probably not for a while. “The characters probably won’t appear anywhere else before season two, but after we do have plans for some of the characters from Creature Commandoes to appear outside Creature Commandos,” Gunn said.
Sgt. Rock
Despite what you may seen reported online, Daniel Craig was never set to play Sgt. Rock. His frequent collaborator director Luca Guadagnino did pitch a take on the character along with Challengers writer Justin Kuritzkes, but while Gunn and Safran are sure those two talked to Craig about it, the actor never spoke to DC. Even so, the movie still has a strong chance of happening.
“[Guadagnino and Kuritzkes] had a really interesting take on how to tell this story within the DCU,” Safran said, before describing the idea as “a really compelling story about heroism in a time of armed conflict…. we love the idea of being able to tell something that, it’s a war movie.”
The Authority
One of the biggest films Gunn and Safran announced two years ago was the mega superhero team-up story, The Authority, but Gunn admits its development “has had some issues.”
“Honestly, Authority has been the one that’s been the hardest,” Gunn said. “Both because of the shifting overall story and because of getting it right in a world with The Boys and a world with all the things that The Authority influenced that came out after it. And also having a lot of characters that we’ve fallen in love with, that we’ve already filmed, and have that we want to continue their stories and see them meet each other. And so it’s been—I will admittedly say it’s a little bit more on the back burner right now.”
Waller
Another project that has “had a couple of setbacks” according to Gunn is Waller, the Max show about the Suicide Squad and Creature Commandos leader, Amanda Waller, played by Viola Davis. No other details beyond that for now.
Booster Gold
Development on the Max show about the brash, time-traveling hero is “going pretty strong” according to Gunn. No word specifically what that means yet, either.
Blue Beetle
Coming off the Xolo Maridueña live-action film that was released in between DC regimes, Gunn and Safran confirmed that not only is an animated series in the works, but “it’s coming along really well.” “We’re getting very close to [the creators] presenting for a greenlight,” Safran said. “[Writer] Gareth [Dunnet-Alcocer] and [director] Ángel [Manuel Soto] have been very involved in the development of that as well. And again, we’ve made something we’re excited about. We love the character.”
Bane and Deathstroke
One of the weirder pieces of news to come out of DC of late was that a film starring Batman villains Bane and Deathstroke was in the works. “Well, without confirming that there’s even a Bane and Deathstroke film out there, Matt Orton is writing a big action movie for us,” Safran said.
“Something in that vein,” Gunn added. They’re waiting on the screenplay.
Teen Titans
Yes, it’s true. Gunn and Safran confirmed last year’s news that “Ana Noguiera has been writing a Teen Titans script for a little while,” Gunn said. “It’s very early stages.”
Their own Justice League?
So you’ve got Superman, Supergirl, Batman, Robin, multiple Green Lanterns, Lobo and many more. Is this all leading to Gunn and Safran’s version of a Justice League movie? Yes it is. “We’re heading somewhere,” Safran said. “There’s a plan for movies with more characters,” Gunn said. Could this be the film Gunn himself is writing?
Zack Snyder
Last week, current Superman director Gunn and previous Superman director Zack Snyder posted a photo together. Was this in any way a tease that Snyder might be collaborating with Gunn on his DC Universe? “I was just talking to Zack as a friend. We were just hanging out,” Gunn said. “And then we’re like, ‘Let’s take a picture together.’ We knew full well what we were doing.” So no, no new Gunn and Snyder team-up. And no, Gunn did not show Snyder his Superman movie yet.
Is that it?
It is not. The pair confirmed that three new animated shows have just been greenlit: My Adventures with Green Lantern, Starfire, and DC Superpowers. There are also family-friendly shorts starring Superman’s dog, Krypto, coming soon. The pair is already working with Epic on bringing some of their versions of DC characters into Fortnite, conversations are taking place about other video games, and there have even been discussions about collaborating with Six Flags for theme park rides.
Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.