The DC Universe will start fresh with James Gunn and Peter Safran steering the ship with a new slate of movies and HBO Max series
The release of Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel was meant to kick off a massive cinematic universe that DC could call their own. But after a decade of inconsistency, muddled connectivity and constantly trying to play catchup with Marvel throughout its various movies, the era of the DCEU appears to finally be at an end. The final four films will all come out this year: Shazam! Fury of the Gods, The Flash, Blue Beetle, and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.
But hope is not lost for DC fans. Rather than allow the rich catalog of stories and characters fall to the wayside, Warner Bros. will be doing a significant overhaul and reboot of the franchise. Under new leadership duo James Gunn and Peter Safran, this new era will simply be called the DCU. We already have an official announcement on this new multi-media universe’s first slate of films: DCU Chapter One: Gods and Monsters.
According to Gunn, who directed The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker for DC as well as the Guardians of the Galaxy films for Marvel, has said that The Flash will act as the reset, so the fate of Blue Beetle and Aquaman may be on the positive side (the first Aquaman movie made over a billion dollars for crying out loud!). After that, DC will take a breather in 2024 and come back with some signature names as well as some surprises.
Superman: Legacy is the first movie for the Gunn / Safran era and is set to be released on July 11th 2025, followed by the sequel to Matt Reeves’ excellent Nirvana-loving take on the Dark Knight: The Batman – Part II. These are the only two projects with release dates so far. Gunn will be writing the new Superman movie but it’s yet to be announced who will be directing. Kicking things off with the two biggest names in the superhero game is a confident move that should excite any fan.
The next film will be The Authority, which will introduce a new team of morally gray superheroes that will likely come into opposition with some other characters further down the line. The Brave and the Bold will also finally bring Robin back into the live action movie world, focusing on the world’s most famous sidekick and their relationship with Batman. Surprisingly, this Batman will not be the Robert Pattinson version. We’ll see how it all works in due time.
After that is Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow , which will bring Superman’s cousin into the mix in a hardcore way, according to Gunn. Then DC will try to go full horror with Swamp Thing, a fan favorite that many have been wanting to see on the big screen for quite some time. It’s an impressive roster of movies to start this new chapter with – and it’s only sweetened by some extra HBO Max series coming soon as well.
Creature Commandos will be written by Gunn and feature an animated team of bizarre characters: Weasel from The Suicide Squad, Nina Mazursky, Doctor Phosphorus, Eric Frankenstein, the Bride of Frankenstein, G.I. Robot, and Rick Flag’s father, Rick Flag Sr. Some characters will apparently be making the jump over to live action eventually.
Next up is Waller, led of course by Viola Davis who will be reprising her role as Amanda Waller once again. The series will act as the bridge between season 1 and season 2 of Peacemaker. Fans can also look forward to Paradise Lost, a Game of Thrones-inspired fantasy series set on Themyscira long before the birth of Wonder Woman. The show will tell the origin of the Amazon’s all-female culture and society.
Finally, the Gods and Monsters chapter of the DCU will end with Booster Gold, a more comedic series focused on a time-traveling superhero, and Lanterns, a Green Lantern mystery series featuring both Hal Jordan and John Stewart. The two heroes will investigate a mystery that will tie into the larger DCU story seen in the films. Here’s hoping this new era for DC will be great for fans and general audiences alike.
Sign up for the Knotfest Email List for exclusive access to news, tours, interviews, pre-sale codes, giveaways and more.