The DC Universe (DCU) is an upcoming American
media franchise
A media franchise, also known as a multimedia franchise, is a collection of related media in which several derivative works have been produced from an original creative work of fiction, such as a film, a work of literature, a television program or ...
and
shared universe
A shared universe or shared world is a fictional universe from a set of creative works where more than one writer (or other artist) independently contributes a work that can stand alone but fits into the joint development of the storyline, chara ...
based on characters from
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery.
DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...
publications. It was created by
James Gunn
James Francis Gunn Jr. (born August 5, 1966) is an American filmmaker and executive. He began his career as a screenwriter in the mid-1990s, starting at Troma Entertainment with ''Tromeo and Juliet'' (1997). He then began working as a director ...
and
Peter Safran
Peter Safran (born 22 November 1965) is a British-American film producer and manager. He currently serves as the co-chairperson and CEO of DC Studios alongside James Gunn.
Early life
After growing up in the UK, Safran graduated from Princeton Un ...
, co-chairmen and co-CEOs of
DC Studios
DC Studios is an American film and television studio that is a division of Warner Bros., which is a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. It is dedicated to the production of films, series, and animations based on characters from DC Comics, am ...
. The franchise is a
soft reboot of the
DC Extended Universe
The DC Extended Universe (DCEU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on a series of superhero films and television series produced by DC Studios and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is based on characters that ...
(DCEU), a film franchise featuring DC characters. The DCU retains certain cast members and narrative elements of the DCEU while replacing others. In contrast with the previous state of DC Comics adaptations, the DCU features a united continuity and story across live-action films and television, animation, and video games. Concurrent DC adaptations that do not fit within this continuity are labeled "
DC Elseworlds".
After
Discovery, Inc.
Discovery, Inc. was an American multinational mass media factual television conglomerate (company), conglomerate based in New York City. Established in 1985, the company operated a group of factual television, factual and lifestyle television bra ...
and
WarnerMedia
Warner Media, LLC ( traded as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate. It was headquartered at the 30 Hudson Yards complex in New York City, United States.
It was originally established in 1972 by ...
merged to become
Warner Bros. Discovery
Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (WBD) is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at 230 Park Avenue South in New York City. It was formed after the spin-off of WarnerMedia by AT&T, and its merger with D ...
(WBD), CEO
David Zaslav
David Zaslav (born January 15, 1960) is an American media executive who currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer and President of Warner Bros. Discovery. Zaslav spearheaded the transaction between AT&T and Discovery to combine with Warner ...
revealed a plan to revitalize the DC brand following the poor reception of some DCEU films. Gunn and Safran were hired to lead the newly formed DC Studios in November 2022 after working on several DCEU projects, including the film ''
The Suicide Squad'' (2021) and its spin-off series, ''
Peacemaker
Peacemaker or The Peacemaker (in various forms) may refer to:
Individuals and groups
* UN Peacemaker, a project of the UN to support international peacemakers and mediators
* Peace makers, a list of contemporary individuals and organizations inv ...
'' (2022–present). The pair spent several months with a group of writers developing the overarching story for a new DC continuity, which features a combination of popular and obscure DC characters. Some DCEU projects in development were abandoned in favor of new takes, while others (including ''Peacemaker'') continued within the new franchise. Gunn and Safran wanted to focus on storytelling needs rather than forcing creators to produce their projects before specific release dates.
The story of the DCU is divided into chapters, starting with "Gods and Monsters" which will begin in 2024 with the animated series ''
Creature Commandos
The Creature Commandos are a fictional DC Comics team of military superhumans originally set in World War II. The original team was introduced in ''Weird War Tales'' #93 (November 1980), created by J. M. DeMatteis and Pat Broderick. The team was c ...
''. Gunn and Safran considered the chapter's first film, ''
Superman: Legacy'' (2025), to be the true beginning of the DCU.
Background
DC Extended Universe
Warner Bros. Pictures
Warner Bros. Pictures is an American film production and distribution company of the Warner Bros. Pictures Group division of Warner Bros. Entertainment (both ultimately owned by Warner Bros. Discovery). The studio is the flagship producer of ...
was deemed to be "lagg
ngbehind" rival company
Marvel Studios
Marvel Studios, LLC (originally known as Marvel Films from 1993 to 1996) is an American film and television production company that is a subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, a division of the Walt Disney Company. Marvel Studios produces the Mar ...
and their
shared universe
A shared universe or shared world is a fictional universe from a set of creative works where more than one writer (or other artist) independently contributes a work that can stand alone but fits into the joint development of the storyline, chara ...
of superheroes, the
Marvel Cinematic Universe
The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on a series of superhero films produced by Marvel Studios. The films are based on characters that appear in American comic books published by ...
(MCU), by late 2012. Warner Bros. began planning for ''
Man of Steel'' (2013), based on the
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery.
DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...
character
Superman
Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...
, to start their own shared universe,
which became known as the "
DC Extended Universe
The DC Extended Universe (DCEU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on a series of superhero films and television series produced by DC Studios and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is based on characters that ...
" (DCEU).
They announced a full slate of DC films in October 2014. ''Man of Steel'' director
Zack Snyder
Zachary Edward Snyder (born March 1, 1966) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and cinematographer. He made his feature film debut in 2004 with '' Dawn of the Dead'', a remake of the 1978 horror film of the same name. Since t ...
was set to return for ''
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice'' (2016) and ''
Justice League
The Justice League (also known as The Justice League of America) are a team of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (March 1960). The team was conceived ...
'' (2017), and spin-off films were planned for the
Justice League
The Justice League (also known as The Justice League of America) are a team of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (March 1960). The team was conceived ...
members and other DC characters.
''Batman v Superman'' did not meet Warner Bros.' box office expectations, and received negative responses from fans and critics for its dark tone.
Warner Bros. felt they could no longer give Snyder the "long leash" he had on ''Man of Steel'' and ''Batman v Superman'',
and reorganized future DC projects under the new
DC Films
DC Studios is an American film and television studio that is a division of Warner Bros., which is a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. It is dedicated to the production of films, series, and animations based on characters from DC Comics, am ...
division.
Executive Jon Berg and comic book writer
Geoff Johns
Geoffrey Johns (born January 25, 1973) is an American comic book writer, screenwriter, and film and television producer. Johns's work on the DC Comics characters Green Lantern, Aquaman, Flash and Superman, has drawn critical acclaim.
He serve ...
were set to run DC Films and wanted to make ''Justice League'' more optimistic and hopeful.
When the studio was not satisfied with their efforts,
Joss Whedon
Joseph Hill Whedon (; born June 23, 1964) is an American filmmaker, composer, and comic book writer. He is the founder of Mutant Enemy Productions, co-founder of Bellwether Pictures, and is best known as the creator of several television series: ...
was hired to write reshoots for the film.
Snyder left the film after the death of his daughter in March 2017,
and Whedon completed the film with significant changes.
''Justice League'' was another critical and commercial disappointment for Warner Bros., and the studio was again rethinking its approach to DC in late 2017. Berg and Johns left DC Films, and a planned
Batman
Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...
spin-off film was reworked into director
Matt Reeves
Matt Reeves (born April 27, 1966) is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. He first gained recognition for the WB drama series ''Felicity (TV series), Felicity'' (1998–2002), which he co-created with J. J. Abrams. Reeves came t ...
's ''
The Batman
Batman is a fictional superhero appearing in comic books published by DC Comics.
Batman or The Batman may also refer to:
Art, entertainment, and media
Characters
* Batman (Terry McGinnis)
* Batman (Thomas Wayne)
* Batman (Earth-Two)
* Batma ...
'' (2022), a film separate from the DCEU.
Warner Bros. intended for future DCEU films to be more standalone than their previous interconnected plan.
Walter Hamada
Walter Hamada is an American film executive and producer. He joined New Line Cinema in 2007, where he served as an executive producer on horror films such as '' The Conjuring'' (2013), '' Annabelle'' (2014), ''The Conjuring 2'' (2016), '' Lights ...
was appointed the new president of DC Films in January 2018.
That October,
James Gunn
James Francis Gunn Jr. (born August 5, 1966) is an American filmmaker and executive. He began his career as a screenwriter in the mid-1990s, starting at Troma Entertainment with ''Tromeo and Juliet'' (1997). He then began working as a director ...
was hired to write and direct ''
The Suicide Squad'' (2021),
a
standalone sequel
A sequel is a work of literature, film, theatre, television, music or video game that continues the story of, or expands upon, some earlier work. In the common context of a narrative work of fiction, a sequel portrays events set in the sam ...
to the earlier DCEU film ''
Suicide Squad
The Suicide Squad is an antihero/supervillain team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The first version of the Suicide Squad debuted in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #25 (September 1959) and the second and modern version, cre ...
'' (2016) which retained some cast members but otherwise told its own story.
He worked with producer
Peter Safran
Peter Safran (born 22 November 1965) is a British-American film producer and manager. He currently serves as the co-chairperson and CEO of DC Studios alongside James Gunn.
Early life
After growing up in the UK, Safran graduated from Princeton Un ...
, who also produced the DCEU films ''
Aquaman
Aquaman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Paul Norris and Mort Weisinger, the character debuted in ''More Fun Comics'' #73 (November 1941). The character is a pastiche of Namor. Initially ...
'' (2018) and ''
Shazam!'' (2019).
In May 2020, Warner Bros. and Snyder announced that his original vision for ''Justice League'' would be released on the streaming service
HBO Max
HBO Max is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in the United States on May 27, 2020, the service is built around the libraries of HBO, Warner Bros., Cartoon Netw ...
as ''
Zack Snyder's Justice League
''Zack Snyder's Justice League'' (colloquially referred to as the Snyder Cut) is the 2021 director's cut of the 2017 American superhero film ''Justice League'', the fifth film set within the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) based on the team of ...
'' (2021).
By the end of 2020, Hamada was planning spin-off DCEU television series for HBO Max,
including Gunn's ''The Suicide Squad'' spin-off ''
Peacemaker
Peacemaker or The Peacemaker (in various forms) may refer to:
Individuals and groups
* UN Peacemaker, a project of the UN to support international peacemakers and mediators
* Peace makers, a list of contemporary individuals and organizations inv ...
'' (2022–present).
At that point, there were around 25 other live-action and animated DC-based series in addition to the various film projects. Hamada planned to connect all of these using the
multiverse
The multiverse is a hypothetical group of multiple universes. Together, these universes comprise everything that exists: the entirety of space, time, matter, energy, information, and the physical laws and constants that describe them. The di ...
,
which was introduced in ''
The Flash
The Flash (or simply Flash) is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, the original Flash first appeared in ''Flash Comics'' #1 (cover date ...
'' (2023).
Warner Bros. Discovery
In April 2022,
Discovery, Inc.
Discovery, Inc. was an American multinational mass media factual television conglomerate (company), conglomerate based in New York City. Established in 1985, the company operated a group of factual television, factual and lifestyle television bra ...
and Warner Bros.' parent company
WarnerMedia
Warner Media, LLC ( traded as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate. It was headquartered at the 30 Hudson Yards complex in New York City, United States.
It was originally established in 1972 by ...
merged to become
Warner Bros. Discovery
Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc. (WBD) is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at 230 Park Avenue South in New York City. It was formed after the spin-off of WarnerMedia by AT&T, and its merger with D ...
(WBD), led by president and CEO
David Zaslav
David Zaslav (born January 15, 1960) is an American media executive who currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer and President of Warner Bros. Discovery. Zaslav spearheaded the transaction between AT&T and Discovery to combine with Warner ...
. The new company was expected to restructure
DC Entertainment
DC Entertainment is an American entertainment company that was founded in September 2009 and was based in Burbank, California. The company is a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery that manages its DC Comics units and characters in other units, ...
so the film, television, and video game divisions of the company could be aligned. Even before the merger was complete, Zaslav began meeting with candidates to take over DC—including film executive Emma Watts—with the hope of finding an equivalent to Marvel Studios president
Kevin Feige
Kevin Feige ( ; born June 2, 1973) is an American film and television producer who has been the president of Marvel Studios and the primary producer of the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise since 2007. The films he has produced have a combin ...
. Despite some recent successes with DC films and series, Zaslav and WBD felt DC lacked a "coherent creative and brand strategy" and were underusing key characters such as Superman.
Hamada was still contracted until 2023, and his supporters felt Zaslav was not giving him enough credit for his DC plans and successes.
In June, Zaslav announced that DC Films would be separated from Warner Bros. within the WBD structure but would be overseen by Warner Bros. film chairs
Michael De Luca
Michael De Luca (born August 13, 1965) is an American film studio executive, film producer and screenwriter. The former president of production at both New Line Cinema and DreamWorks, De Luca has been nominated for three Academy Awards for Best ...
and Pamela Abdy until a new DC head was appointed.
At the start of August, WBD decided not to release the DCEU film ''
Batgirl
Batgirl is the name of several superheroines appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, depicted as female counterparts and allies to the superhero Batman. Although the character Betty Kane was introduced into publication in ...
'' on HBO Max or theatrically, stating that it "simply did not work" and went against Zaslav's mandate to make DC films "big theatrical event films".
Soon after, Zaslav said he wanted a new 10-year plan for DC films,
and he had enlisted the help of Disney executive
Alan F. Horn
Alan Frederick Horn (born February 28, 1943) is an American entertainment industry executive. Horn became President and COO of Warner Bros. from 1999 to 2012. Horn next served as the chairman of Walt Disney Studios from 2012 to 2020. During his ...
in finding a new leader for DC. Hamada was reportedly upset by the cancellation of ''Batgirl'' and tried to leave DC Films, but was convinced by De Luca and Abdy to stay through the release of ''
Black Adam
Black Adam, real name Teth/Theo-Adam, is an antihero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He was created by Otto Binder and C. C. Beck, and first appeared in the debut issue of Fawcett Comics' '' The Marvel Family'' comic ...
'' in October 2022.
Around that time,
Henry Cavill
Henry William Dalgliesh Cavill ( ; born 5 May 1983) is a British actor. He is known for his portrayal of Charles Brandon in Showtime's ''The Tudors'' (2007–2010), DC Comics character Superman in the DC Extended Universe (2013–2022), Gera ...
reprised his role as
Superman
Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...
from ''Man of Steel'' for a cameo appearance in ''Black Adam''. This was against Hamada's wishes, and was approved by De Luca and Abdy when they were approached directly by ''Black Adam'' star
Dwayne Johnson
Dwayne Douglas Johnson (born May 2, 1972), also known by his ring name The Rock, is an American actor and former professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, he was integral to the developm ...
. Johnson began promoting the idea of a
Black Adam
Black Adam, real name Teth/Theo-Adam, is an antihero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. He was created by Otto Binder and C. C. Beck, and first appeared in the debut issue of Fawcett Comics' '' The Marvel Family'' comic ...
vs. Superman film co-starring Cavill in the future, and Warner Bros. began pursuing a sequel to ''Man of Steel'' starring Cavill.
At the end of August, producer
Dan Lin
Dan Lin (; born April 8, 1973) is a Taiwanese-American film producer. He is the founder and CEO of Rideback (formerly Lin Pictures until 2018), a film and television production company that he formed in 2008 that has a first-look deal at Uni ...
emerged as a potential candidate for taking over DC,
but exited talks weeks later.
Todd Phillips
Todd Phillips (né Bunzl, born December 20, 1970) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He began his career in 1993 and directed films in the 2000s such as ''Road Trip (film), Road Trip'', ''Old School (film), Old School'', ...
, director of the standalone DC film ''
Joker'' (2019), was also considered for the role but remained focused on directing the sequel ''
Joker: Folie à Deux'' (2024).
Development
DC Studios and initial developments
James Gunn and Peter Safran were announced as the co-chairs and co-CEOs of the newly formed
DC Studios
DC Studios is an American film and television studio that is a division of Warner Bros., which is a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. It is dedicated to the production of films, series, and animations based on characters from DC Comics, am ...
at the end of October 2022 and were set to take over from Hamada on November 1. It was considered a shocking and unprecedented decision to have a high-profile director like Gunn move into a top executive position at a film studio. Gunn was expected to focus on the creative side of the company while Safran focused on the business and production side, and their deal was reportedly for four years. Gunn and Safran were both expected to continue directing and producing projects, respectively, in addition to their new roles, though other projects would be exclusively with WBD. They would report directly to Zaslav and work closely with De Luca and Abdy.
A week after starting their new roles, the pair said they had begun working with a group of writers to develop an eight-to-ten-year plan for the new DC Universe (DCU).
Zaslav said they had begun work on a
bible
The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
for future DC projects that would be finished soon. He also said the new plan would emulate Marvel's model of having a single, unified approach to each character, specifically highlighting new approaches to
Batman
Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...
and Superman. By mid-November, Gunn had already begun writing the script for a new DC film while Safran had been "fixing" the upcoming ''
Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom
''Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom'' is an upcoming American superhero film based on the DC Comics character Aquaman. Produced by DC Studios, the Safran Company, and Atomic Monster Productions, and set for distribution by Warner Bros. Pictures, ...
'' (2023).
In early December, Gunn and Safran were finalizing their plans ahead of a meeting with Zaslav.
Patty Jenkins
Patricia Lea Jenkins (born July 24, 1971) is an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. She has directed the feature films ''Monster'' (2003), ''Wonder Woman'' (2017), and ''Wonder Woman 1984'' (2020). For the film ''Monster'', she w ...
was no longer developing a sequel to her DCEU films ''
Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byr ...
'' (2017) and ''
Wonder Woman 1984
''Wonder Woman 1984'' (also known as ''WW84'') is a 2020 American superhero film based on the DC character Wonder Woman. Produced by Warner Bros. Pictures, DC Films, Atlas Entertainment, and The Stone Quarry, and distributed by Warner Bros. P ...
'' (2020) after being told by Gunn and Safran that such a film did not fit within their new plans. Various rumors about the plans were circulating, including that the DCU would be a complete
reboot
In computing, rebooting is the process by which a running computer system is restarted, either intentionally or unintentionally. Reboots can be either a cold reboot (alternatively known as a hard reboot) in which the power to the system is physi ...
of the DCEU that moved away from the actors cast by Snyder,
that Matt Reeves's ''The Batman'' films would be integrated with the DCU,
and that
Aquaman
Aquaman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Paul Norris and Mort Weisinger, the character debuted in ''More Fun Comics'' #73 (November 1941). The character is a pastiche of Namor. Initially ...
actor
Jason Momoa
Joseph Jason Namakaeha Momoa (; born August 1, 1979) is an American actor. He made his acting debut as Jason Ioane on the syndicated action drama series '' Baywatch: Hawaii'' (1999–2001), which was followed by portrayals of Ronon Dex on the ...
would be recast as the character
Lobo.
These reveals and rumors led to concerns within the industry and among DC fans about the direction Gunn and Safran were taking the franchise, and Gunn put out a statement saying they "were coming into a fractious environment" and there would be an "unavoidable transitional period as we moved into telling a cohesive story across film, TV, animation and gaming".
A week later, Gunn announced that he and Safran had a slate of projects "ready to go" and more details would be provided in 2023, but he did reveal that he was writing a new Superman film that would not star Cavill.
Ben Affleck
Benjamin Géza Affleck (born August 15, 1972) is an American actor and filmmaker. His accolades include two Academy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards and a Volpi Cup.
Affleck began his career as a child when he starred in the PBS educationa ...
was also confirmed to not be reprising his DCEU
Batman
Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...
role moving forward. Gunn and Safran had discussions with Cavill and Affleck about returning to the DCU to respectively portray a new character and direct a project,
but Affleck later said he was not interested in directing a DCU project.
Chapter One: Gods and Monsters
In January 2023, the DCU was reported to be a "broad but not blanket reset" of the DCEU.
On January 31, Gunn and Safran unveiled the first projects from the DCU slate.
They revealed the writers who had been working with them on the overall story for the DCU:
Drew Goddard
Andrew Brion Hogan Goddard (born February 26, 1975) is an American filmmaker. He began his career writing episodes for the television shows ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'', ''Angel'', ''Alias'', and ''Lost''. After moving into screenwriting in fi ...
,
Jeremy Slater
Jeremy Slater is an American writer and producer of film and television, known for his work on films such as ''Fantastic Four'' and ''Death Note'', and on television series such as ''The Umbrella Academy'' and ''The Exorcist'', which Slater crea ...
, ''The Flash'' writer
Christina Hodson
Christina Hodson is a British screenwriter, known for ''Bumblebee'' (2018) and ''Birds of Prey'' (2020). Her 2016 film '' Shut In'' appeared on the 2012 Black List, an annual list of Hollywood's best-liked unproduced screenplays, as have two ...
, Christal Henry, and comic book writer
Tom King.
The group had planned two "chapters" of story for the eight-to-ten-year plan, with the potential for more chapters after that.
The first chapter was titled "Gods and Monsters", with its first five films being ''Superman: Legacy'' (2025), ''The Authority'', ''The Brave and the Bold'', ''Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow'', and ''Swamp Thing'' and its first five television series being ''Creature Commandos'', ''Waller'', ''Lanterns'', ''Paradise Lost'', and ''Booster Gold''.
Gunn noted that this slate combined DC's "diamond characters", such as Batman, Superman, and
Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byr ...
, with lesser known characters who they hoped would become just as popular. Any DC projects that did not fit within the shared universe would be labeled "DC Elseworlds".
The writers took inspiration from the ''
Star Wars
''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop-culture Cultural impact of S ...
'' franchise, which has "different times, different places, different things", as well as from the series ''
Game of Thrones
''Game of Thrones'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss for HBO. It is an adaptation of ''A Song of Ice and Fire'', a series of fantasy novels by George R. R. Martin, the first ...
'' (2011–2019) and its morally complex characters.
Gunn said ''The Flash'' would "reset" the DCEU continuity,
making the DCU a "
soft reboot" that retains certain cast members and elements of the DCEU while replacing others.
Gunn and Safran primarily selected the elements that are carried over based on actors.
The pair expected characters to be portrayed by the same actors across mediums, including animation.
They said
Viola Davis
Viola Davis (; born August 11, 1965) is an American actress and producer. The recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and two Tony Awards, she is the only African-American to achieve the Triple Crow ...
(
Amanda Waller
Amanda Blake Waller (née White), also known as "the Wall", is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in ''Legends'' #1 in 1986 and was created by John Ostrander, Len Wein, and ...
) and
John Cena
John Felix Anthony Cena ( ; born April 23, 1977) is an American part-time professional wrestler, actor, and former rapper. He is currently signed to WWE. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, he is tied w ...
(
Peacemaker
Peacemaker or The Peacemaker (in various forms) may refer to:
Individuals and groups
* UN Peacemaker, a project of the UN to support international peacemakers and mediators
* Peace makers, a list of contemporary individuals and organizations inv ...
) would reprise their ''The Suicide Squad'' and ''Peacemaker'' roles in the DCU, and a "rough memory" of the events of those projects would remain. There was potential for Momoa,
Gal Gadot
Gal Gadot-Varsano ( he, גל גדות ; born 30 April 1985) is an Israeli actress and model. At age 18, she was crowned Miss Israel 2004. She then served in the Israel Defense Forces for two years as a combat fitness instructor, whereafter sh ...
(
Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byr ...
),
Ezra Miller
Ezra Matthew Miller (born September 30, 1992) is an American actor. Their feature film debut was in '' Afterschool'' (2008), which they followed by starring in the drama '' We Need to Talk About Kevin'' (2011) and '' The Perks of Being a Wallf ...
(
the Flash
The Flash (or simply Flash) is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, the original Flash first appeared in ''Flash Comics'' #1 (cover date ...
), and
Zachary Levi
Zachary Levi Pugh ( ; born September 29, 1980) is an American actor. He received critical acclaim for starring as Chuck Bartowski in the series ''Chuck'', and as the title character in '' Shazam!'' and its 2023 sequel, as a part of the DC Ext ...
(
Shazam) to also reprise their roles, but decisions on those characters had not been made. No actor would be playing multiple characters, so if they did cast Momoa as Lobo, he would not portray Aquaman in the DCU as well.
Gunn added that the then-upcoming DCEU film ''
Blue Beetle
Blue Beetle is the name of three fictional superheroes who appear in a number of American comic books published by a variety of companies since 1939. The most recent of the companies to own rights to Blue Beetle is DC Comics, which bought the ri ...
'' (2023) was disconnected from previous DCEU entries and could connect to the DCU,
which was reiterated by the film's director
Angel Manuel Soto
Angel Manuel Soto (born January 28, 1983) is a Puerto Rican film director, producer, and screenwriter.
Early life
Angel Manuel Soto was born in Santurce, San Juan, Puerto Rico, Santurce, a neighborhood in San Juan, Puerto Rico. His parents wer ...
, who said it was part of future DCU plans.
Gunn and Safran soon clarified that
Xolo Maridueña
Xolo Maridueña (; born June 9, 2001) is an American actor. His roles include Miguel Diaz in the Netflix series ''Cobra Kai'', Victor Graham in the NBC TV series '' Parenthood'', and Jaime Reyes / Blue Beetle in the upcoming DC Extended Univer ...
's
Jaime Reyes / Blue Beetle would continue in the DCU but the film itself would stand on its own.
Safran said they were being flexible with the DCU's release order, though some projects key to the overall story would need to be released in a specific order. He added that they were aiming to release two films and two HBO Max series a year.
Gunn felt studios being "beholden to dates" was an industry-wide issue and wanted to focus on getting the screenplays right for each project before putting them into production. He said this happened with ''The Suicide Squad'' and that film did not require any
reshoots unlike other DCEU projects.
Contrasting the DCU with the MCU, Gunn said the former was set in a "fictional universe" with an
alternate history
Alternate history (also alternative history, althist, AH) is a genre of speculative fiction of stories in which one or more historical events occur and are resolved differently than in real life. As conjecture based upon historical fact, altern ...
and locations such as
Metropolis
A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural center for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications.
A big c ...
,
Gotham City
Gotham City ( ), or simply Gotham, is a fictional city appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, best known as the home of the superhero Batman and his allies and foes. Created by writer Bill Finger and artist Bob Kane, the cit ...
,
Themyscira, and
Atlantis
Atlantis ( grc, Ἀτλαντὶς νῆσος, , island of Atlas (mythology), Atlas) is a fictional island mentioned in an allegory on the hubris of nations in Plato's works ''Timaeus (dialogue), Timaeus'' and ''Critias (dialogue), Critias'' ...
, while the MCU is set in a version of the real world;
he expected the DCU to be more planned out from the beginning than the MCU was due to the group of writers working on the DCU's overall story;
the DCU focuses on traditional superheroes with
secret identities
A secret identity is a person's alter ego which is not known to the general populace, most often used in fiction. Brought into popular culture by the Scarlet Pimpernel in 1903, the concept was widespread in pulp heroes and is particularly prevalent ...
;
and DCU projects were announced to be based on specific comic book runs and story arcs compared to the MCU approach of taking different elements from throughout
Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...
history.
The day after the slate announcement, several of those comics appeared on best-selling lists and some had sold out.
Films
''Superman: Legacy'' (2025)
Although it is not an
origin story
In entertainment, an origin story is an account or backstory revealing how a character or group of people become a protagonist or antagonist, and it adds to the overall interest and complexity of a narrative, often giving reasons for their intent ...
, the film focuses on a young version of
Superman
Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...
as a reporter interacting with key characters such as
Lois Lane
Lois Lane is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, she first appeared in ''Action Comics'' #1 (June 1938). Lois is an award-winning journalist for ...
,
as he goes on a journey to reconcile his
Kryptonian
Kryptonians are a fictional extraterrestrial race within the DC Comics universe that originated on the planet Krypton. The term originated from the stories of DC Comics superhero, Superman. The stories also use "Kryptonian" as an adjective to re ...
heritage with his human family in
Smallville
''Smallville'' is an American superhero television series developed by writer-producers Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, based on the DC Comics character Superman created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. The series was produced by Millar Gough ...
,
Kansas
Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...
.
Safran described Superman in the film as "the embodiment of truth, justice and the American way; he's kindness in a world that thinks of kindness as old fashioned".
Gunn and Safran considered the film to be the true beginning of the DCU.
After becoming co-CEO of DC Studios on November 1, 2022,
Gunn was already writing a new DC film by the middle of that month.
In December, he said Superman was a big priority, if not the biggest priority, for DC Studios,
before announcing that he was writing a new Superman film with the potential to also direct.
He said it would not star the DCEU's Henry Cavill because the script focused on a younger version of Superman.
When Gunn and Safran unveiled the first projects from their DCU slate in January 2023, the film was revealed to be titled ''Superman: Legacy'' and was given a release date of July 11, 2025.
Gunn said the film would take specific inspiration from the comic book ''
All-Star Superman
''All-Star Superman'' is a twelve-issue American comic book series featuring Superman that was published by DC Comics. The series ran from November 2005 to October 2008. The series was written by Grant Morrison, drawn by Frank Quitely, and digita ...
'' (2005–2008) by
Grant Morrison
Grant Morrison, MBE (born 31 January 1960) is a Scottish comic book writer, screenwriter, and producer. Their work is known for its nonlinear narrative
A narrative, story, or tale is any account of a series of related events or experiences, w ...
and
Frank Quitely
Vincent Patrick Deighan (born 1968), better known by the pen name Frank Quitely, is a Scottish comic book artist. He is best known for his frequent collaborations with Grant Morrison on titles such as '' New X-Men'', ''We3'', '' All-Star Supe ...
.
In March, Gunn confirmed he would direct, with Safran producing.
David Corenswet
David Packard Corenswet (born July 8, 1993) is an American actor. After graduating from the Juilliard School in 2016, he began guest starring in television series, including ''House of Cards'' in 2018. He then played lead roles in the Netflix seri ...
and
Rachel Brosnahan
Rachel Elizabeth Brosnahan (born July 12, 1990) is an American actress. She stars as aspiring stand-up comedian Miriam "Midge" Maisel in the Amazon Prime Video period comedy series ''The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel'' (2017–present), for which she w ...
were cast as Superman and Lois Lane in June.
Filming is scheduled to begin in January 2024,
in Atlanta.
By June 2023, members of
the Authority were expected to be introduced in the film ahead of their own film.
Other superheroes are also set to be introduced in the film,
including
Nathan Fillion
Nathan Fillion (; born March 27, 1971) is a Canadian-American actor. He played the leading roles of Captain Malcolm "Mal" Reynolds on '' Firefly'' and its film continuation '' Serenity'', and Richard Castle on '' Castle''. , he was starring as J ...
as
Guy Gardner Guy Gardner may refer to:
* Guy Gardner (astronaut) (born 1948), United States Air Force officer and former astronaut
* Guy Gardner (character)
Guy Gardner, one of the characters known as Green Lantern, is a superhero appearing in American comic ...
, one of the
Green Lantern
Green Lantern is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. They fight evil with the aid of rings that grant them a variety of extraordinary powers, all of which come from imagination, fearlessness, ...
s. Fillion previously portrayed
Cory Pitzner / T.D.K. (The Detachable Kid) in ''The Suicide Squad''.
''The Authority''
Gunn described
the Authority as a team who thinks "the world is completely broken. And the only way to fix it is to take things into their own hands, whether that means killing people, destroying heads of state, changing governments, you know, whatever they want to do to make the world better".
Safran compared the morally complex team to
Jack Nicholson
John Joseph Nicholson (born April 22, 1937) is an American retired actor and filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest actors of all time. In many of his films, he played rebels against the social structure. He received numerous ...
's character in ''
A Few Good Men
''A Few Good Men'' is a 1992 American legal drama film based on Aaron Sorkin's 1989 play. It was written by Sorkin, directed by Rob Reiner, and produced by Reiner, David Brown and Andrew Scheinman. It stars an ensemble cast including Tom C ...
'' (1992).
When Gunn and Safran unveiled the first projects from their DCU slate in January 2023 they included a film based on the superhero team the Authority which was created by
Warren Ellis
Warren Girard Ellis (born 16 February 1968) is a British comic book writer, novelist, and screenwriter. He is best known as the co-creator of several original comics series, including ''Transmetropolitan'' (1997–2002), ''Global Frequency'' ( ...
and
Bryan Hitch
Bryan Hitch (born 22 April 1970) is a British comics artist and writer. Hitch began his career in the United Kingdom for Marvel UK, working on titles such as ''Action Force'' and ''Death's Head'', before gaining prominence on American titles ...
for the independent comic book publisher
WildStorm
Wildstorm Productions, (stylized as WildStorm), is an American comic book imprint. Originally founded as an independent company established by Jim Lee under the name "Aegis Entertainment" and expanded in subsequent years by other creators, Wilds ...
. WildStorm was acquired by DC Comics and its characters, including the Authority, were introduced to the DC comics continuity in 2011. Similarly, Gunn and Safran intended to include WildStorm's characters in their own DC Universe continuity, starting with the Authority.
Gunn said the film was a passion project of his and he had been working on an outline for it with the other DC Studios writers.
Gunn said the film would have connections to Superman.
''The Brave and the Bold''
The film explores members of the "
Bat-Family", including introducing
Batman
Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...
's son
Damian Wayne
Damian Wayne, also known as Damian al Ghul (Arabic: دميان الغول), is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, created by Grant Morrison and Andy Kubert, commonly in association with Batman. He is the son o ...
as a version of
Robin. Gunn said the film would be a "strange father and son story" about Batman and Robin.
After Gunn and Safran were hired, Zaslav said of their new plan for the DCU, "There's not going to be four Batmans".
In December 2022, Gunn said Batman would be "a big part of the DCU".
When Gunn and Safran unveiled the first projects from their DCU slate a month later they included ''The Brave and the Bold'' which introduces the DCU version of Batman. Gunn said the film was based on Grant Morrison's 2006 to 2013 run on the comics.
Ben Affleck was confirmed to not be reprising his DCEU role of Batman,
while Matt Reeves's version of Batman was expected to continue separately from the DCU's version under the DC Elseworlds label.
''The Flash'' director
Andy Muschietti
Andrés Muschietti (; born August 26, 1973) is an Argentine filmmaker who achieved wide recognition with the 2013 film ''Mama'' which he made with Neil Cross and his sister, producer and screenwriter Barbara Muschietti, based on their three-minut ...
was hired to direct the film in June 2023,
with
Barbara Muschietti
Bárbara Muschietti (born December 22, 1971) is an Argentine film producer and screenwriter, best known for producing the 2013 horror film ''Mama'' and the 2017 and 2019 adaptations of Stephen King's '' It'', all of which were directed by her bro ...
co-producing alongside Gunn and Safran.
''Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow''
Described by Gunn as "a big
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...
epic film",
the film contrasts the jaded character
Kara Zor-El / Supergirl, who was raised on a chunk of the destroyed planet
Krypton
Krypton (from grc, κρυπτός, translit=kryptos 'the hidden one') is a chemical element with the symbol Kr and atomic number 36. It is a colorless, odorless, tasteless noble gas that occurs in trace amounts in the atmosphere and is often ...
and watched everyone around her die, with her cousin Superman who was raised on Earth by loving parents.
When Gunn and Safran unveiled the first projects from their DCU slate in January 2023 they included a film adaptation of the comic book miniseries ''
Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow'' (2021–22) by King and Bilquis Evely.
''Swamp Thing''
A
Gothic
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
horror film
Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes.
Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoca ...
that explores the "dark origins" of
Swamp Thing
The Swamp Thing is a superhero in American comic books published by DC Comics. A humanoid/plant elemental List of swamp monsters, creature, created by writer Len Wein and artist Bernie Wrightson, the Swamp Thing has had several humanoid or mo ...
.
In December 2022,
James Mangold
James Allen Mangold (born December 16, 1963) is an American filmmaker. He is best known for the films ''Cop Land'' (1997), '' Girl, Interrupted'' (1999), ''Walk the Line'' (2005), '' 3:10 to Yuma'' (2007), '' The Wolverine'' (2013) and '' Logan'' ...
was reported to be interested in working with Gunn and Safran on a DCU project.
When the pair unveiled the first projects from their DCU slate in January 2023, they included a new Swamp Thing film.
Gunn said it would take specific inspiration from
Alan Moore
Alan Moore (born 18 November 1953) is an English author known primarily for his work in comic books including ''Watchmen'', ''V for Vendetta'', ''The Ballad of Halo Jones'', ''Swamp Thing'', ''Batman:'' ''The Killing Joke'', and ''From Hell' ...
's 1984–85 ''
The Saga of the Swamp Thing'' comic book run.
After the announcement, Mangold posted a picture of Swamp Thing on social media. He was confirmed to be in negotiations to write and direct the film the next day, but was not expected to start work on it until he had completed ''
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
''Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny'' is an upcoming American action adventure film starring Harrison Ford as archaeologist Indiana Jones in the fifth installment of the ''Indiana Jones'' film series, following ''Indiana Jones and the Ki ...
'' (2023) and a
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
biopic.
Mangold's involvement was confirmed that April when he had begun writing. He was working on a
planned ''Star Wars'' film at the same time, and was unsure which project would move forward first. Gunn described ''Swamp Thing'' as a passion project for Mangold.
Despite being tonally darker than other DCU projects, Gunn and Safran intend for ''Swamp Thing'' to be interconnected with the rest of the DCU.
Other films
In March 2023, filmmaker
Mike Flanagan and his
Intrepid Pictures
Intrepid Pictures is an American independent film and television production company dedicated to producing elevated commercial content for global mainstream audiences. It was founded in 2004 by Trevor Macy and Marc D. Evans, and is currently run ...
partner Trevor Macy met with Gunn and Safran regarding a film centered on the character
Clayface
Clayface is an alias used by several supervillains appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Most incarnations of the character possess clay-like bodies and shapeshifting abilities, and all of them have been depicted as List of Bat ...
, in which he would not be the villain that he typically is portrayed as in the comics. If the film were to move forward it was unclear at the time if it would be part of the DCU or an Elseworlds film;
Matt Reeves
Matt Reeves (born April 27, 1966) is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. He first gained recognition for the WB drama series ''Felicity (TV series), Felicity'' (1998–2002), which he co-created with J. J. Abrams. Reeves came t ...
's ''
The Batman – Part II
''The Batman'' is a 2022 American superhero film based on the DC Comics character Batman. Produced by DC Films, 6th & Idaho, and Dylan Clark Productions, and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, it is a reboot of the ''Batman'' film fran ...
'' (2025) was also expected to feature the character.
Television series
''Creature Commandos''
Amanda Waller
Amanda Blake Waller (née White), also known as "the Wall", is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in ''Legends'' #1 in 1986 and was created by John Ostrander, Len Wein, and ...
assembles a black ops team of monsters consisting of
Rick Flag Sr.,
Nina Mazursky,
Doctor Phosphorus
Doctor Phosphorus (Dr. Alexander James Sartorius) is a fictional supervillain who has appeared in various comic book series published by DC Comics. Primarily an enemy of Batman, the villain exists in DC's main shared universe, known as the DC Uni ...
,
Eric Frankenstein, the
Bride of Frankenstein
''Bride of Frankenstein'' is a 1935 American science fiction horror film, and the first sequel to Universal Pictures' 1931 film ''Frankenstein''. As with the first film, ''Bride of Frankenstein'' was directed by James Whale starring Boris Karlo ...
,
G.I. Robot, and
Weasel
Weasels are mammals of the genus ''Mustela'' of the family Mustelidae. The genus ''Mustela'' includes the least weasels, polecats, stoats, ferrets and European mink. Members of this genus are small, active predators, with long and slender bo ...
.
In January 2023, Gunn revealed that he was in the middle of writing a new DCU television series.
When Gunn and Safran unveiled the first projects from their DCU slate later that month, the first project was ''Creature Commandos'', an animated series for HBO Max based on a black ops team
of the same name featuring various monsters from
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery.
DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...
. Gunn had already written the seven episodes and the series had started production.
Warner Bros. Animation
Warner Bros. Animation Inc. is an American animation studio which is part of the Warner Bros. Television Studios division of Warner Bros., a flagship of Warner Bros. Discovery. As the successor to Warner Bros. Cartoons, which was active from 1 ...
co-produces the series.
The main cast was confirmed in April,
including
Frank Grillo
Frank Anthony Grillo (born June 8, 1965) is an American actor and martial artist. He played Brock Rumlow in the Marvel Cinematic Universe films '' Captain America: The Winter Soldier'' (2014), '' Captain America: Civil War'' (2016), '' Avengers: ...
and
Indira Varma
Indira Anne Varma (born 27 September 1973) is a British actress and narrator. Her film debut and first major role was in '' Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love''. She has gone on to appear in the television series ''The Canterbury Tales'', ''Rome'', ''L ...
respectively headlining the series as Rick Flag Sr. and the Bride of Frankenstein—the latter is the lead role of the series.
Voice recording began by May 2023.
It is scheduled to be released on the streaming service
Max in 2024,
as an "aperitif" for the DCU before ''Superman: Legacy''.
Waller, Weasel, and Flag's son
Rick Flag Jr.
Rick may refer to:
People
*Rick (given name), a list of people with the given name
*Alan Rick (born 1976), Brazilian politician, journalist, pastor and television personality
*Johannes Rick (1869–1946), Austrian-born Brazilian priest and mycol ...
previously appeared in ''The Suicide Squad''.
Sean Gunn
Sean Gunn (born May 22, 1974) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Kirk Gleason on The WB series ''Gilmore Girls'' (2000–2007), and Kraglin Obfonteri in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In this role, he has been in the films ''Gu ...
reprises his role as Weasel from the film, while Viola Davis and
Steve Agee
Steven Douglas Agee (; born February 26, 1969) is an American comedian, actor, writer and musician, known for roles including Steve Myron on the Comedy Central series ''The Sarah Silverman Program'' and as John Economos in the 2021 superhero fil ...
reprise their respective roles as Waller and
John Economos from the film and ''Peacemaker''.
''Waller''
Following the events of ''Peacemaker''
first-season finale, ''Waller'' continues the story of Amanda Waller and "Team Peacemaker".
In May 2022, a ''Peacemaker'' spin-off series was revealed to be in development featuring Amanda Waller, with Christal Henry writing and serving as executive producer alongside Gunn and Safran.
When Gunn and Safran unveiled the first projects from their DCU slate in January 2023, the second project was ''Waller'', which Gunn said would be a continuation of ''Peacemaker'' because that series' second season was delayed while Gunn focused on the rest of the DCU slate. Henry was set as co-showrunner of ''Waller'' alongside
Jeremy Carver
Jeremy Carver is an American television writer and producer. He developed the series '' Being Human'' (2011–2014), ''Frequency'' (2016–2017), and ''Doom Patrol'' (2019–present). Carver was also a writer and producer on the series ''Superna ...
, and Viola Davis was confirmed to be reprising her role as Waller from ''Peacemaker'' and the DCEU.
The series is scheduled to be released in 2024,
as an "aperitif" for the DCU before ''Superman: Legacy''.
Additional ''Peacemaker'' cast members reprise their roles in the series,
including Steve Agee as Economos.
''Lanterns''
Hal Jordan
Harold "Hal" Jordan, one of the characters known as Green Lantern, is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created in 1959 by writer John Broome and artist Gil Kane, and first appeared in '' ...
and
John Stewart, two
Green Lantern
Green Lantern is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. They fight evil with the aid of rings that grant them a variety of extraordinary powers, all of which come from imagination, fearlessness, ...
s (intergalactic heroes who wear rings that give them extraordinary powers), investigate a mystery on Earth.
Gunn confirmed in December 2022 that the Green Lantern characters would be an important part of the new DCU.
When he and Safran unveiled the first projects from their DCU slate later that month they included ''Lanterns'', a new iteration of a long-in-development Green Lantern series. Safran said the series would be an Earth-based
detective story
Detective fiction is a subgenre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an investigator or a detective—whether professional, amateur or retired—investigates a crime, often murder. The detective genre began around the same time as specu ...
and "a huge HBO-quality event" in the style of the series ''
True Detective
''True Detective'' is an American anthology crime drama television series created and written by Nic Pizzolatto. The series, broadcast by the premium cable network HBO in the United States, premiered on January 12, 2014. Each season of the ...
'' (2014–present).
Safran said the mystery that Jordan and Stewart investigate in the series leads into the main storyline for the DCU.
''Paradise Lost''
This series is a
political drama
A political drama can describe a play, film or TV program that has a political component, whether reflecting the author's political opinion, or describing a politician or series of political events.
Dramatists who have written political dramas in ...
about the scheming and power struggles on the all-female island of
Themyscira before the birth of Wonder Woman.
In December 2022, Jenkins was revealed to no longer be developing a sequel to ''Wonder Woman'' and ''Wonder Woman 1984'' after being told by Gunn and Safran that such a film did not fit within their new plans.
When Gunn and Safran unveiled the first projects from their DCU slate a month later they included ''Paradise Lost'', which they compared to ''
Game of Thrones
''Game of Thrones'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss for HBO. It is an adaptation of ''A Song of Ice and Fire'', a series of fantasy novels by George R. R. Martin, the first ...
'' (2011–2019). The title is similar to "
Paradise Island Lost", a comic book story arc by
Phil Jimenez
Phil Jimenez (born July 12, 1970) is an award-winning American comics artist and writer known for his work as writer/artist on ''Wonder Woman'' from 2000 to 2003, as one of the five pencilers of the 2005–2006 miniseries ''Infinite Crisis'', his ...
and
George Pérez
George Pérez (; June 9, 1954 – May 6, 2022) was an American comic book artist and writer, who worked primarily as a penciller. He came to prominence in the 1970s penciling ''Fantastic Four (comic book), Fantastic Four'' and ''The Avengers (co ...
about a civil war on Themyscira.
''Booster Gold''
Mike Carter / Booster Gold is a disgraced former football star in the 25th century who travels back in time to pose as a superhero using basic future technology.
When Gunn and Safran unveiled the first projects from their DCU slate in January 2023 they included ''Booster Gold'', an "outright comedy" series set in the DCU.
Other series
HBO Max announced a second season of ''Peacemaker'' in February 2022, with Gunn set to write and direct all episodes.
He said it would explore the repercussions, good and bad, of the first season's events.
When Gunn and Safran unveiled the first projects from their DCU slate in January 2023, they said ''Waller'' was being worked on instead of ''Peacemaker'' second season because Gunn was busy writing ''Superman: Legacy''.
In February, Gunn confirmed that ''Peacemaker'' was not canceled and said work on the second season would continue after ''Waller'' had been made,
later saying the season was his next project and would be released after ''Superman: Legacy''.
Video games
After announcing the initial DCU projects, Gunn confirmed plans to include new video games in the DCU's shared storyline and said these games would be used to tell new stories that could bridge the gap between films and series. They were also being developed so audiences who do not play video games would not lose any overall story elements. He expected the games to take around four years to make.
DC Elseworlds
When announcing the first projects for the DCU in January 2023, Gunn said any project that did not fit into the DCU's shared universe would be labeled as "DC Elseworlds" moving forward. This is the same as how DC Comics uses the Elseworlds imprint to mark comic books that are separate from the main continuity.
Safran said there was a high bar that non-DCU projects would have to meet to be greenlit.
Gunn later confirmed that
DC's long-form animated films would continue at DC Studios under the Elseworlds label.
The following projects have been confirmed as part of the "DC Elseworlds" label:
* The animated series ''
Teen Titans Go!
''Teen Titans Go!'' is an American animated television series developed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic for Cartoon Network. It premiered on April 23, 2013 and is based on the DC Comics Teen Titans, fictional superhero team. The series was ...
'' (2013–present)
* Director
Todd Phillips
Todd Phillips (né Bunzl, born December 20, 1970) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He began his career in 1993 and directed films in the 2000s such as ''Road Trip (film), Road Trip'', ''Old School (film), Old School'', ...
's films ''
Joker'' (2019) and ''
Joker: Folie à Deux'' (2024)
* The animated series ''
Harley Quinn
Harley Quinn is a character (arts), character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Quinn was created by Paul Dini and Bruce Timm as a comic relief henchwoman for the supervillain Joker (character), Joker in ''Batman: The An ...
'' (2019–present)
* The live-action series ''
Superman & Lois
''Superman & Lois'' is an American superhero drama television series developed for The CW by Todd Helbing and Greg Berlanti, based on the DC Comics characters Superman and Lois Lane, created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. Tyler Hoechlin and E ...
'' (2021–present)
* Director
Matt Reeves
Matt Reeves (born April 27, 1966) is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. He first gained recognition for the WB drama series ''Felicity (TV series), Felicity'' (1998–2002), which he co-created with J. J. Abrams. Reeves came t ...
's Batman shared universe:
** Films ''
The Batman
Batman is a fictional superhero appearing in comic books published by DC Comics.
Batman or The Batman may also refer to:
Art, entertainment, and media
Characters
* Batman (Terry McGinnis)
* Batman (Thomas Wayne)
* Batman (Earth-Two)
* Batma ...
'' (2022) and ''
The Batman – Part II
''The Batman'' is a 2022 American superhero film based on the DC Comics character Batman. Produced by DC Films, 6th & Idaho, and Dylan Clark Productions, and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, it is a reboot of the ''Batman'' film fran ...
'' (2025),
as well as an in-development third ''The Batman'' film
** Spin-off series ''
The Penguin
The Penguin is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an adversary of the superhero Batman. The character made his first appearance in ''Detective Comics'' #58 (December 1941) and was created by Bob ...
'',
as well as in-development series featuring
Arkham Asylum
The Elizabeth Arkham Asylum for the Criminally Insane (), commonly referred to as Arkham Asylum, is a fictional psychiatric hospital/prison, named after the city of Arkham which appeared first in the stories of H. P. Lovecraft, and later appear ...
and the
Gotham City Police Department
Gotham City ( ), or simply Gotham, is a fictional city appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, best known as the home of the superhero Batman and his List of Batman supporting characters#Bat-Family, allies and List of Batman fa ...
* A planned
Black-led Superman film written by
Ta-Nehisi Coates
Ta-Nehisi Paul Coates ( ; born September 30, 1975) is an American author and journalist. He gained a wide readership during his time as national correspondent at ''The Atlantic'', where he wrote about cultural, social, and political issues, parti ...
and produced by
J.J. Abrams
Jeffrey Jacob Abrams (born June 27, 1966) is an American filmmaker and composer. He is best known for his works in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. Abrams wrote and produced such films as ''Regarding Henry'' (1991), '' For ...
* A planned sequel to the film ''
Constantine
Constantine most often refers to:
* Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from 306 to 337, also known as Constantine I
*Constantine, Algeria, a city in Algeria
Constantine may also refer to:
People
* Constantine (name), a masculine given name ...
'' (2005) with director
Francis Lawrence
Francis Lawrence (born March 26, 1971) is an Austrian-born American filmmaker and producer. After establishing himself as a director of music videos and commercials, Lawrence made his feature-length directorial debut with the superhero thrille ...
and star
Keanu Reeves
Keanu Charles Reeves ( ; born September 2, 1964) is a Canadian actor. Born in Beirut and raised in Toronto, Reeves began acting in theatre productions and in television films before making his feature film debut in '' Youngblood'' (1986). ...
returning
See also
*
List of films based on DC Comics publications
DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book publishers. It produces material featuring numerous well-known superhero characters, including Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, The Flash, Aquaman, and Green Arrow. ...
*
List of television series based on DC Comics publications
*
DC Extended Universe
The DC Extended Universe (DCEU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on a series of superhero films and television series produced by DC Studios and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. It is based on characters that ...
*
Arrowverse
The Arrowverse is an American superhero media franchise and a shared universe that is centered on various interconnected television series based on DC Comics superhero characters, primarily airing on The CW as well as web series on CW Seed. ...
References
External links
Movieson
DC.com
TV serieson DC.com
{{Portal bar, Film, Television, United States, Speculative fiction, Comics
Continuity (fiction)
DC Comics franchises
Fictional universes
Films based on DC Comics
Shared universes
Television shows based on DC Comics
Warner Bros. franchises