Though having largely started with a fresh slate, James Gunn confirms he will clear the air on the DC Universe‘s canon connections with the previous franchise, better known as the Snyderverse.
Gunn memorably joined the previous franchise, dubbed the DC Extended Universe, with 2021’s The Suicide Squad, before later taking over as DC Studios co-CEO in late 2023 and aiming to do a soft reboot of the franchise. Though this new era technically began with HBO Max’s Creature Commandos as part of its first chapter, “Gods and Monsters,” Gunn indicated that Xolo Maridueña’s Blue Beetle would return from his 2023 film, while Peacemaker season 2’s opening offered some better clarification on what was still considered canon in the DCU.
In response to a recent question on Threads about the lingering Snyderverse and DCU canon connections from the original Suicide Squad, his standalone sequel and Blue Beetle after sharing further insight on the Peacemaker season 2 podcast, Gunn acknowledged that he’s “been thinking about this a lot” in regard to the latter two movies. The DC Studios boss expressed that he’s “been meaning to rewatch both with an eye” directed toward any unspecified canonical ties, particularly “knowing what I know now almost three years” into the new franchise, along with the “couple more years of scripts being actively filmed or created.”
As such, Gunn shared that, after finishing production on his Superman sequel, Man of Tomorrow, and getting it out in July 2027, he may reunite with his stars and frequent collaborators, Jennifer Holland and Steve Agee, for “a special couple podcasts to discuss” any unspecified canon connections. He further opened the floor to questions from fans about what they “think is potentially or definitely NOT canon” from The Suicide Squad and Blue Beetle.
In addition to a variety of sequels and planned individual projects, the Snyderverse’s early ending memorably led to the scrapping of Zack Snyder’s two Justice League sequels to round out his trilogy story plans. While the years since have seen Gunn affirm a variety of conversations with Snyder, he’s also largely confirmed that the prior franchise is dead, while new projects, like the animated Mister Miracle, have recast key previous characters such as Darkseid.
Peacemaker season 2 had seemingly gone a long way to helping better clear up some of the unanswered canonical connections between the DCU and Snyderverse with its “Previously in the DCU” recap montage. The season 1 finale’s Justice League cameos were instead swapped to the Justice Gang, with only Nathan Fillion and Isabela Merced actually being visible as the Guy Gardner version of Green Lantern and Hawkgirl. Additionally, the other silhouettes were swapped to David Corenswet’s Superman, Edi Gathegi’s Mister Terrific and Milly Alcock’s Supergirl.
That being said, there are definitely a number of lingering questions from both The Suicide Squad and Blue Beetle tying the DCU to the Snyderverse that either a project will have to directly address, or Gunn himself. Idris Elba’s Bloodsport was memorably imprisoned due to shooting Superman with a Kryptonite bullet, though is still unknown if this was in reference to Corenswet’s or Henry Cavill’s.
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Additionally, Blue Beetle‘s infamous “Batman is a fascist” joke doesn’t have a clear indication as to which Batman the movie refers to, and a shot of the LexCorp building instead of LutherCorp, as shown in Superman and the rest of the DCU, has created a few inconsistencies. While the latter is easily resolvable through CGI touch-ups, much like the opening montage of Peacemaker season 2, there is also still the unknown fate of the original Blue Beetle, Ted Kord, which may very well be answered in the upcoming animated series.
Gunn’s indication that he’ll offer some definitive answers on the canonical connections between the DCU and Snyderverse is sure to come as a mixed update for fans of the prior franchise. On the one hand, should he confirm that a few elements from previous films are still remaining part of his new franchise plans, it may keep the ongoing hope alive for Gunn and Snyder to team together for either an Elseworlds continuation of the DCEU, or something more closely part of the current plan.
However, there is also the possibility that in the special podcast episodes, Gunn will officially shut down any further canonical connections between the DCU and Snyderverse. It would go a long way to help further set the new franchise apart from the previous one to fully write off any lingering ties between them. Given he indicates he wouldn’t have time to record said episodes until after Man of Tomorrow‘s release, it does seem likely that the answers won’t come until at least Fall 2027.
- Cast
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Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Ezra Miller, Ray Fisher, Jason Momoa, Amy Adams, Jesse Eisenberg, Laurence Fishburne, Jeremy Irons, Will Smith, Jared Leto, Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman, Viola Davis, Jai Courtney, Jay Hernandez, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Cara Delevingne, Chris Pine, Robin Wright, Zachary Levi, Dwayne Johnson, Amber Heard, Patrick Wilson, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Mark Strong, Asher Angel, Jack Dylan Grazer, Djimon Hounsou, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Jurnee Smollett, Rosie Perez, Ella Jay Basco, Ali Wong, Ewan McGregor, Idris Elba, John Cena, Michael Keaton, George Clooney, Xolo Mariduena
- Created by
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Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson
- Character(s)
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Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, The Flash, Cyborg, Harley Quinn, The Joker, Shazam, Darkseid, Amanda Waller, Lex Luthor, Doomsday, Deadshot, Deathstroke, Black Canary, Black Adam
- Movie(s)
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Man of Steel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Suicide Squad, Wonder Woman, Justice League, Aquaman, Shazam!, Birds of Prey, Wonder Woman 1984, Zack Snyder’s Justice League, The Suicide Squad, Black Adam, Shazam! The Fury of the Gods, The Flash, Blue Beetle, Superman, The Brave and the Bold
The DC Universe is one of the biggest comic book franchises and often competes with Marvel. DC Comics started as National Allied Publications, founded by Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson in 1935. Since then, the franchise has exploded with thousands of comic books, movies, TV shows, and video games. 2013 marked the beginning of the most recent iteration of the superheroes, with Zack Snyder introducing Henry Cavill as Superman. After several movies with mixed reviews, DC underwent a soft reboot under the helm of James Gunn and Peter Safran.
