Arrowverse creator Marc Guggenheim looked back at some of DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn‘s decisions regarding the development of the new DC Universe (DCU).
Gunn and his partner, Peter Safran, are hard at work developing a new round of movies and TV shows for the DC Universe, having just announced the Chapter 1: Gods and Monsters slate at the end of January.
To help intricately build this new story from the ground up, Gunn is putting together an impressive group of writers that will help him move the story forward, which already boasts talent such as Jeremy Slater from the MCU’s Moon Knight.
While there is plenty to be excited about with these new entries into the DC canon, changes this big are inevitably leading to some names from past DC projects being left in the rear-view mirror.
Arrowverse Creator Disappointed with James Gunn’s DCU Decision
In an excerpt from his personal online newsletter, Arrowverse creator Marc Guggenheim commented on the direction that the new DC Universe is taking under DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn, specifically touching on the franchise’s new writer’s room.
Guggenheim shared disappointment that Gunn made the decision not to contact him about including him in that group or even consulting him for his grand on-screen DC plans:
“Why am I saying this now?
Well, this week, James Gunn announced that he assembled a ‘writers room’ to help chart out what the new ‘DC Universe’ under his and James Safran’s leadership is going to be.
Suffice it to say, I am not among that group.
I’m not particularly surprised. In fact, I assumed that they would assemble some kind of brain trust to help facilitate what I assumed — hoped — would be a vision as ambitious as the DC Universe deserves.”
Not only was he not included in this writer’s room, but he didn’t even get a meeting after spending “nine years toiling in that vineyard” as he developed the Arrowverse for The CW.
But Guggenheim also admitted that there was “a lot of adversity, challenges, and personal sacrifices” that went into developing this DC world, although none of them benefitted him professionally the series ended:
“But I’ll be honest: I would have liked to have gotten at least a meeting.
Not a job, mind you. A meeting. A conversation. A small recognition of what I’d tried to contribute to the grand tapestry that is the DC Universe. I’d only spent nine years toiling in that vineyard, after all. (Not including many more years co-writing the ‘Green Lantern’ movie, a Green Lantern streaming series, and comic books like ‘The Flash’, ‘Batman Confidential’, ‘Adventures of Superman’, and ‘Justice Society of America’.)”
He followed up to say that he actually felt that he wasted his time working on that universe for so long, sacrificing much of his energy only for him to not have “accrued to any professional benefit” from his efforts:
“And then there was some other stuff which basically boiled down to me lamenting that although working for DC had been creatively fulfilling, it involved a lot of adversity, challenges, and personal sacrifices — none of which seem to have accrued to any professional benefit. Simply put, the Arrowverse hasn’t led to any other gigs, so it feels — at least on a career level — that I really wasted my time.”
James Gunn Disrespecting DC Creator with Major Decision?
While the Arrowverse appears to be coming to an end relatively soon, Marc Guggenheim clearly feels he didn’t get a lot of reward out of his time developing the expansive universe. And especially considering how much he put into a franchise that connected half a dozen different series, he’s confident that he would have been an important asset under Gunn’s tutelage.
Gunn already brought a few huge names in to help him build the new DCU, including Logan‘s James Mangold taking the reins on the Chapter 1 movie Swamp Thing.
But it’s obvious that Guggenheim felt slighted by not even being asked to take a meeting with Gunn after having worked with Green Arrow, the Flash, Supergirl, and countless other heroes in his own universe on The CW.
While Guggenheim’s future with the world of DC is unknown, even with the DCU expanding into an exciting new story, these quotes seem to confirm that fans won’t see him working on anything from this franchise anytime soon.
Chapter 1 of the DCU will begin in 2025 with Creature Commandos on HBO Max and Superman: Legacy in theaters.
