James Gunn and his DC Studios co-president Peter Safran held a press event where they cleared up a lot of lingering questions about the DCU, and they revealed more than any of us could have guessed.
Some of their revelations were puzzling; movies that seemed like a sure thing, from Swamp Thing to The Authority, are in a holding pattern, and projects no outsider had any clue about were announced. A Green Lantern-inspired animated series about Jessica Cruz and one about Starfire were unveiled, among others.
Safran and Gunn say they had to pivot their focus to whatever is ready, which led to the fast-tracking of Clayface and Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow. It’s a minor, though noticeable, shift that puts a wrench in their plans.
They promised, however, there is a six-year plan they are sticking with, and unsurprisingly, it is going to follow a familiar pattern that was gangbusters down the street at Marvel. Gunn and Safran are steering the DCU into an Avengers-level denouement, but what it is, they aren’t saying.
All Gunn would divulge to press like The Hollywood Reporter is it’s an “Avengers: Endgame-style event,” and nothing more. Safran didn’t add much although he assured everybody present at their gathering, and those following the coverage, that they know where the broader story is headed.
Said the producer, “We’ve laid out internally a plan but we’re happy to pivot as we discover things in the making of Superman or Supergirl or scripts being written. There’s a flexibility built into it even though we know where the larger story is headed.”
Gunn reiterated his stance: “We are writer-driven. We are not going to greenlight or put anything into production until we are happy with the script… It is hard enough making a good movie with a good script, it’s almost impossible to make a movie with a script that you’re writing on the run.”
A lack of a script, good or bad, is holding back The Batman 2 but this apparently won’t hurt Matt Reeves’ future or alter Robert Pattnson’s status as The Dark Knight. Gunn and Safran still plan to introduce a separate Caped Crusader for their continuity even if he debuts before The Brave and The Bold.
He kind of did already for a few seconds in Creature Commandos, but nevertheless, he will probably be an integral part of the Justice League we can see portents of. After all, without the League, there is no point to an “Endgame” for the DCU.
The only mystery left is what that event will entail and if Gunn and Safran really are 100-percent sure of the direction they’ll take. Darkseid is a card they could play, paralleling the route the MCU took with Thanos, but it doesn’t look terribly likely that they will.
Gunn, for one, is on record going back years declaring that the use of Darkseid immediately after Thanos’ arc to accomplish the same goal would be repetitive and “weird.” That’s exactly what Zack Snyder did, and DC Studios doesn’t want to repeat the perceived mistakes of the DCEU if it wants to be a breath of fresh air.
However, they will probably go with a global threat that is possibly cosmic to some degree which could open the door to an old rumor Gunn only somewhat discredited. Despite the new announcements shaking up the Gods and Monsters slate, Gunn and Safran did not say they were putting the kibosh on the mystery lurking underneath the surface that will supposedly propel events forward.
Based on the rumors out there, which we covered way back, the mystery should tie Lanterns together with Swamp Thing especially as there’s a disturbance in the Force. This allegedly will be felt in The Green and warrant an investigation by the Corps. As we now know, that will be led likely by Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler) and John Stewart (Aaron Pierre).
The rumors pointed to The Centre and Dino-Island, the final boss of the Justice League story New Frontier, as the source of the disturbance. This claim led some to believe a movie based on the graphic novel was being discussed, and that was the part Gunn debunked. However, that doesn’t rule out The Centre as a big bad.
Furthermore, the high-concept kitsch of a sentient land mass with mutant dinosaurs for minions is right up Gunn’s alley. The Centre remains a compelling prime suspect for the DCU’s Thanos, even if it’s a good guess at best.