James Gunn’s tenure at DCU began with The Suicide Squad and its immediate spin-off, the critically acclaimed HBO Max series Peacemaker. But the director’s vision hadn’t ended there, as his election as the DC Studios chief, alongside producer Peter Safran, had become a telltale sign of the CBM franchise’s bright days ahead. After a long time, the DC Universe finally gets direction and purpose behind its otherwise listless wandering.
The past decade has now been condensed into the minuscule capacity of two months within which the director plans to submit his DC Universe Bible’s proposal to the higher-ups at Warner Bros. Discovery for their final confirmation.
James Gunn’s 10-Year Plan Gets Underway at DC Studios
Amid massive slashing of projects, cancellations, rumored spin-off movies, and expansion of the DC mainstream universe, James Gunn has been swamped up to his neck in ideas about where next to tread in the vast waters of the comic book franchise. At the time of his appointment as the DC Studios head, the direct orders were to focus on an interconnected narrative covering the expanse of the coming decade. Given his visionary approach toward the CBM industry (as witnessed with both Marvel as well as DC), it wasn’t a tall order and the director was unanimously praised, vetted, and congratulated by the fans as well as critics in his new role.
The weeks that followed witnessed James Gunn actively working and simultaneously dropping by on Twitter or Hive Social to tease his formative plans. Among the ideas that caught the most attention was his indication of a Kingdom Come arc. But the excitement at such an ambitious project finding a home in DC soon was replaced by the dreaded reports of the SnyderVerse era heroes being completely scrapped out of existence.
At the moment, Man of Steel 2 and Black Adam 2 has been officially confirmed as a no-go by the authorities on the subject concerned. Wonder Woman 3 script, by Patty Jenkins, was decidedly declared as worse than its predecessor and the director’s exit from DC has now put Gal Gadot‘s trilogy at a crossroads. Jason Momoa‘s Aquaman, too, faces the hangman’s rope since reports indicate the actor will be pulled off the Atlantian’s roster and be recast as Lobo. And the subject of Batfleck has been ignored like the Black Plague in DC circles.
Fans Optimistic in the Face of Surmounting Tragedy at DCU
Even with the DCU completely metamorphosing into a new being in front of the eyes of its million-strong fandom, the people have been receptive to the change after the chaos that ensued after 2017’s Joss Whedon embarrassment. Every man for himself had become the ruling motto at DC and if not for David Zaslav’s iron-fisted rule in the initial few months after the WBD merger, the franchise would have still been listless and barely managing to stay afloat.
James Gunn’s focused outlook and re-envisioning of the DC Universe Bible features a similar trait to that of Zaslav’s and even though the aforementioned cancellations may hurt the fandom now, a completely new slate and a fresh start for the franchise’s narrative may be just what is essential for DCU’s survival and evolution.
Not that any of us is owed an explanation, but I love how transparent @JamesGunn is being with us. DC is in great hands being shepherded by Gunn and Safran. Trust the creative process. https://t.co/e5ERLZhTIW
— Mike Kalinowski (@MikeKalinowski) December 8, 2022
Yeah, I've sat through enough mediocre to terrible DC films post Dark Knight Trilogy that I wholeheartedly trust @JamesGunn to take this story wherever he wants to take it. I do hope to see a warm/optimistic Superman on screen again though– Cavill or not.https://t.co/iP0rYwVZXQ
— Mike Castro (@MikeCastroFilms) December 9, 2022
James Gunn being so open, patient, and willing to publicly interact with fans is so refreshing to see and something DC needed.
— Matt Ramos (@therealsupes) December 8, 2022
Critics and the fandom have been equally appreciative of everything that James Gunn has been doing since assuming office on November 1st. Considering how the previous management under Walter Hamada crumbled amid a putrid audience reception, it is indeed refreshing to witness the director and CEO taking a more transparent approach to communicating with the fandom and keeping his audience in the loop throughout these volatile times of change and transformation.
Source: Twitter | James Gunn
