DC Studios' James Gunn Shares Production Update And Reveals Whether CRISIS Movie Is Connected To DCU

DC Studios' James Gunn Shares Production Update And Reveals Whether CRISIS Movie Is Connected To DCU

DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn has shared a couple of updates on where things stand with its upcoming projects and comments on the possibility of the Crisis on Infinite Earths movie being tied to the DCU.

By JoshWilding - Jan 09, 2024 06:01 AM EST
Filed Under: DC Studios

DC Studios co-CEO and Superman: Legacy director James Gunn continues to keep fans updated on social media about his and Peter Safran's DCU plans. 

There's a lot he doesn't say, of course, and we're still wondering why he hasn't responded to the back-and-forth about Gal Gadot's future as Wonder Woman. Regardless, his latest Q&A with inquisitive fans saw Gunn confirm Superman: Legacy won't be the only DCU project to enter production this year. 

What will be the other? Well, we've heard the plan is to get cameras rolling on Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow as soon as possible, though we'd imagine Lanterns and Waller are contenders on the television/streaming side. 

Gunn was also asked whether DC Animation's upcoming three-part Crisis on Infinite Earths movie is tied to the DCU in any way. It was mistakenly labelled as a "DC Universe" title shortly after being announced and conveniently comes at a time when DC Studios is rebooting these characters across all forms of media outside the comics.

Despite that, the filmmaker made it clear it's in no way connected to the "reset" he first promised would launch the DCU at the end of The Flash

The Superman: Legacy helmer later shared some fascinating insights into how pitches are made both in Hollywood and to DC Studios - you can read more here - and confirmed the reboot is a project Warner Bros. Discovery came to him with. 

"I didn’t pitch - it was offered to me," Gunn explained. "I just didn’t say yes until I was sure I had a solid story, which I pitched to individuals around me I trusted."

Gunn was also asked what he sees in comic book writer Tom King who this fan claimed is mostly "hated" by fans. King, who penned the Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow comic book series, is part of the DC Studios writer's room and expected to play a key role in establishing the DCU.

"He’s an amazing writer and a nice guy," Gunn made clear. "He’s written at least four of the best runs over the last few years (Miracle, Strange, WoT, and Human Target). The problem with being successful in the internet age - and he’s one of the most successful current comic book writers by any metric - is that there will always be a group of people who hate your guts."

It's been nearly a year since DC Studios unveiled its "Chapter 1: Gods and Monsters" slate and, with a disastrous 2023 for the DCEU in the rearview, the plan now is to focus on rebooting the franchise. 

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FireandBlood
FireandBlood - 1/9/2024, 6:27 AM
You can tell what Gunn pitched (Huntress, Plastic Man) and what WB insisted on (Superman, a new shared universe).
HashTagSwagg
HashTagSwagg - 1/9/2024, 6:56 AM
@FireandBlood - WB are in the right, they need to get the main recognizable draws in before Gunn can throw in the weird shit.
FireandBlood
FireandBlood - 1/9/2024, 6:59 AM
@HashTagSwagg - They shit all over their recognisable draws for 10 years. 2 of them (Aquaman, Flash) just had movies that flopped. Their ‘recognisable’ draws aren’t draws anymore. WB made sure of that.
lazlodaytona
lazlodaytona - 1/9/2024, 8:07 AM
@FireandBlood - I seriously doubt his first pitch to start the entire new DCU started with Huntress or Plastic man. Those two would be good secondary characters like in The Brave and the Bold or a mini-series on Max.
FireandBlood
FireandBlood - 1/9/2024, 8:24 AM
@lazlodaytona - He didn’t pitch the DCU, WB came to him with that, that’s what he’s saying.
McGribble
McGribble - 1/9/2024, 8:54 AM
@HashTagSwagg - One of the successes that Gunn has had is taking lesser known characters and making them house hold names. He did this with his suicide squad as well as GoG. He made people love to watch a talking raccoon and a walking tree. I would trust his vision if I were the WB. It is all about making the characters relatable and he has done that across the board in his movies and with most of his characters.
lazlodaytona
lazlodaytona - 1/9/2024, 8:54 AM
@FireandBlood - Oh, I got that part. For sure. But Gunn has to be the one to choose what will get this new DCU off the ground so he's the one who pitched Creature Commandos (wtf is that btw?) and Superman: Legacy.
supermanrex
supermanrex - 1/9/2024, 11:57 AM
@FireandBlood - aquaman hasnt flopped. its actually doing pretty good.
FireandBlood
FireandBlood - 1/9/2024, 1:19 PM
@supermanrex - It hasn’t and won’t break even, so it most certainly is. Just because it isn’t flopping as bad as the rest doesn’t make it any less of a flop.
WhateverItTakes
WhateverItTakes - 1/9/2024, 6:58 AM
The thought of him putting 2 Jennifer Holland's in is giving him a ralf
Beer85
Beer85 - 1/9/2024, 7:16 AM
Tom King has mommy issues and his writing is just general mommy issues. At this point somebody will point out that his halfway decent Walmart Superman comic that had Kubert art was OK.

Frank Miller also made fun of Tom King at a comicon panel and after that King wrote his odd Watchmen-comic were Frank Miller was featured in a odd way.

The other fantastic writer Gunn has hired is Christina Hodson who wrote "Flash" and "Birds of PRey" both included a lot of food scenes, because that is what she can write.
Twenty23Three
Twenty23Three - 1/9/2024, 7:17 AM
Tom King has been responsible for some of the best output DC have had in recent years, I will never understand anyone disliking him
ObserverIO
ObserverIO - 1/9/2024, 10:12 AM
@Twenty23Three - Marvel too. Vision was damn good.
Twenty23Three
Twenty23Three - 1/9/2024, 2:24 PM
@ObserverIO - he did a Batman run that wasn’t the perfect and people think he’s some sort of hack. Same as James Tynion IV and now Chip Zdarsky, some writers are just better off away from Batman
ObserverIO
ObserverIO - 1/9/2024, 3:03 PM
@Twenty23Three - And the thing is, before it wasn't perfect it was perfect. Maybe he dropped the ball towards the end, but I can't blame him for not putting his every effort in when people were hating on him of all a sudden.

Comics crowds are fickle af. It's like Gunn says above, the problem with being successful is that there will always be a group of people that hate your guts. If you look at the comics creators that get the most hate, it's usually those that got all the praise originally.

King has way more hits than misses. Dude's solid as a writer.
NinnesMBC
NinnesMBC - 1/9/2024, 11:40 PM
@Twenty23Three - I believe his build-up for the Batman and Catwoman wedding event that ended up being for nothing is one aspect of why he has detractors.

And there's also the Heroes in Crisis story that made Wally end up being the murderer of some heroes because he couldn't control the Speed Force. (Those deaths had to later be retconned in One-Minute War last year)
lazlodaytona
lazlodaytona - 1/9/2024, 8:11 AM
Animation department making sure they get to do Crisis first (and they've earned it with their track record) before Gunn and company get to that point cinematically.
imnotwearinghockeypants
imnotwearinghockeypants - 1/9/2024, 8:48 AM
Because what CBMs need right now is more convoluted alternate universe/timeline BS.
Origame
Origame - 1/9/2024, 9:21 AM
@imnotwearinghockeypants - ...what? They're literally simplifying it by stating the dcu has nothing to do with the movie.
slickrickdesigns
slickrickdesigns - 1/9/2024, 10:05 AM
Is the sky blue?
Let me prompt an AI essay long answer for the obvious.
ObserverIO
ObserverIO - 1/9/2024, 10:16 AM
That Crisis movie isn't even connected to previous animated movie universes.

They have the Crime Syndicate in a movie called Crisis on Infinite Earths about the multiverse and don't even bother to connect it to the Crime Syndicate from Crisis on Two Earths from their own damn DVD series!

Why even bother with a fan service multiverse movie if you're gonna skimp on the actual fan service?!
And don't tell me it's so that the fan service doesn't get in the way of telling a good story. You can tell a good story either way.
NGFB
NGFB - 1/9/2024, 10:17 AM
DCEU, DCU, PU, who cares. Just make good movies.
DocSpock
DocSpock - 1/9/2024, 11:35 AM

It's just a frickin' cartoon.

Everything does not have to be somehow connected to everything else.

Kadara
Kadara - 1/9/2024, 10:18 PM
@DocSpock - I remember reading Gunn saying something about his version of the DC being all connected, from movies to tv to video games.
DocSpock
DocSpock - 1/9/2024, 10:25 PM
@Kadara -

I used to tell chicks I had a footlong. Don't believe everything some seedy looking guy says.
Kadara
Kadara - 1/10/2024, 9:09 AM
@DocSpock - LMAO!! Ok good advice 😂
NinnesMBC
NinnesMBC - 1/9/2024, 11:42 PM
Interesting, the reboot idea came from WBD. And yet Gunn chose to do a cherry-picking quasi reboot aka revamped approach.

Good job Josh BTW on mentioning the suspicious lack of a straight answer about Gal Gadot's future as WW considering he can now answer anything in this post-strikes era. Because if he actually keeps her, oh boy...

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