Gods And Monsters: Everything We Know About The New DCU Under James Gunn

While the Marvel Cinematic Universe is the king of the box office, with characters like Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman at their disposal, DC arguably has the more popular cast of characters. Unfortunately, the first attempt at a cinematic DC universe failed to find overall success. Now, with Guardians of the Galaxy writer/director James Gunn and producer Peter Safran at the helm of DC Films, the studio is trying over again.

Not every upcoming DC movie is part of the new DCU, some, like Matt Reeves’ Batman movies starring Robert Pattinson, stand alone. This makes keeping track of which projects are part of the ongoing franchise all the more important. Here’s a look at every project that we know is part of the new DCU’s Chapter 1, which Gunn calls Gods and Monsters.

Creature Commandos (Released December 2024)

Animation has always been a big part of DC’s superhero universe in a way that it has never really been with Marvel. However, DC’s animated projects have always been something separate from the live-action films and series. That changed with the first DCU entry, Creature Commandos.

Creature Commandos introduced a collection of monstrous individuals who were initially forced to work together, but ultimately they united as a team. While it’s unclear if the animated series will get a Season 2 at this point, we know we will see some of them again, and in live-action. Some Creature Commandoes will reportedly appear in the Superman film while we know Frank Grillo will reprise his role as Rick Flag Sr. in Peacemaker Season 2.

Superman

Release Date: July 11, 2025

The new DCU will start on the big screen the same way the last one did, with Superman. David Corenswet has been tapped to play the Man of Steel, while Rachel Brosnahan will play Lois Lane, in James Gunn’s simply titled Superman The first Superman trailer has given us an idea of what the movie will look and sound like. While what we know about Superman’s story is limited, we do know the movie will launch many more DCU characters since The Superman: cast, includes Nathan Fillion as Green Lantern Guy Gardner, Isabela Merced as Hawkgirl, and many more.

Peacemaker: Season 2 

Release Date: TBD 2025

Technically, the first season of James Gunn’s Peacemaker series was not part of the new DCU continuity since it happened before Gunn took over, but according to what we know about Peacemaker Season 2, the new season will be. How exactly that will work is anybody’s guess, but the new season is expected to drop in 2025 so we don’t have too long to wait.

Waller 

Release Date: TBD

What we originally thought would be the first live-action series of the DCU will likely be the second, as details surrounding Peacemaker Season 2 have seemed to confirm that a series focusing on Viola Davis’ Amanda Waller, simply called Waller will arrive sometime after that season. Beyond the star, little is known about this one, except that, despite Waller appearing in the very humorous Peacemaker, the new show is reportedly not a comedy.

Lanterns 

Release Date: TBD

Quite possibly the biggest DC character to never get introduced in the previous DC universe was Green Lantern. That will be rectified when a new series, Lanterns, debuts. The Lanterns TV show will focus on two popular Green Lanterns, Hal Jordan and John Stewart. Following reports that Josh Brolin passed on playing Hal Jordan, Kyle Chandler has taken the part. He’ll appear alongside Rebel Ridge’s Aaron Pierre as John Stewart

Supergirl: Woman Of Tomorrow  

Release Date: June 26, 2026

While the upcoming Superman movie seems destined to give us a more traditional and hopeful Superman, fans looking for a darker take on the mythos will likely be interested in any Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow details. The screenplay for Woman of Tomorrow was written by Ana Nogueira who previously handled a script for a Supergirl movie that would have spun off from The Flash before that universe came to an end. Milly Allcock of House of the Dragon has been cast in the coveted role of Kara Zor-El. Jason Momoa becomes the first actor from the old DC universe to return for the new one, but rather than playing Aquaman, he’ll appear as outer space bounty hunter Lobo. Matthias Schoenaerts has been cast as the film's villain. The movie is set to be directed by Greg Gillespie.

Clayface

Release Date: September 11, 2026

Mike Flanagan is a modern horror master who has been pitching a potential movie based on Batman villain Clayface since before the DCU was actually a thing. While the project had appeared dead, when James Gunn got wind of it, he not only gave the film a green light, but the movie has a release date, indicating that while it’s the most recently announced piece of the franchise, we’ll likely see it before many of these other projects.

The Authority

Release Date: TBD

One of the most surprising announcements for the first chapter of the DCU is The Authority. The characters are not as widely known as most of the others being focused on in this first chapter. The Authority is a team of superheroes so dedicated to saving the world that they’ll do anything to fix it, even things other heroes are unwilling to do. Gunn has said The Authority will interact with all of the “primary DCU characters,” so expect this one to be something of a crossover event, we already know that María Gabriela de Faría has been cast in Superman to play Authority member Angela Spica, The Engineer.

Paradise Lost

Release Date: TBD

The future of Gal Gadot and many others who previously played major DC characters is unclear at best, but we may get some hints as to the future of Wonder Woman in the new series Paradise Lost. The show will be set on the warrior's home island of Thymiscira, a.k.a. Paradise Island. The home of Wonder Woman was mentioned in Creature Commandoes, and another from the island, Circe, was a significant character there, but what if anything that means for the show is unknown. The show will reportedly be set at some point before the birth of Wonder Woman, but it could certainly lead to future stories for her.

The Brave And The Bold 

Release Date: TBD

Matt Reeves’ The Batman franchise will continue as a planned trilogy but the DCU will also have its own Batman. The Brave and the Bold will introduce this new Batman, as well as, for the first time on the big screen since 1997, Robin. This Robin will be Damian Wayne, Batman’s biological son who was trained by the League of Assassins. Andy Muschietti will direct the new take on Batman, however, all signs point to The Brave and the Bold release date not coming any time soon. Muschietti has indicated he’s not actively working on The Brave and the Bold, and we don’t even know if a script is currently in development.

Booster Gold 

Release Date: TBD

Booster Gold had previously been in line to get a movie adaptation at some point in the old DC franchise, but that script languished in development hell. Now Booster is back with a planned new HBO Max series. Gold, a.k.a. Michael Jon Carter, is from the future, and through the use of time travel and other advanced technology, he travels back in time to our present, where all his fancy tech effectively makes him a superhero. Of course, the guy is largely a fraud, which is where the real story of Booster Gold comes in. While there have been rumors of Booster Gold casting, including Anthony Starr and Kumail Nanjiani, James Gunn has debunked them all.

Swamp Thing

Release Date: TBD

The most mysterious of the announced DCU projects is likely Swamp Thing. The only thing we know for sure about Swamp Thing at this point is that James Mangold is planning to direct. While Mangold has called the movie “just a standalone,” James Gunn originally announced it as being a DCU project.

With Creature Commandos having officially arrived and Superman is just a few months away, the new DC Universe is officially underway. While it will certainly be some time before we have any idea how the franchise is received, there’s certainly no argument that James Gunn and company aren’t committed to making it an entertainment franchise as big as the heroes who are part of it.