At this point the MCU is a well-oiled machine, regularly pumping out new content in theaters and streaming with a Disney+ subscription. Then there's the still-developing DCU, which began with Creature Commandos (streaming with a Max subscription) and will fly into theaters with James Gunn's Superman. Gunn is co-CEO of the entire studio, and recently shared what he learned from his time at Marvel with the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise.
What we know about Superman is fairly limited, but the upcoming DC movie is arriving in July. The acclaimed filmmaker spoke to EW about his vision for the Man of Steel, and explained that it'll be very much rooted in his sensibilities, just like the Guardians movies. As Gunn put it:
I think it's only setting the tone so far as that this is 100 percent a James Gunn movie, and what I want with the future films is for them to be the same — not James Gunn movies, but when I talked to Craig Gillespie who's doing Supergirl, I said, ‘I don't want all of these movies to be the same.’ What I love about DC Comics is that you can read a story like The Dark Knight, which is tonally very different because of its artist and writer than Superman for All Seasons, than All-Star Superman, than [Batman:]The Long Halloween. They're all these beautiful stories within the same world, but completely different. And that's what I think is exciting.
It sounds like Gunn wants the DCU to be a director-driven place, where filmmakers could put their owns spin on the classic IP. So while he will likely utilize the same music-heavy irreverent tone as previous projects, the Guardians visionary wants other DC directors to feel similarly empowered.
While speaking about the way he wants DC directors to feel creatively empowered, James Gunn mentioned his time in the MCU, especially as the Guardians of the Galaxy were first being introduced and crossing over with other characters. As he shared:
I think that I learned from my time at Marvel. When Guardians of the Galaxy came out, people were like, ‘Well, how is this raccoon going to interact with this God of Thunder who's been set up in a totally different type of movie?’ And that was the thing that people liked the most about Infinity War. So it's about really letting the artists create these unique visions that allow us to get to know these characters in different ways.
He's not wrong. While originally it seemed hard to imagine the colorful and zany characters from Guardians of the Galaxy interacting with the likes of mainstays like Thor, Iron Man, and Captain America, that's exactly what happened. And it was fodder for both exciting narrative possibilities and plenty of comedic beats.
Between animated and live-action projects, it does certainly seem like the DCU's first slate of projects, titled Gods and Monsters, is going to be an eclectic one. James Gunn shared his excitement for those worlds to meet in the future, and what's coming for Superman characters. He said:
I look forward to the time when these characters — one of them does show up pretty soon...two of them actually — so anyway, when they get to see them in a totally different light, in a totally different genre and a film that isn't the big spectacle, action-adventure, maybe something more dramatic, maybe something more comedic, whatever, and see those characters in a slightly different light portrayed by the same actors.
I'm certainly intrigued. Gunn has already shared his commitment to the DCU being an interconnected world, and it sounds like there are already plans in motion for members of the Superman cast to return.
The new shared universe will debut in theaters when Superman is released on July 11th as part of the 2025 movie release list. James Gunn's messaging definitely has me hopeful about the shared universe, which will likely make the break between projects all the more frustrating.
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