Ever since the announcement of James Gunn’s DCU surfaced on social media, fans of the DC community (including DCEU lovers) have strongly expressed their concerns about whether Gunn will make the DCEU events canon in the upcoming DCU. Chapter 1, titled “Gods and Monsters,” will serve as the launchpad for the DCU, acknowledging some characters and plot points from the DCEU along the way.
Gunn, along with some cast members from Max’s Creature Commandos series, attended this year’s New York Comic-Con to promote the new start of the DC Universe. He also discussed how he plans to address canonical DCEU events within the fresh continuity. This is what he said:
“We learn that other things that have happened in the past in other media have still happened. There are references to things that happened in the past. And those references then become canon in the DCU because we mention them.”
Considering the DCEU’s overall critical and audience reception from 2013 until its unfortunate demise last year, Gunn and his team have selected only a few characters and storylines from the DCEU for the DCU. For instance, Peacemaker Season 2 (one of Gunn’s creations, after all) will feature John Cena, Vigilante, and many returning cast members from Season 1. However, this time, the series will be part of the DCU.
Viola Davis’ Amanda Waller was one of the highlights of the DCEU. Her portrayal of the controversial DC character received praise from both critics and viewers, even when the projects themselves fell flat, such as Suicide Squad (2016). Now, she is getting her own show, Waller, a forthcoming Max series that will serve as an aperitif to Gunn’s Superman (2025). We might even see her appear alongside potential DCU projects based on Task Force X, the Justice Society of America, and more in the future.
Batman is also returning to the DCU in Andy Muschietti’s The Brave and the Bold. Alongside the iconic DC character, we will see Damian Wayne in live-action for the first time ever. In the comics, Damian is the son of Bruce Wayne and Talia al Ghul.
Noticeably, many projects in Chapter 1 are drastically different from DCEU works, indicating a completely new creative direction for the DCU—which is a good thing. The focus on less prominent teams and characters, such as The Authority, Swamp Thing, Creature Commandos, Booster Gold, and more, shows that Gunn is willing to take risks and try something different, giving the DCU a unique identity. Stay tuned for more updates.
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