DC Studio co-CEO James Gunn is often criticized for his approach to the DCU, with many seeming to feel that the various big and small screen projects that have been released up to this point - movies Superman, Supergirl, and Clayface, along with HBO Max shows Creature Commandos, Peacemaker Season 2, and Lanterns - are too far apart from a tonal standpoint and don't seem to be building towards anything.
The Superman director took to Threads to respond, arguing that individual stories should stand on their own rather than exist for the sole purpose of setting up some kind of massive crossover event. He compared the DCU to Star Wars, where multiple stories unfold across different mediums (without the tonal variety).
Gunn also confirmed that the "Superman Saga" will continue through Man of Tomorrow and beyond, bringing together characters introduced throughout the DCU.
"DCU is just an alternate universe; we can enter at any location or time and tell THAT story. I dislike the idea that individual stories aren't meaningful unless they lead to something else. People not understanding this is strange to me, because Star Wars has essentially been doing this for 50 years across movies, shows, games and books, admittedly without the tonal variety. Now, this doesn't mean there isn't connectivity."
"The Superman Saga starts with Superman and travels into Man of Tomorrow and onward, and contains many characters we've introduced in other stories. But that doesn't mean those other stories only exist to set up what's happening there. I would love people to be seeing Clayface because it's a great, fun horror movie unto itself, not because of where else Clayface will show up three movies from now."
While many agree with Gunn's take, others feel that he is losing sight of what a shared universe should be setting out to accomplish, and while individual projects should work as standalone stories, fans should also have something to invest in and look forward to down the line.
We're sure Gunn and Peter Safran do have plans to bring these stories and characters together that they simply haven't divulged yet, but a lot of fans are eager for just a few more crumbs here and there.
Gunn recently revealed that he is already working on his next directorial project while putting the finishing touches on Man of Tomorrow, and there's speculation that this might turn out to be a Justice League reboot (or at least, some kind of team-up/event movie).