While new episodes of Creature Commandos are currently dropping weekly on Max, Superman will be where we get our first real taste of what's to come in DC Studios' new DCU.
While there were tentative plans for The Avengers when Iron Man was released in 2008, it wasn't until the movie's closing moments - with the mention of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Nick Fury's cameo - that we got a taste of a shared universe. In comparison, Superman will feature several other superheroes, leading to concerns it will end up being less Iron Man and more Iron Man 2.
Talking to ComicBook.com on the set of Superman this summer, writer and director James Gunn said those Justice League International characters all have important roles to play here and are not just throwaway cameos meant to rapidly expand the DCU.
"I think it was just who I wanted to really, honestly. I love Mister Terrific," the filmmaker explained. "These characters all get their moment in the sun. They all have their moments. They’re not just cameos, these are the characters. They’re supporting cast, but Mister Terrific is the main character of those characters. He actually has a big part of the plot. And so that was fun."
"And of course getting to work with Nathan [Fillion] is always something, and putting him in a stupid look, and then Isabela [Merced] is great. I’ve been a fan of hers for a long time. But it was about balance," he added.
Pushed for details on Superman's connection to the wider DCU, Gunn admitted that there are "two little things, two moments" that tease the future. However, "If something is there just to set up something else, f**k it."
"If [Superman] sets up stuff in Peacemaker, which it does, then that’s great," he elaborated. "But that is never, ever, ever, with me, going to be something that I’m going to sacrifice even a moment or a beat in a story for, especially a movie. With TV, you’ve got a little bit more leniency to be able to do that. But in a movie, every beat has to be in there for the movie itself."
"Are seeds being planted [for Lanterns]? Yes, there are seeds being planted. But that is never going to be the predominant thing in any scene for me. It’s always about getting to the next scene," Gunn noted. "What’s in the moment? How are we making this movie the best it can be? And it’s going to stay like that as much as I can possibly make it like that."
Gunn is saying all the right things here and he appears to have a clear direction in mind for the DCU. The DC Studios co-CEO certainly doesn't appear to be setting out to make a carbon copy of the MCU - he's already confirmed these movies aren't leading to one "big bad" - and only time will tell whether he manages to create a world that redeems the DC brand in the eyes of fans and filmgoers.
For now, though, we're just keeping everything crossed that Superman manages to live up to the hype when it arrives in theaters next summer.
Superman arrives in theaters on July 11, 2025.