James Gunn has shared the first trailer for Peacemaker season 2, and it opens with John Cena's former Task Force X member attempting to join the ranks of Maxwell Lord's superhero team (believed to be called the "Justice Gang" based on Superman toy leaks).
Lord is flanked by Green Lantern Guy Gardner and Hawkgirl, neither of whom seems particularly impressed by Peacemaker. We also learn more about Rick Flag Sr.'s plans for the man who murdered his son in The Suicide Squad, though this doesn't look like a typical revenge mission.
There's also a huge surprise at the end of the trailer as we see a second Peacemaker! It seems there will be a Multiversal component to the series, perhaps meaning the DCEU's Christopher Smith travels to the DCU.
According to a newly released synopsis for Peacemaker season 2, "The new season follows Christopher 'Chris' Smith, aka Peacemaker, the vigilante Super Hero as he struggles to reconcile his past with his newfound sense of purpose while continuing to kick righteous evil-doer butt in his misguided quest for peace at any cost."
The conflict between Smith and Rick Flag Sr. remains one of the most intriguing aspects of Peacemaker season 2, and Frank Grillo previously dropped some hints about what fans can expect.
"We do get into it - I’m not going to give anything away," he teased. "It’s an interesting thing about Peacemaker and his perspective about my son and what his feelings are about himself because of that. So, we did get into some tangles, but I don’t know that people are going to expect what’s to happen."
As for speculation that Rick Flag Jr. might appear in flashbacks or be somehow resurrected in the new DCU, Joel Kinnaman has only said, "I don't know what to say. That's ridiculous. I would never. I would never be on a show like that. It's not what I do. It's not what I do."
Peacemaker season 2's "canon" status has been a hot topic of debate among fans, especially as its characters played such a prominent role in the DCEU. Gunn addressed that last year by saying, "In Creature Commandos, you'll hear them talk about things that happened in [The] Suicide Squad or Peacemaker. Well then, those things automatically become canon."
"The truth is almost all of Peacemaker is canon with the exception of Justice League," the Superman director added. "Which we will kind of deal with in the next season of Peacemaker."
Peacemaker follows the explosive escapades of the character John Cena reprises in the aftermath of James Gunn's 2021 film The Suicide Squad—a compellingly vainglorious man who believes in peace at any cost, no matter how many people he has to kill to get it.
This second batch of episodes has assembled an impressive cast, which includes John Cena, Danielle Brooks, Freddie Stroma, Jennifer Holland, Steve Agee, Frank Grillo, Sol Rodríguez, David Denman, Brey Noelle, and Tim Meadows. Joel Kinnaman is also rumoured to appear as Rick Flag Jr.
Peacemaker season 2 premieres on HBO on August 21.