James Gunn’s DC Universe is only starting, but there are already some seeds that could lead to a few different and groundbreaking future events that the franchise could build toward. The first movies and TV shows in the DCU were announced in January 2023. Almost two years later, Gunn’s DCU finally started. The first two entries in the shared universe have Gunn as their main creative force. Creature Commandos, a TV-MA animated series, started the franchise, with the first of DC’s upcoming movies being the one starring David Corenswet’s Superman. The latter recently started its marketing campaign.
The first trailer for James Gunn’s Superman movie is out, and it teases how the Man of Steel’s humanity and his desire to help others will be an important part of him in a world filled with superheroes and supervillains. Creature Commandos and Superman are not the only DCU projects that could set up other characters and storylines for the future of Gunn’s DC Universe. Gunn is mixing major heroes, like Superman and multiple Green Lanterns, with more obscure characters, such as Booster Gold and The Authority, in the first DCU projects, which could lead to different endgames.
The Justice League Seems Like Chapter One’s Endgame
The Superhero Team Has Seemingly Appeared In The DCU Already
The first endgame that could be set up for the DCU is the formation of the Justice League. Instead of going for a smaller roster like the one in 2017’s Justice League movie, which featured six heroes, the DCU is more likely setting up a vast list of characters for its version of the JLA. There are different versions of the team in that format, such as in the animated Justice League Unlimited series. The DCU does not have a problem with inserting multiple heroes or villains into a project, which means two things.
Either many heroes will be left out of the Justice League, or an expansive version of the team will make it to live-action next. 2025’s Superman will feature the Man of Steel, Metamorpho, Mr. Terrific, Hawkgirl, the Green Lantern Guy Gardner, and reportedly Supergirl. Likewise, DCU movies and series like Batman’s The Brave and the Bold film or the Lanterns series will star multiple characters. With the Justice League’s creation a likely goal — especially since Superman‘s other heroes appear to be organized already with matching costumes — then the story that would unite the team comes into question.
The DCU’s first project has already set up a possible story for the Justice League. Creature Commandos episode 4 had Circe show Amanda Waller a vision of a future that saw Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and seemingly several Justice League heroes dead. The threat in question was Princess Ilana Rostovic, who chose to ally herself with, seemingly, Gorilla Grodd and more to lay waste to the world. With Rick Flag Sr. not wanting to kill Ilana, that prophecy could come to pass. There is also a chance that if she dies, Grodd himself or another villain will take her place.
Lanterns Could Start The Path To Blackest Night
An Even Darker Endgame For The DCU
Creature Commandos and Superman might seem to be setting up the DCU’s Justice League, but HBO’s Lanterns series could be the project that starts the franchise on the path to a dark DC Comics event. Lanterns will be focused on two core Green Lanterns, Kyle Chandler’s Hal Jordan and Aaron Pierre’s John Stewart, even though Nathan Fillion’s Guy Gardner will reportedly appear, and more Green Lanterns could follow suit. The series has been described as similar to True Detective, with a veteran Lantern, Jordan, and a rookie hero, Stewart, investigating a mystery on Earth. Check out Lanterns‘ synopsis below:
“Lanterns follows new recruit John Stewart and Lantern legend Hal Jordan, two intergalactic cops drawn into a dark, Earth-based mystery as they investigate a murder in the American heartland.”
Confirmed Green Lantern For The DCU
First DCU Appearence
Actor
Guy Gardner
Superman
Nathan Fillion
Hal Jordan
Lanterns
Kyle Chandler
John Stewart
Lanterns
Aaron Pierre
DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn shared interesting details about Lanterns on the official DC website. According to Gunn, Lanterns‘ mystery will lead to “the overall story” of the DCU’s projects. He also added that Hal Jordan and John Stewart will find an “ancient horror on Earth.” That could turn out to be the start of the Blackest Night storyline. The ancient horror described by Gunn would fit with DC Comics’ Nekron, who is a powerful being that serves as a personification of death. If the Green Lanterns let Nekron loose by accident, then dead characters could come back as Black Lanterns.
Crisis On Infinite Earths Would Make The Most Out Of The Multiverse
DC Has Used The Multiverse Before In Live-Action
With James Gunn having made clear that he is a major comic book fan and that the DCU will be closer to the comics than the DCEU, DC’s biggest story could be adapted into live-action — again. The multiverse has become a popular plot device in current superhero adaptations. The Marvel Cinematic Universe is amid its Multiverse Saga, while both DC’s past shared universe on TV, the Arrowverse, and film, the DCEU, used multiverse characters and stories. Gunn could take a page from the Arrowverse’s most ambitious crossover event and make a big-budget version of Crisis on Infinite Earths.
After some complaints, Deadpool & Wolverine brought the audience back to multiverse stories, becoming the highest-grossing R-rated movie of all time, showing the multiverse’s potential. It is important to note that a new adaptation of Crisis on Infinite Earths could serve as the endgame for Gunn’s DCU a decade or two from now, not a short-term DCU crossover event.
A Crisis event that puts David Corenswet’s Superman, Henry Cavill’s Superman, Grant Gustin’s Flash, and heroes from all their universes would be groundbreaking.
This way, Gunn could avoid using the multiverse while Marvel does so and also build the DCU’s heroes and villains before looking to the past. That said, Gunn has commented on how he wants to work with The Flash‘s Grant Gustin. A Crisis event that puts David Corenswet’s Superman, Henry Cavill’s Superman, Grant Gustin’s Flash, and heroes from all their universes would be groundbreaking.
The Legion Of Doom Forms To Balance The Game
The Villains’ Answer To The Justice League
Based on all the Justice League teases in only the DCU’s first two projects, it seems like the team will not take too long to assemble. As such, the Justice League coming together and defeating a major villain could be the endgame planned for the DCU’s Chapter One. After that, the JLA and heroes in their DCU projects could come to defeat major villains from DC Comics, such as Deathstroke, Gorilla Grodd, Sinestro, Black Adam, and more. Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor and the rest of the villains could get tired of losing and decide to change the tide.
Before the DCU is rebooted many years from now and recasts its key characters, a major event would be needed to end the universe. A battle to the death between the Justice League and the Legion of Doom could serve as that endgame, building on a decade or more of history in the shared universe to provide the DCU with a climactic and emotional finale. Through the announced and reported projects of the DCU, Gunn is showing that he is a fan of heroes teaming up, so a villain squad like the Legion of Doom could be up his alley.
