James Gunn's DCU: Embracing the Morrisonverse

are they bringing back rpatz???

Separate continuity:

https://gizmodo.com/the-batman-2-title-release-date-robert-pattinson-dcu-1850053257

Separately, group interview with Gunn and Safran:

https://gizmodo.com/james-gunn-dc-slate-info-flash-aquaman-justice-league-1850051467

Well, Gunn's definitely not, uh, thrilled about the past:

Gunn: The history has been shit. It’s been a real fucked up journey for DC. I think that there was basically no one minding the mint and they were giving out IP to any creatives that, you know, smiled at whoever was in charge. There was never any real power given to the people in charge. And so somebody could always go over their head and do whatever they wanted. And, you know, we had the DCEU, which then became the Joss Whedon Justice League, but it also became the Snyderverse, which became this. And we have Wonder Woman and we have Wonder Woman [1984], which doesn’t even match what happened in Wonder Woman one. And then we have the Arrowverse and even us, coming in with The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker. And then all of a sudden Batmite is a real guy.

This is not the Gunnverse

cautiously optimistic this won't be as flat and predictable as MCU

Peacemaker bought a LOT of goodwill from me. Hard to think of anyone else I would even be even slightly optimistic taking the controls.

The problem with the DCEU wasn't that the continuity was poor. It was that its tentpole films sucked -- superman, superman v batman, justice league were all terrible, wonder woman 1 was ok. The continuity problems came afterwards when WB went into panic mode.

I bet half of these newly announced projects don't come out as described.

what's Bat-Mite in?!

that zachary levi thing is disappointing, he convincingly plays likable people; good actor then I guess because he appears to be a shit. that said I'll probably still see that since I liked the first one and I watched Leticia Wright in WakandaForever.

Maybe Zachary Levi just wants stringent price controls on the COVID vaccine.

its tentpole films sucked

I blame Snyder for that more than WB tho

James Gunn def a good creative choice, his movies are fun for one thing. Also I was a big fan of the most recent Batman flick, a pretty swift 170+ min and compellingly slow burn atmospheric vs the diminishing returns of the Nolan approach. I kinda hope they do keep it separate from the rest of the DCU, and Joker-free.

sic otm give me Bat-Mite

Bat-Mite is mentioned in the second episode of the DC Extended Universe series Peacemaker, "Best Friends, For Never", when John Economos mentions he would rather be working with Bat-Mite than Peacemaker.

I watched and liked Peacemaker but don’t remember that joke BUTTTT also I like it (and/but have 0 opinion over whether it means bat-mite is a dude)

Oh man, please please please gimme a good Swamp Thing movie with the Anatomy Lesson

BatMite in Canon & Morriverse has me hoping for some Zur-Eh-arrh references in the batfilm.

Sad to see, still no news on reviving the weird hunchback that lives in batmans cellar and fixes his stuff.

when's he gonna get his six part series on HBO?

most anyone who clicked the post already knows all this but for people unfamiliar with writer Grant Morrison's work in the DCU, this is a not-unreasonable primer (sic may disagree):
https://www.inverse.com/entertainment/james-gunn-dc-universe-chapter-one-why-you-should-read-grant-morrison

Okay obviously not GunnCU but since this might as well be the rolling thread now:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hebWYacbdvc

a) shades of Rick and Morty
b) no cosmic treadmill no credibility
c) i hope keaton got paid well

I think Swamp Thing would work better as a tv streaming series. I don’t know that it would pace right for a 2 hour movie.

Wasn’t there a Swamp Thing series recently?

Ah, there was, cancelled after 1 series.

It was better than the movies, but that's really faint praise. Swamp Thing can't be a dude in a suit, it just doesn't work.

I was surprised to see the Blue Devil turn up in it.

v weird to see the keaton batman, who was almost completely immobile in the burton movies, nimbly flapping around in this like prequel-era cgi yoda

maybe there'll be a scene explaining his new yoga regime

Very recognisably Glasgow city centre at about the 0.11 mark on that trailer, complete with bus stops.

All narrative roads lead to the multiverse.

while I think that superhero fiction is a net negative in culture and wish that its period of dominance in popular culture would end, there is a part of me that feels sad that the DC milieu got fucked up SO BAD for movies by WB in the last ten years…WB and DC had decades of synergy so that they could get this right and not watch Marvel/Disney run away with this shit…I almost think that its too late and they should focus on the post CW TV shit and build their franchise there…I tried to watch some of the tv Crisis crossovers, but it was too much for me, a 60s-80s DC alt earth expert…

Is it not also odd that Marvel got to the different earths/timeline shit before DC? since 1961, that's been DC's thing, and Marvel only messed with that sparingly, almost as a commentary on that stuff being a cornerstone of DC storytelling/universe building. I would almost think Gunn should see to it that none of his films should mess with that conceit if Marvel is making Dr Strange movies about multiverse shit…

A thing:

https://deadline.com/2023/03/james-gunn-direct-superman-movie-warner-bros-dc-1235300632/

In what should come as no surprise, James Gunn will be directing his own script for Superman: Legacy, a major lynchpin project which will off the the multi-platform connected DC universe – “Chapter One, Gods and Monsters” ­– which he and his DC’ Co-Chairmen & CEO Peter Safran are launching....Superman Legacy tells the story of Superman’s journey to reconcile his Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing as Clark Kent of Smallville, Kansas. He is the embodiment of truth, justice and the American way, guided by human kindness in a world that sees kindness as old-fashioned. Gunn has already mentioned on social that his Superman will be younger than his forties. The all-new action adventure is set to soar into theaters worldwide on July 11, 2025.

xp The contrast w/Marvel is pretty fascinating; esp. considering that DC had the "studio synergy" in place for decades longer.