Yesterday, The Hollywood Reporter shared a piece breaking down Supergirl's troubled production. Creative issues besieged the DC Studios movie, and the whole thing has painted a concerning picture of James Gunn's capabilities as the DCU's Kevin Feige.
The trade has shared a few other interesting insights, including the fact that Gunn and fellow co-CEO Peter Safran's contracts are up either at the end of 2026 or 2027 (we're hearing April 2027). It's highly doubtful that either man would be given their marching orders after one box office flop, but we have to believe that a lot is riding on Clayface and Man of Tomorrow succeeding.
The Batman Part II's inevitable success won't help Gunn and Safran, as it's unrelated to their DCU plans and more a Warner Bros. Pictures production than a DC Studios one. Of course, that hasn't stopped Gunn from trying to promote his involvement with the sequel, similar to how he took credit for Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story and The Penguin, both of which were developed without him.
As the trade explains, "Gunn will continue to exercise his ideas, especially his penchant for spotlighting lesser-known side characters." That includes the upcoming DC Crime TV series revolving around Jimmy Olsen—the trade confirms that cameras roll this fall—and a previously unannounced Mister Terrific TV series from Allan Heinberg (The Sandman), who is writing the pilot.
The Superman spin-off is reportedly in active development, joining a list of DCU movies and TV shows on the way before many of those announced by DC Studios at the start of 2023.
"Supergirl’s failure does put a scrutinising spotlight on Gunn, who has positioned himself as the face of the company as no other studio head has before, thanks to his prodigious output on social media and comments in the press about quality control," the report notes, later suggesting that Paramount's planned acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery could be problematic for the filmmaker.
David Ellison is eager to make Paramount a studio with a successful slate of franchises. He's had no qualms about scrapping projects fans wanted—Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles spin-off, The Last Ronin, for example—for movies that fit his vision of the future. So, if the DCU doesn't look like a profitable venture, we could be in store for another reboot or a return to standalone DC movies, similar to before the DCEU's launch.
Ultimately, even that may not be Gunn's biggest challenge. Moviegoers are now far more selective, and C-list superheroes are a hard sell. As one anonymous studio head put it, "Gen Z does not care about superhero movies. That genre belongs to millennials."