Summary
Supermanis set to be DC Studios boss James Gunn’s first salvo in the new and improved DCU following his ascension to the top of the outfit alongside Peter Safran, and one star of the upcoming film close to the director has a uniquely informed view on how it compares to the competition.
After the failure of the Snyderverse era films, commonly referred to as the DCEU, it was clear that a reboot was needed both on and off-screen. To that effect, the new management in charge of the IP post-Warner Bros Discovery merger started the search for a new head of DC Studios, a job that no one seemed particularly keen on due to the Herculean task it presented in trying to salvage a very messy franchise. Eventually, Peter Safran and James Gunn, still hard at work crafting a curtain call on hisGuardians of the Galaxywork for Marvel, would get the nod and assume the shared role of DC Studios head. Since then, the focus has been on howGunn can lead the charge at DC Studios to outshine Marvel.
There are a small number ofHollywood stars that have worked in both DC and Marvel adaptations, and one of the most recent additions to the list is none other than Gunn’s brother Sean Gunn, who has had roles in both the MCUGuardians of the Galaxyfranchise and the successfulThe Suicide Squadreboot film at his brother’s request. Speaking toTheWrapabout the two franchises, the star, who is set to play DCU’s new Maxwell Lord inSuperman,gave a fair assessment of the differences in his experience. “I came into the whole process of working at Marvel once the machine was kind of already up and running smoothly and doing well,” Gunn clarified. “DC, I’ve done Suicide Squad, but now they’re kind of overhauling it, and it’s new ever since my brother took over as head of the studio. It’s sort of been a new process for them. So it would be, it’s really kind of true, like trying to compare apples and oranges.”
Despite this, Sean also highlighted the connective thread of his experiences in James, a fact that certainly lends itself to his balanced view on the franchises. “Underneath it all, working with my brother is more similar than it is different to other things. So the fact that I was working with James in Marvel and James in DC makes it actually — there’s a lot more similarities in terms of process.” In that vein, Sean is also set to have a role in Creature Commandos, the project that people mostexpect to reflect Gunn’s acquired mastery fromGuardians of the Galaxyand one that Sean will lend his voice to before fans get to see him take on his live-action role as Max Lord next year. There’s more than a hint of familiarity in the premise offered byGuardiansand the wayCreature Commandosseems set to be presented. Sean is set to take on both the role of Weasel, a part he already played inThe Suicide Squadand the new role of G.I. Robot in the first animated project from the new DCU.
While things are still in the development stages over at the DCU, it’s important to note that his background as a director means thatGunn has a lot of advantages over Marvel Studios’ Kevin Feigethat can’t be understated, and if things go as planned, these differences could be the start of a swing in the other direction for DC Studios and hand Warner Bros. Discovery the win that it must have hoped for when Gunn and Safran took up the mantle of leadership at the tail end of the Snyderverse implosion. Whether or not Sean’s comparison translates to the way fans view the two when the wheels start spinning in 2025 remains to be seen.
Supermanis currently set for theatrical release on July 20, 2025.
Superman
Written and directed by James Gunn, Superman is the first movie in Warner Bros.' rebooted DC Universe to center around the titular comic book hero. It introduces a new version of the Man of Steel after Henry Cavill’s departure from the role, honoring the character’s roots as “the embodiment of truth, justice and the American way.”
