“There were other people”: James Gunn hints at creative clashes behind the DCEU collapse

James Gunn’s Superman has set the DCU off to a positive start. Gunn offers a punk rock-fueled, kinder Man of Steel who cares for humanity no matter what his ancestors might have said. It makes David Corenswet’s role seem far more wholesome than past renditions of the son of Krypton. However, he wasn’t always a part of DC’s future.

Before casting Corenswet for this role, there was reportedly a Man of Steel sequel with Henry Cavill on the way. Apart from that, a Superman/Black Adam crossover project was supposedly on the table. The key reason behind these rumors was an announcement by Black Adam star Dwayne Johnson. He once declared that “the hierarchy of the DC universe” was about to change.

However, The Rock never reprised his DC role for a few reasons. One of them is the studio’s switch from DCEU to DCU, helmed by Peter Safran and James Gunn. In a recent discussion on the Happy Sad Confused podcast with Josh Horowitz, Gunn addressed the time he made these creative changes. He said:

“There were other people that had a take on what they wanted to do at DC and were trying to force their way. And it just was never a part of the equation for David Zaslav, who was the head of WBD.”

Since the interview dropped online, some fans thought Gunn was seemingly taking a dig at The Rock. They believed he was referring to him as the “other people who had a different take” on the DC studio’s future.

Black Adam never became a franchise: James Gunn hints at why

Warner Bros. Presents UK Premiere Of "Black Adam" - Source: Getty

In 2022, Dwayne Johnson took over the role of supervillain Black Adam, hoping it would receive a full-fledged franchise within the superhero universe. The film was directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, as Sohrab Noshirvani, Adam Sztykiel, and Rory Haines wrote the script. The Rock was one of the producers behind this project.

Despite the high hopes, the film had an underwhelming run at the box office. It fared less than expected for Warner Bros. Pictures, earning $393 million (per Box Office Mojo) against a reported budget of $190–260 million. A month after its theatrical release, James Gunn took over the reins of the DC studio with Peter Safran.

One of his creative decisions was to bring new faces on board, which ended Black Adam before it could even take flight. Despite the disappointment of DCEU fans, the new creative strategy might have worked in WBD/DC’s favor.

James Gunn’s Superman is holding strong at the theaters and shows promising signs for the foreseeable future at the box office. Matt Reeves has reportedly finished the script for The Batman 2. It means we will get a new film with Robert Pattinson as the Caped Crusader sooner rather than later.

A new Supergirl movie with Milly Alcock as the lead is expected to arrive next year, and a new Wonder Woman movie is reportedly being fast-tracked at the studio. So, DC fans seem to be in for a treat.