All the kaiju of James Gunn's DCU: What’s already canon and what could come next

James Gunn promised a DC Universe built on gods and monsters, and the first waves of those monsters are already here. His new continuity does not treat giant creatures as disposable action scenes. It weaves them into the mythology he is creating, shaping a world where alien biology, secret invasions and impossible predators have already scarred the landscape. Cities know that titans exist. Heroes enter a stage where survival has history written in fire and rubble.

By grounding superheroes in a place that has survived Starro, fought the Butterflies and now faces new kaiju, James Gunn builds on the comics’ best tradition of mixing cosmic terror with street grit. The DCU’s first steps show that saving the world is more than chasing thieves. It means facing what towers over skyscrapers and swallows entire skies.

Superman’s Metropolis kaiju

The new Superman does not open small. Early footage reveals a colossal creature tearing through Metropolis, its fire scorching glass towers and bending steel. Clark Kent dives into a fight that feels like trial by cataclysm. The image recalls the comics’ most iconic monster battles, where Superman’s strength is tested not against clever criminals but against forces as old and relentless as nature itself.

James Gunn has described this film as a blend of intimate character work and large-scale threat. The presence of such a creature in the first movie is a declaration of intent. The DCU wants its heroes to live in a world where extraordinary courage meets dangers no single person should face. The Metropolis kaiju is not a cameo enemy. It's a symbol that the new age begins with a fight against something far larger than the man of steel.

The Evergreen kaiju

Peacemaker Season 2 throws Christopher Smith into chaos when Evergreen becomes hunting ground for another towering nightmare. The creature that smashes through its streets is insectoid and brutal, echoing the monster Superman faces in Metropolis. Its attack is fast and devastating, turning a small town into a war zone and forcing the Top Trio to fight it.

This moment links television and cinema with deliberate precision. The show does not name the creature or offer easy answers, but its design and destructive power connect Evergreen to the wider DCU.

Viewers understand that these monsters are not isolated accidents. They belong to a living ecosystem of threats that reach from small-town streets to the heart of the city. For Peacemaker, already marked by battles with alien parasites, this new enemy proves that his bloody crusade sits inside a universe that keeps getting stranger.

The Cow

Before the canon was clarified, Peacemaker had already dared to go deep into horror. Peacemaker Season 1 ended by revealing the Butterflies’ food source: a massive alien organism known as the Cow. Hidden beneath the earth, its pulsing body fed an entire invading species and turned the finale into a desperate fight for survival. It was grotesque, unpredictable and undeniably alive.

The Cow matters because it survived the continuity reset. James Gunn has said that Peacemaker season 1 remains almost fully consistent with the DCU, with the only major change being the Justice League cameo replaced by a new team. That means the Cow and the entire Butterfly invasion are part of official history.

The DCU now carries scars of body horror and alien colonization, giving the present a haunted weight. Future heroes will walk a world that already knows what it means to face something beyond comprehension.

Starro the Conqueror

Starro’s legacy also endures. The Corto Maltese disaster from The Suicide Squad remains part of the timeline, with Peacemaker Season 2 openly referencing Project Starfish.

Starro was never a throwaway villain. In comics, the psychic starfish symbolizes invasion on a global scale and the terror of surrendering free will to a hive mind. Keeping this history gives the DCU depth and danger. It reminds us that the past has already seen cities nearly consumed by an alien collective.

This choice shows that James Gunn prefers curation over erasure. He is not wiping the board clean. He keeps what strengthens the new mythos. The DCU can honor strange, ambitious battles of the past while reshaping its future direction.

Peacemaker as canon engineer fo James Gunn's DCU

Season two of Peacemaker works as more than storytelling. It acts as a repair workshop for continuity. James Gunn uses it to confirm which events remain and to replace what no longer fits. The Justice League cameo disappears in favor of the new Justice Gang, but the key story beats such as the Butterflies, the Cow and Starro stay intact. Watching this season becomes the simplest way to know what is real in the DCU.

This approach by James Gunn gives the series unexpected authority. What started as an offbeat show about a flawed antihero is now a cornerstone for understanding the entire universe. By bridging small-town chaos with the giant threats seen in films, it keeps the DCU coherent and alive. No press release or explainer is needed; the story itself teaches viewers the new rules.

Kaiju that could rise next in James Gunn's DCU

The comics hold a bestiary waiting to be unleashed. James Gunn has a record of digging up forgotten creatures and turning them unforgettable. Fans already speculate which kaiju might appear.

Titano the Super-Ape began as a gentle chimp before radiation turned him into a skyscraper-sized threat. His tragedy and sheer presence would suit James Gunn’s love for broken monsters with emotional weight. Dropping Titano into Metropolis would mix Silver Age wonder with modern cinematic intensity.

Chemo is a nightmare of industry, a giant transparent shell filled with toxic sludge. Any fight with Chemo becomes an environmental disaster as well as a battle. It fits the DCU’s mix of dark humor and catastrophic stakes.

The Centre and Mageddon move the scale to apocalypse. The Centre reshapes worlds. Mageddon exists as a living weapon built to crush civilizations. They are deep cuts, but perfect for a long-term crescendo where the DCU shifts from street fights to universe-ending wars.

A universe built to tremble

What started with a hidden alien food source in a small town has grown into a coherent bestiary that reaches from Peacemaker’s nightmares to Superman’s first cinematic trial. The DCU now carries living history: psychic starfish, parasitic invaders, mutant giants and unknown beasts already stalking its skylines. Each one adds weight to the idea that this world has endured horrors long before new heroes took flight.

By preserving select monsters, introducing fresh terrors and hinting at cosmic titans yet to come, James Gunn gives the DCU the pulpy heartbeat that defined decades of comics.

Heroes rise because monsters exist. Cities stand because someone dares to fight back. This is a universe built to shake, and its next tremor could be bigger than anything we have seen.