Up, up, and away: All the new DC projects announced by James Gunn

This HBO Max show will take place on the island of Themyscira, the birthplace of Wonder Woman, and is being described as a Game Of Thrones-style drama with an all-female cast of Amazons. We expect they’re talking about the political intrigue and fighting over a throne rather than the gratuitous sex and violence, but you never know. It will be a prequel to the Wonder Woman films, set before Diana’s arrival. That’s one way to do Wonder Woman without actually having to recast the role.

Once Robert Pattinson gets one more lap in the Batmobile in The Batman: Part II (not a part of the new DCU), yet another actor will take the wheel for the foreseeable future. This will be that actor’s debut. The film will also introduce Batman’s son, Damian Wayne, for the first time in live action. If he’s anything like the character in the comics—raised by assassins and prone to violence—the new Batman will have his hands full with this kid. Gunn tellingly describes him as a “little son of a bitch.”

In addition to bringing on talent with experience writing superhero films and TV shows, Gunn and Safran are also looking to comics writers to make the transition from page to screen. One of them is Tom King, who wrote the comics series this film will be based on. If your image of Supergirl has been shaped by Melissa Benoist’s portrayal in the Arrowverse series or the 1984 film starring Helen Slater, this version of Superman’s cousin may come as a surprise. A hardened survivor raised on a rock chip off of Krypton, King’s Kara Zor-El is far more hardcore than you might expect.

The closest thing to a comedy on the current roster, a new series based around Booster Gold is headed to HBO Max. The character is basically a fraud, a time-traveling guy from the future who uses advanced technology to convince the world he’s a superhero. There’s a lot of potential for the series to go places that other superhero shows haven’t gone before, but it’s all going to depend on the creative team they hire to develop it. The casting of the main character will also be key, as they’ll have to effectively walk the fine line between smarmy and likable. The audience has to want to come back week after week to hang out with this guy.

Swamp Thing has been done before, most recently in a 2019 series that was canceled after one season (and featured a plot thread about a growing epidemic). There hasn’t been an adaptation that has properly reflected comic writer Alan Moore’s influential take on the character, though. With Gunn’s affinity for horror, this film is primed to go in that direction. It’s supposed to be the final entry in the “Gods and Monsters” phase of the DCU. Gunn and Safran have indicated that the character will eventually be integrated into the wider universe.

There are also a handful of projects in the works which will stand apart from the DCU that Gunn and Safran are building. Many of them were previously announced but their status has been in limbo as the new direction comes into focus. As previously mentioned, The Batman: Part II from director Matt Reeves will be Robert Pattinson’s final appearance as Bruce Wayne before the role is recast. It’s expected to hit theaters on October 3, 2025. Todd Phillips’ upcoming musical Joker sequel Folie À Deux will also fall under this umbrella, as will a Superman film from writer Ta-Nehisi Coates and producer J.J. Abrams. The studio has also thrown Cartoon Network’s Teen Titans Go into this mix for good measure.