All 9 Batman Characters James Gunn Has Already Confirmed for the DCU

James Gunn’s DCU hasn’t hidden its interest in Batman’s world. Even before a new live-action Batman takes the stage, Gunn quietly seeded Gotham across animation and television: villains, allies, and cameos have already been placed into the shared continuity. That early scaffolding matters because it lets Gunn build a lived‑in Gotham with history, institutions, and consequences before the Caped Crusader fully appears.

This approach also changes the tone of the first live‑action Batman movie. Instead of a single film that has to establish Batman and teach a whole city his rules, Gunn can lean on what the universe already shows. Creature Commandos, Peacemaker, and several development announcements confirmed a set of characters that anchor Batman’s world. Some have appeared on screen, while others are firmly in active development.

Every Batman Character Already Confirmed for the DCU

Batman (Bruce Wayne)

While his solo film, The Brave and the Bold, will be his cinematic DCU debut, Batman is an established entity. His confirmed status as an active hero means the DCU won't have to spend precious time showing his parents' murder or training. 

A glimpse of Batman's silhouette in the animated series Creature Commandos, a project explicitly set in the DCU, shows that he is known to global organizations like ARGUS. The narrative focus will be on a seasoned crime-fighter forced to reconcile his solitary existence with sudden fatherhood. It would be interesting to see who Gunn casts as the DCU's Batman among these stellar options.

Robin (Damian Wayne)

The choice of Damian Wayne as the first live-action Robin since 1997 is a dramatic narrative. In the comics, Damian is the fourth male Robin, which strongly implies the prior existence of Dick Grayson and Jason Todd (and possibly Tim Drake). 

Damian is the biological son of Bruce Wayne and Talia Al Ghul. Raised since birth by the League of Assassins to be a lethal warrior and heir to Ra's Al Ghul, his introduction in The Brave and the Bold forces a mature Batman to confront his past and uphold his no-kill rule while raising a son who was literally trained to be a killer. This dynamic is the core of the film's conflict. 

Talia Al Ghul

The confirmation of Damian Wayne automatically confirms the existence and major influence of his mother, Talia Al Ghul. Talia is one of Batman's most complex love interests and antagonists, a brilliant businesswoman, a master manipulator, and the daughter of eco-terrorist Ra's Al Ghul. 

Her existence means that the history of the League of Assassins, a global, mystical organization that has directly influenced both Bruce and Damian, is already a fundamental part of the DCU's geopolitical and secretive underworld. 

Sasha Bordeaux

Sasha Bordeaux appeared as a high-ranking ARGUS agent in Peacemaker Season 2. In her comic book history, Sasha was initially a highly-skilled Secret Service Agent hired by Lucius Fox to be Bruce Wayne's personal bodyguard. She famously grew suspicious of Bruce's nightly disappearances, eventually discovering he was Batman and even training to become a low-profile partner to him. 

Her most significant arc involved the Bruce Wayne: Murderer? storyline, in which she was framed and imprisoned alongside Bruce for the murder of Vesper Fairchild. This traumatic event led her to join the global intelligence agency Checkmate and later become an OMAC cyborg. Her confirmed presence, even in a different role, ties the DCU to a deeply rooted era of Batman espionage and conspiracy.

Clayface (Matt Hagen)

The classic shapeshifting villain, Matt Hagen, was confirmed through his appearance in the animated Creature Commandos series, with a Clayface film also in active development. In the comics, Hagen was a famed, narcissistic treasure hunter who accidentally discovered a radioactive pool of protoplasm. 

Immersing himself in the mud granted him a clay-like, malleable body and the power to shapeshift into anyone he desired, including mimicking their voice. This temporary transformation required him to return to the protoplasm pool periodically. His inclusion confirms that Batman's rogues' gallery includes powerful metahuman threats. 

Doctor Phosphorus (Alex Sartorius)

Dr. Alex Sartorius, also known as Doctor Phosphorus, was confirmed to be a part of ARGUS's black site operations and the Creature Commandos team. Sartorius was a physicist exposed to massive amounts of radiation during a reactor core experiment. 

This left him with a glowing, skeletal appearance and the ability to project extreme heat and deadly radiation. He is a physically gruesome and highly dangerous foe, who often crosses the line between a traditional street villain and a powerful scientific threat.

White Rabbit (Jaina Hudson)

White Rabbit made a non-speaking cameo appearance in Peacemaker Season 2, seen leaving an interview for a place in the Justice Gang. In the comics, her civilian identity is Jaina Hudson, the wealthy, high-profile daughter of an Indian diplomat and a Bollywood actress. 

Her secret is her ability to bio-fission, or split herself into two separate entities: the innocent socialite Jaina and the costumed, criminal persona of the White Rabbit. She is a cunning, Alice in Wonderland-themed villain who has worked alongside the Mad Hatter and his gang, confirming that Gotham’s weirder, themed criminals are also active. 

Bane

An untitled film featuring both Bane and Deathstroke has been reported to be in development for the DCU. Bane is a true physical and intellectual powerhouse. Born and raised in the horrific South American prison of Peña Duro, he taught himself to be one of the world's greatest strategists and martial artists before gaining superhuman strength from the experimental drug Venom. 

While famous for breaking Batman's back, his comic history also includes a brief and contentious association with the League of Assassins, whom he briefly led and sought to marry Talia Al Ghul.

Deathstroke (Slade Wilson)

Slade Wilson, the legendary mercenary Deathstroke, is slated for a film project alongside Bane. Deathstroke is a super-soldier with enhanced strength, agility, healing, and tactical intelligence, making him the single deadliest assassin in the DC Universe. 

While many associate him with the Teen Titans (where he is a perennial enemy), his skillset and mercenary work frequently bring him into direct and often brutal conflict with Batman, Nightwing, and other members of the Bat-Family. 

Batman Characters Who Might Be Confirmed

Dick Grayson

Dick Grayson is presumed to be the first Robin, now operating as the superhero Nightwing. The DCU's main Batman film, The Brave and the Bold, will feature Damian Wayne as the current Robin, which guarantees that a predecessor (Dick Grayson) must exist. The upcoming animated theatrical film, Dynamic Duo, will center on the early adventures and evolving relationship between the first two Robins, Dick Grayson and Jason Todd. 

The plot explores how their differing visions for the future begin to test their bond as Dick moves toward becoming Nightwing and Jason heads down a darker path (leading to his eventual fate as the Red Hood). DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn stated he would like the animated film to be canon, but its unique plot could ultimately be designated as an Elseworlds (non-canon) story.

Jason Todd

Jason Todd is presumed to be the second Robin, whose tragic life, death, and resurrection as the Red Hood form a critical part of the DCU's Batman history. Like Dick Grayson, his existence is implied by the presence of Damian Wayne. 

The Dynamic Duo film will likely detail his origin as Robin and his diverging path from Dick Grayson. The existence of Jason Todd and Dick Grayson in the main DCU continuity will hinge on the status of Dynamic Duo being confirmed as canon.