With the many new DCU projects on their way, fans of that world are excited for Chapter 1: Gods and Monsters to officially start.
There's much to look forward to when it comes to James Gunn's and Peter Safran's upcoming rebooted slate.
There'll finally be a new Superman movie, Batman is going to have a Robin by his side, and a handful of new heroes are going to be introduced to audiences.
But which project should fans expect to start filming first?
James Gunn's DCU Production Update
Superman: Legacy
The latest update on Superman: Legacy from James Gunn is how they are ready "to dive fully into early pre-production," meaning that the conceptualization and creation of "costumes, production design, and more" is set to begin.
The film will be directed and written by Gunn and is looking to focus on a younger Man of Steel.
According to Heroic Hollywood, the physical production's filming start date is set for January 2024, with filming taking place in Atlanta, Georgia.
While a casting director is on board, the process for finding the titular Kryptonian is still waiting to start up. According to Gunn, auditions won’t begin in earnest until the film’s script is “finished or close to finished.”
The Henry Cavill-less reboot is confirmed to hit theaters on July 11, 2025, and will be the first proper DCU film to release (not including Blue Beetle’s possibly retroactive integration).
The Batman Part II
The Batman: Part II will be the second Elseworlds film to come out of DC Studios and will follow after Matt Reeves’ spinoff Max series The Penguin.
While the movie is currently being developed and written, a recent report from Deadline revealed that the classic DC villain Clayface would play a big role in the movie.
According to an issue of Production Weekly, The Batman Part II will be filming at Warner Bros.’ Levensden Studios. Executive producer Michael Uslan confirmed that filming would start this November.
The finished movie is set to hit theaters on October 3, 2025.
The Authority
Industry insider Jeff Sneider recently claimed that The Authority would be the second big DCU movie (not including Elseworld tales) to hit theaters, landing in 2026, a year after Superman: Legacy.
Nothing is known about the creative team behind the project.
The titular team is basically an alternate, super-powered Suicide Squad, filled with members who go to extremes methods to get their missions done.
Rumors also seem to point to this newly introduced team going up against Superman either in their debut adventure or not long after.
Swamp Thing
It was recently announced that Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny’s James Mangold will be writing and directing the Swamp Thing movie. Sadly, there’s no estimated date for the project’s production or eventual release.
Mangold is also set to helm his own Star Wars film, which is rumored to happen before his DCU adventure. Given that his Lucasfilm endeavor is without a release window, it’ll likely be quite some time before this project truly starts getting going.
With recent speculation surrounding Creature Commando’s first jump from animation to live-action, many believe those characters will reappear here.
The Brave and the Bold
Batman is getting yet another reboot with The Brave and the Bold, but this time, the iconic hero will be alongside Damian Wayne—his son and one of the handful to hold the mantle of Robin.
Nothing is known about any creative talent attached, and while the project is in development, there's no release window for it.
Despite rumors that Ben Affleck was potentially interested in helming the Batman reboot, the actor recently stated that he has no desire to helm a DCU project.
Fans have been quick to suggest The Flash's Andy Mushietti in his place.
Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow
Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow will be based on the critically raved run of comics by Tom King of the same name. His story sees a much different Kara Zor-El, who is more cynical and hard-edged.
To what is understood now, the movie will be recasting Sasha Calle, who is set to debut as a different interpretation of Supergirl in The Flash—though the final decision from DC Studios is not yet officially confirmed.
About the upcoming film, Gunn previously stated that “[they’re] pretty far away from Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow.”
Given that, fans might be looking at a release date as far out as 2027 or later.
Joker: Folie à Deux
Joker: Folie à Deux is actually coming much sooner than many of the films on this list.
The Todd Phillips-directed sequel to Joaquin Phoenix's hit film will see Lady Gaga take on the role of Harley Quinn. She'll even get to grace the same iconic stairs.
To add to the madness, the film's reported to include musical segments as well.
The project is set to hit theaters on October 4, 2024.
Constantine 2
The announcement of Constantine 2 was nothing short of a surprise, one that happened before James Gunn and Peter Safran took over.
It didn’t take long before word got out that it was canceled—claims the studio tried to say were not accurate.
Despite insistence that the movie would be happening, star Keanu Reeves recently admitted how he “doesn’t know if it’s going to happen.”
Supposedly, the script for the sequel is currently being written.
It’s hard to imagine that this movie will make it to the finish line, as the character isn’t one who seems to be begging for an Elseworlds story. Perhaps Gunn can just skip right to bringing Constantine into the DCU—he does have a fun dynamic with Swamp Thing, after all.
Ta-Nehisi Coates' Superman Movie
The last update for this movie was in December of 2022, and since then, there's been no official word regarding its current status. According to a report from Variety, James Gunn’s upcoming Superman: Legacy film will not be replacing Ta-Nehisi Coates’ separate project.
At the very least, the concept would be a perfect chance to showcase what stories the Elseworlds label makes possible.
Hopefully, Warner Bros. will confirm the status of this alternate Superman tale sooner rather than later.
The Exciting Future for the DCU
One thing is clear after looking at these production timelines: James Gunn and Peter Safran are in no rush to get their rebooted DCU movies out into the world—for better or worse.
Going by the above estimates, fans might only be getting one or two new films a year, at best. However, that output is already notably lower than Marvel Studios' and will see the currently announced slate stretch out to 2027 or 2028.
Thankfully, there will also be DCU television shows to look forward to. In fact, two of them, Creature Commandos and Waller, look to be aiming for releases before Superman: Legacy in 2025.
After those two adventures, there will also be a project for Booster Gold, Lanterns, and a Wonder Woman prequel streaming show.
Needless to say, for those DC Comics fans out there, it's an exciting time to be alive.
Superman: Legacy is currently set to hit theaters on July 11, 2025.
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