James Gunn's future plans for the DC Universe altered the ending of The Flash, removing Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman.
At the end of January, DC Studios' newly hired CEOs, James Gunn and Peter Safran, announced their new slate of DC films.
This did not include Henry Cavill's Superman, Gadot's Wonder Woman, Jason Momoa's Aquaman, Ezra Miller's Flash, or Ben Affleck's Batman, who had driven the recent live-action DC movies.
In lieu of continuing with the current DCEU which began in 2013, Gunn and Safran decided it was time for this superhero cinematic universe to reset.
Wonder Woman and Others Removed from The Flash's Ending
In an article by The Hollywood Reporter, it was revealed that an alternate version of The Flash's ending included Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman and even Henry Cavill's Superman.
This never made it to screen due to DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn's future reboot plans for the DCU.
The unused ending would have revolved around Sasha Calle's Supergirl. In the scene, Supergirl is detained and took place on the steps outside of a courthouse with Wonder Woman present, and it may have teased the now-canceled Wonder Woman 3 under Patty Jenkins.
This also left open the return of Calle as Kara Zor-El in some capacity and was another tease for Cavill's return after Black Adam's post-credit sequence.
Warner Bros. executives Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy were temporarily in charge of DC when these decisions were made, in an attempt to build up the DCEU's cinematic brand.
James Gunn has different plans for DC, including recasting Superman, heading in a different direction with the Wonder Woman story, and (likely) recasting Supergirl in a new solo film.
Struggling to Reset the DC Universe
After The Flash's release, many fans were confused why the film didn't truly reset the universe as promised.
However, James Gunn had previously mentioned that the film "resets many things, not all things." This is what happens by the end of the movie, including that F-bomb-inducing cameo appearance.
It's been a rough transition from the old DCEU to the new DCU that truly begins in 2025 with Superman: Legacy, written and directed by James Gunn himself.
Gal Gadot's appearance at all in The Flash was a surprise, but the actress may not be done playing the character. She recently said that "things are being worked behind the scenes" related to her future as Diana Prince.
There's still so much left uncertain about the future of these actors in these roles, the situation has gotten messy over the past nine months.
Especially factoring in Cavill's return at the end of Black Adam, then taking to social media to announce his return as Kal-El, then being told he doesn't have a future with the character. It's been awkward for fans to view from a distance.
2024 will act as a time to reflect and refresh the DC cinematic universe. Blue Beetle and Aquaman and The Lost Kingdom release this year, but only Joker: Folie à Deaux releases next year - an Elseworlds story unconnected from other films.
The Flash is now playing in theaters.
