DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn set the record straight on his involvement with the situation surrounding Black Adam and everything that the movie set up in the DC Universe.
Even with all the excitement surrounding Gunn's promotion to the top of the DC food chain, there are some complications regarding the transition between the last era of the DC Universe and the one on the way.
Recently, Gunn confirmed that the new path for the DCU won't include Henry Cavill's Superman, even after he made an epic comeback in Black Adam's mid-credits scene. Dwayne Johnson reportedly strongarmed Cavill's return himself after the previous leadership at Warner Bros. prevented a Superman appearance.
This was ultimately undone shortly after when it didn't fit into Gunn and Safran's vision for the DCU with a younger version of the Man of Steel. Now, the DC Studios head has responded to a couple of fan comments to share the real story following Cavill's exit.
James Gunn Addresses Black Adam Mess for DC
DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn responded to a couple of fan comments on Instagram addressing the messy handling of Henry Cavill's return to and exit from the DCU.
A fan asked Gunn if it was true that Warner Bros. "strung Henry Cavill along to get him to bump numbers on Black Adam" and leave his role on Netflix's The Witcher only to boot him from the role.
Gunn explained that "everything with Black Adam" was before he took his position, indicating that Cavill was already part of that project before the transition of power.
Another fan said that it was "really fucked up" seeing Cavill have to leave his role on The Witcher to come back to play Superman, only to find out that he "won’t be playing Superman anymore."
Gunn clarified that claim, noting that "Those things had nothing to do with each other." Many speculated that the timing of Cavill's exit from the Netflix series suspiciously lined up with his return as Superman.
Gunn Moving Past Black Adam and DC Disaster
While fans were hoping that Black Adam would bring a change to the hierarchy of power in the DC Universe, its debut, along with Gunn's new position of leadership, has instead brought plenty of chaos and confusion. This became even more of a problem with fans when the movie brought back Cavill only for Gunn and his team to move toward a different actor for Superman.
Even though four new movies will finish this current era of the DCU in 2023, there are countless questions being asked about what will happen with DC's biggest names as Gunn and Safran work through their new plan for the story. Many DC fans, while disappointed about the loss of Cavill as Superman, remain hopeful that DC can chart a strong long-term plan in a fresh new direction.
Gunn and Safran are set to share more about their plans for the DCU in early 2023, although Black Adam will remain a talking point moving forward considering Cavill is now out as Superman. Only time will tell whether Johnson will be the next domino to fall in that regard as well.
Black Adam will be available to stream on HBO Max on Friday, December 16.
