Chapter 1 of the DCU has already introduced fans to some major locations that will be revisited later on in the franchise, but James Gunn's DC Studios recently revealed which specific places are the most important to the universe's future. So far, two live-action projects have been released within the DCU: Superman and Peacemaker Season 2. In those two titles, fans got to see places like Metropolis, a fictional town named Evergreen (which is supposed to be in Washington), and even other dimensions like Salvation.
DC Studios officially confirmed that four cities within the DCU are more important than the others throughout the franchise. All of the cities have appeared in DC media before, but only one has appeared in the DCU so far.
Specifically, in a new behind-the-scenes book titled Superman: The Art and Making of the Film, DC Studios CEO's James Gunn and Peter Safran talked about bringing the franchise to life, and then the book revealed which of the four cities will be most important to the DCU.
According to Safran, the detailed plan for the entire first chapter of the DCU is unique in terms of other universes Warner Bros. has created in the past. For instance, Safran particularly mentioned the first Conjuring film, bringing up how Warner Bros. has never had another universe "where [they] actually had a genuine plan and strategy in place" as DC Studios does with the DCU:
"I don’t think we’ve ever kicked off in a universe before where we actually had a genuine plan and strategy in place. You know, when we made the first Conjuring movie, the idea was just to make one great supernatural thriller, and it became a universe. But with this, because of the wealth of material and characters and stories that we had access to, we certainly had a plan in place."
Since there is already such a detailed plan in place, DC Studios is already well aware of what the DCU's most important locations are, and, luckily, the James Gunn-initiated behind-the-scenes book told fans what they are.
Metropolis
It is not at all a surprise that Metropolis has been named one of the four most important cities in the DCU. It is worth noting that the Superman: The Art and Making of the Film book did not list the cities in order, but it is hard to believe that there could be another city on the list that is more important than Metropolis.
After all, Metropolis was the setting for the first live-action project in the DCU, and the first official sequel (Man of Tomorrow) will likely take place there too, at least for the greater portion of the movie's runtime.
Gotham City
In any DC universe or franchise, Metropolis and Gotham City are 1a and 1b in terms of importance. In most cases, one doesn't exist without the other, just as Superman often doesn't exist without Batman. Gotham has not technically been showcased in the DCU yet in live-action, but there have been some mentions of it. However, a road sign that read "Gotham City" was featured in Superman when citizens were evacuating Metropolis.
Even though the solo Batman movie, The Brave and the Bold, is still a few years away, fans won't have to wait very long to see Gotham City in a live-action project. Luckily, a body horror movie titled Clayface will be set in Gotham, and it is set to be released in September 2026. After that movie premieres, fans can expect to revisit Gotham many times throughout the DCU's lifespan.
Palmera City
Undoubtedly, the most surprising entry on this list is Palmera City. Palmera City was featured in the 2023 Blue Beetle movie starring Cobra Kai's Xolo Mariduena, an actor many are excited to see reprise his role in the DCU. Palmera City has also appeared in some Blue Beetle comics, but the location was specifically created for the live-action 2023 film.
That could indicate that Blue Beetle will be returning much sooner than expected. It also teases that the character will be much more important in the grand scheme of things than he has ever been before.
If DC Studios is saying that Palmera City is one of the most important locations for Chapter 1 of the DCU, then it will likely be showcased at least a couple of times.
Themyscira
Another city that fans won't be surprised to hear is important is Themyscira, which is the home of Wonder Woman and the Amazons. Themyscira is always an interesting location for many fans due to its ties to mythology and the fact that it is not a real-life place.
Relatively recently, DC Studios announced that it would be developing a Wonder Woman movie set within the DCU. Notably, the TV series titled Paradise Lost is still in development, so Themyscira will likely be heavily featured in at least two upcoming projects within Chapter 1 of the DCU.
