Less than a year after its debut, the James Gunn's DCU has hit a milestone that Marvel Studios did not achieve for 12 years. The new DCU is upon us, with Superman soaring to new heights in theaters this July, becoming the highest-earning comic book film of 2025. The other side of that coin is Marvel, underdelivering on three films this year, namely Thunderbolts*, a direct Disney+ spin-off.
In Peacemaker Season 2, Episode 6, DC Studios officially followed in Marvel Studios' footsteps. Nicholas Hoult appeared as Lex Luthor, now a prisoner in Belle Reve, acting across Frank Grillo as Rick Flag Sr., another focal point of the new DCU.
The scene was intense, showing a different side of Lex after the events of Superman. One of the biggest takeaways from this scene is that this is the first time that a main villain from the DCU movies has appeared in a live-action DCU show.
This is notable considering that Marvel Studios took 12 years to hit the same milestone. The first time that the MCU did this would be through Baron Zemo's appearance in The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, following Daniel Brühl starring as the central villain in Captain America: Civil War.
Between Creature Commandos, Superman, and Peacemaker Season 2, the first three projects of this new DC continuity have been pretty tight, with several overlapping characters, none more prominent than Rick Flag Sr.
While this will be broadly viewed as a positive for interconnected universe lovers, Lex's latest appearance might spell doom for DC in the future.
Marvel Studios' Failed Disney+ Strategy
After the box office letdown of Thunderbolts*, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige admitted that the idea that audiences needed to watch the Disney+ shows hurt its box office performance, including The Marvels' 2023 disaster as well.
For The Marvels, the argument is pretty clear: Iman Vellani's Ms. Marvel and Teyonah Parris' Monica Rambeau were both introduced to the MCU on Disney+, then fell on their faces when co-starring in a major movie.
There's more to why The Marvels' is the worst-grossing MCU movie of all-time, but clearing Marvel Studios is pointing the finger at how audiences reacting to the series' setting up the films.
In fairness to Thunderbolts*, only one character, Wyatt Russell's John Walker, appeared first in the Disney+ series before the movie was released. However, characters like Sebastian Stan's Bucky Barnes and Florence Pugh's Yelena Belova also played roles on Disney+ ahead of Thunderbolts*, so it is true that fans needed to watch shows like The Falcon and The Winter Soldier and Hawkeye to understand what the latest was for those characters.
One could argue that even Captain America: Brave New World, which also underperformed this year, was negatively affected by Sam Wilson's (Anthony Mackie) rise to becoming Captain America, being told on Disney+.
It's gotten so bad that Marvel is changing its content strategy, making the film and TV division in-house more separate, similar to the pre-Disney+ era in the 2010s.
Despite Marvel licking its wounds ahead of Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars being a "a new beginning" to the MCU, James Gunn and DC Studios is now following its failed strategy.
Did DC Learn the Wrong Lessons from Marvel?
There's no denying that Peacemaker Season 2 is an important chapter in the young DCU, despite only targeting mature audiences.
Early season appearances from Guy Gardner (Nathan Fillion) and Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced) helped connect the series to Superman, following along the timeline, but Episode 6 of the new season took it up a level.
Lex's appearance in Peacemaker Season 2 is a clear indication that DCU TV projects are vital to future movies. While Lex is playing a role in Peacemaker, making a deal with Flag Sr., he's also being set up for his next movie.
Gunn's Man of Tomorrow, a Superman follow-up, will be co-led by Hoult's Lex and David Corenswet's Superman, with DC already confirming the arch-nemesis will team up to take on an even greater threat.
While Lex made his debut in Superman, there's no denying that Peacemaker Season 2 is officially "homework" (a term coined by casual MCU fans) for Man of Tomorrow.
It seems like, if Lex follows through with his promise to help Flag Sr. find Peacemaker (John Cena), that the villain will be transported to a different prison, likely the same one that audiences will find him in to open Man of Tomorrow.
It's probably a detail many won't think about, but Lex's trajectory and location will have changed between Superman and its direct sequel. Maybe more importantly, his relationship with Flag Sr. will have developed, which could play a big role in the Man of Tomorrow storyline, where it's inferred that Lex is released from prison.
In terms of following Marvel's playbook, Lex's TV debut isn't a big deal in a vacuum, but it's a sign of their overarching strategy, with series setting up movies.
As this is just the tip of the iceberg, the big test will be Lanterns, a DC Studios and HBO series set to debut Aaron Pierre as John Stewart and Kyle Chandler as Hal Jordan. Guy Gardner is also confirmed to appear in the show, another sign that crossovers will be a regular occurrence in the DCU.
If John Stewart appears in Man of Tomorrow, which Pierre has already teased, the streaming-to-film strategy will be in full effect with the DCU, after the MCU admitted its flaws.
Perhaps by establishing this precedent earlier than Marvel Studios did, DC Studios will be able to train audiences to be more lenient with characters hopping between stories in movies and television. The messaging to casual viewers may be the most crucial aspect in dissuading fears that they will be left behind if they are not fully caught up on every DCU project.
Gunn has made it clear that he wants to ensure that audiences can dip in and out of the DCU as they see fit without any missing context, so it will be interesting to see how projects treat each other going forward.
After a healthy but not extraordinary, $615.6 million worldwide gross for Superman, 2026's Supergirl is the next box office test for Gunn's new universe.
