DC fans across the world are uniting for DC FanDome 2021, the company's one-day hype festival for everything coming to theaters and TV over the next couple of years. One of the earliest of these new entries will be John Cena's Peacemaker, which is coming off an incredibly fast turnaround heading into its January debut on HBO Max.
Cena will bring back his confident and egotistic anti-hero from 2021's The Suicide Squad, which even ended with an unexpected fake-out death for him after his series was already confirmed to be in development. That was before a round of post-credits scene revivals, which included his character as Jennifer Holland's Emilia Harcourt and Steve Agee's John Economos watched in disbelief.
Now, Cena is back in full force as he joins an all-star cast in his own solo story, teaming up once again with James Gunn to deliver the DCEU's first-ever canon streaming series.
Thanks to its spotlight at DC FanDome, fans now have the biggest round of material from this show to date.
A First Look at John Cena's Peacemaker
During its panel at DC FanDome, the cast and crew of Warner Bros.' Peacemaker brought the show's first full trailer. The series was also confirmed for a January 13, 2022 release date on HBO Max.
Peacemaker's passion and intensity came through in this trailer as he returns to his mantle alongside familiar faces like Jennifer Holland's Emilia Harcourt. Also teaming up with new faces like Freddie Stroma's Vigilante and Danielle Brooks' Adebayo, he will have quite an interesting round of backup for his next mission.
Steve Agee's John Economos returns with his tech-savvy skillet this time around, and the team also has a new animal companion in the bald eagle "Eagley." Only the most American of anti-heroes could pull a move like that, although Cena's Peacemaker embraces it with every fiber of his being.
Peacemaker and his team end up in a strange conversation about children that don't look like their parents, all leading to the term "butt babies" officially becoming real in this series. Only time will tell how important this scene will be in the overarching narrative.
Peacemaker spends much of this trailer alongside Vigilante as the two set up a powerful combination, no matter how many deaths come out of their wake.
Executive producer Matt Miller spoke during the panel about the "spectacle" and "emotion" that will drive this show alongside the expected comedic aspect. He even compared it to the classic 2000s sitcom The Office, although James Gunn admitted that it comes with much more violence:
Miller: "With the action and the spectacle and the emotion and the comedy, there's also like this workplace comedy at the center of it, about all these characters that come together, it's like The Office as a superhero show."
Gunn: "With more people getting shot in the face than The Office."
The footage can be seen below:
The Office Meets The DCEU
For all the insanity and wacky personality Cena brought to The Suicide Squad, his first solo project in the DC Extended Universe looks to take that to a whole new level.
The trailer sets the stage for Christopher Smith’s return to vigilante life after a near-death experience in The Suicide Squad, which includes full confidence in work as a “superhero.” He then encounters Chukwudi Iwuji’s Clemson Murn, who offers the anti-hero a chance to stay out of prison in exchange for taking on a new mission similar to his first DCEU appearance.
Showcasing an unhinged round of action and comedy from Cena, he finds himself once again working with Harcourt and Economos while gaining another super partner in Freddie Stroma’s Vigilante and a funny companion in Danielle Brooks’ Adebayo. The trailer even shows a small tease of Peacemaker’s personal life thanks to Robert Patrick’s first footage, giving a new kind of father/son relationship in the DCEU.
Even more comedy comes with images of Cena adorned only in tighty-whities and dancing his heart out while singing before fans get a first full look at the character’s pet bald eagle, affectionately named “Eagley.” The bird and his owner bond over a strange hug as the trailer finishes, leaving fans with a sense of fun and excitement that will come in this series.
The panel described the story as something along the lines of The Office mixed with brutally murderous heroes, which could set the stage for one of the DCEU’s most unique outings. It’s safe to say Cena is embracing this role with everything he has, and with Gunn writing all eight episodes and directing five of them, Warner Bros. will look to capitalize on a golden opportunity.
Peacemaker will debut on HBO Max on January 13, 2022.
