Posted in: HBO, Max, Movies, TV | Tagged: dc studios, dcu, james gunn

James Gunn, DC Studios & The Case of the Secret DCU TV Project: Update

We've been tracking this mysterious DCU TV project that James Gunn began teasing over the summer, and it looks like we might have an update.

It's been a little more than a month since we rolled out our It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia/"Pepe Silvia" conspiracy board to track the progress of that mystery TV project that DC Studios co-CEO and writer/director James Gunn has been teasing over the past few months. Well, it looks like we might have some additional red strings to add based on a recent interview Gunn did in support of the latest episode of HBO Max's John Cena-starring Peacemaker Season 2. But before we get to that, who's in the mood for a history lesson?

Speaking with EW in June in support of David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan, and Nicholas Hoult-starring Superman, Gunn offered some updates on what's still ahead for the DCU, and that was when he dropped a tease about one project in particular that grabbed our attention… one that hadn't been announced. "Then there's another TV show that's my favorite thing in all of this, that is hopefully getting made soon. It's just my favorite thing," Gunn shared. Apparently, it's something that Gunn pitched to Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav when describing what the new DCU would look like. "We did not announce in that first meeting because I felt like it was too easy to rip off by another company," Gunn explained.

During a post-Superman spoiler interview with Rolling Stone from July, Gunn teased a potentially big development on the television side of the DCU. When asked about the rumors of a Wonder Woman film being fast-tracked, Gunn shared, "We got the first few things started, and there's some other things that are really close to green-lighting — like there's a television show that I hope that we're gonna be green-lighting in the next few days." That brought us to Chris Hardwick's I Think You're Overthinking It podcast.

In the episode from August (start listening around the 52:55 mark), Hardwick asked Gunn for a status update on how things are looking with "Chapter 1: Gods and Monsters." During their conversation, Gunn shared that in terms of what DC Studios will be moving on next, he's hoping to have The Batman II filming, and then his "follow-up" to Superman… and that would be followed by the mysterious television project that we've become obsessed over. At first, we were surprised he didn't say Clayface, but that's most likely because the studios have really started moving forward on it, so it counts as being in production.

Later that month, Frank Grillo offered some additional intel on what sounded like this very same project (unless there's another secret project in play). With his Rick Flag appearing in Superman, Creature Commandos, and Peacemaker Season 2, Grillo is no stranger to the DCU, and based on what he shared with GQ, there's definitely more on the way. "We were at the premiere, and I was like, 'This is cool. Like I'm really entangled in this world.' And then this is why I love Gunn: we were at the afterparty, and he leaned in, 'You know what we got coming next, right?' And I'm like, 'No.' He goes, 'We got something big—and you're all over it.' I don't know what it is, but he knows, whatever he needs me for, in whatever capacity, I'm in," Grillo offered. That brings us to today…

During an interview with GQ's Alex Pappademas, Gunn was asked if he could share any additional updates on what's going on in and around the DCU. Along with sharing that there are "actually two really cool film scripts that I'm hoping to take to the next level," Gunn touched on "getting 'Supergirl' into shape," how production on Man of Tomorrow is inching closer, and how HBO's Lanterns is "coming along well." But this was the quote that had the red lights on our radars flashing: "And then I'm excited about one TV project in particular. I don't know why we're not greenlighted on that already—it's just figuring out the budget." Could it be another TV project that Gunn's excited about? Sure, and we would be more than happy if that were true. But this seems more in line with what he's been teasing since early in the summer. Of course, we dropped a theory on what it could be early on that we're still sticking with…

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