Posted in: Max, Movies, TV | Tagged: james gunn, justice league, peacemaker

Peacemaker: "Almost All" of Season 1 Is Canon (Sorry, Justice League)

DC Studios' James Gunn confirmed that "almost all" of Peacemaker Season 1 is canon to the New DCU - just not that Justice League cameo.

When it comes to DC Studios co-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran's New DCU, the rules are pretty clear (for the most part). Whatever happens or gets mentioned in Creature Commandos and other films and series moving forward counts as being canon in the New DCU. Whatever came before it didn't make the cut – though we're assuming that they could count as "Elseworlds." But then there's the matter of Gunn's John Cena-starring "The Suicide Squad" spinoff series Peacemaker. Previously, Gunn has made it clear that they found a way to make the first season work in the New DCU (obviously, Season 2 won't have that issue) but has kept it (understandably) under wraps. During a recent interview with IGN in support of the upcoming adult animated series, Gunn offered a bit more clarity on what will (and won't) make the cut.

"Now, in 'Creature Commandos,' you'll hear them talk about things that happened in '[The] Suicide Squad' or 'Peacemaker. Well then, those things automatically become canon," Gunn explained – which makes perfect sense. But what about that season finale scene where Zack Snyder's Justice League shows up way too late (with Jason Momoa's Aquaman and Ezra Miller's The Flash seen up close and with speaking lines) to get bad-mouthed by a clearly pissed-off Peacemaker and what's left of the team? Yeah, about that. It's not canon – a point that Gunn made during the same interview while also noting that "almost all" of the first season will remain canon. "The truth is almost all of 'Peacemaker' is canon with the exception of Justice League… which we will kind of deal with in the next season of 'Peacemaker,'" Gunn revealed. Maybe a shared group hallucination?

Joining the cast for the season is Frank Grillo as Rick Flag, Sr. (from Creature Commandos), Sol Rodriguez (Star Trek: Picard) as Sasha Bordeaux, Tim Meadows (Mean Girls, Saturday Night Live) as ARGUS Agent Langston Fleury, and David Denman (Bosch: Legacy) in an undisclosed role. Behind the camera, Gunn also confirmed that Greg Mottola (Superbad) and Peter Sollett (Ordinary Joe) had been tapped to direct a few of the season's episodes. Now, here's a look back at the opening credits for the first season as we imagine what the opener for Season 2 will be like:

Steve Agee (Super, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Brightburn) rejoined Gunn and Cena for Peacemaker, reprising his film role of John Economos, a warden of Belle Reve Federal Penitentiary and an aide to Viola Davis' Amanda Waller. Danielle Brooks (Orange Is The New Black) joined the series as Leota Adebayo, with Robert Patrick (Terminator 2: Judgment Day) in the role of Auggie Smith. Jennifer Holland (Brightburn) reprised her film role of Emilia Harcourt, and Freddie Stroma (Bridgerton) took on the role of Adrian Chase, aka Vigilante. In addition, Chukwudi Iwuji (When They See Us) as Clemson Murn, Lochlyn Munro (Riverdale) as Larry Fitzgibbon, Annie Chang (Shades of Blue) as Detective Sophie Song, Christopher Heyerdahl (Togo) as Captain Locke, Nhut Le (Kroll Show) as Judomaster, and Elizabeth Faith Ludlow (The Walking Dead) and Rizwan Manji (Perfect Harmony) as recurring characters of Keeya and Jamil. Alison Araya (Riverdale) & Lenny Jacobson (Narcos: Mexico) were tapped for the roles of the married couple Amber and Evan, respectively.

Gunn, Brad Anderson (Session 9), Rosemary Rodriguez (The Walking Dead), and Jody Hill (The Righteous Gemstones) directed the eight-episode series. Gunn and Peter Safran served as executive producers, with Cena as co-executive producer. Peacemaker was produced by Gunn's Troll Court Entertainment and The Safran Company in association with Warner Bros TV. The series explores the origins of Cena's The Suicide Squad character, a man who believes in peace at any cost — no matter how many people he has to kill to get it.

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