Reports abound that after four years of absolute failure, the chickens have finally come home to roost for James Gunn.
Gunn and his DC Universe co-CEO, Peter Safran, were fired by Skydance CEO David Ellison on Friday. Ellison just took control of Warner Bros. Discovery and apparently decided things at DC needed an immediate enema. Gunn and Safran had a contract through April. Ellison told them to clean out their desks by December 1.
Taking over is a former Marvel executive, Jeremy Latcham, who was a big part of Marvel’s early success and is a big believer in the classic storytelling model that made Marvel a global phenomenon.
As I have previously written, Gunn’s problem was this:
My theory on Gunn is that he made one decent movie, the original Guardians of the Galaxy, and everything after was a reheated version of the same. Gunn’s sensibility worked that one time. The problem is that his sensibility — ironic distance, shallow snark, meta jokes, mocking the genre — wears pretty thin after a while. The first time we all feel smart for getting the jokes. After that, it feels like he’s mocking the audience for liking what they like.
Gunn emitted an unmistakable hostility towards the fans, especially through characters like the Peacemaker and that dreadful Suicide Squad (2021) movie.
According to one source, Ellison understands this, which is why the Gunn approach to the DC Universe is already being dismantled.
“Our WBD insiders say Gunn was fired over Man of Tomorrow, and the final cut now belongs to the new regime. We’re also told the divisive R-rated DCU, like Lanterns and Peacemaker, is over,” reports Cosmic Book News. “Variety ran down the fate of James Gunn’s DC projects following his exit, and its Green Lantern entry points one way: no Season 2 renewal announced, new leadership incoming, and a bigger budget needed for a second season.”
There will also be no more woke junk like this…
James Gunn is at it again. In the latest episode of Peacemaker Season 2, Gunn not only continues with his “Nazi Earth” storyline, but he also takes aim at Jesus Christ, mocking religion and tying it directly to Nazis.
The episode follows Danielle Brooks’ Leota as she escapes a mob of white pursuers with the help of Nhut Le’s Judo Master, both LGBTQ+ characters.
Man alive.
“The same WBD insiders who told us James Gunn was fired over Man of Tomorrow‘s final cut say incoming DC Studios boss Jeremy Latcham’s ‘involvement as a Christian means no more R like Peacemaker and Lanterns, though he wouldn’t discount a DC R-rated flick in the vein of the Odyssey.’”
Apparently, Man of Tomorrow, Gunn’s upcoming sequel to his middling Superman (2025), is in serious trouble, and this is why Gunn was fired five months before his contract was up. The new regime wants him out of the way while there is still time to repair it.
Maybe there’s hope…
We shall see.
Nothing Gunn did popped in any way. Superman (2025) made a pathetic $620 million. Supergirl lost a fortune. Clayface might break even. Lanterns divided fans over its woke storytelling and obsession with identity politics. Nothing Gunn did managed to make a lot of money or get people excited about what was coming next from DC.
Good riddance to James Gunn and good luck to the new guy.
