James Gunn Turned in First Draft of ‘Superman: Legacy’ Just Before Writers’ Strike (Exclusive)

DC Studios co-chief James Gunn turned in the first draft of “Superman: Legacy” last week, just days before the writers’ strike, TheWrap has exclusively learned.

Gunn is in the midst of casting the DCU reboot, which is not expected to be affected by the WGA strike since the superhero film is eyeing a Q1 2024 production start. He wrote the script and will direct the film, which will introduce a new Superman to kick off a new era of the DC universe.

Pre-production kicked off last month, with costumes, production design “and more” now “up and running,” according to Gunn, and he’s in the midst of casting as he targets a February 2024 start date.

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“Superman: Legacy” is slated for release on July 11, 2025, and will tell the story of Superman’s journey to reconcile his Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing as Clark Kent. Per DC Studios, “he is the embodiment of truth, justice and the American way, guided by human kindness in a world that sees kindness as old fashioned.”

“Superman: Legacy” will kick off a new era of the DCU in earnest, as Gunn and Safran are spearheading a new interconnected series of films and TV shows much like the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Matt Reeves’ “The Batman” sequel will follow “Legacy” in October 2025, although the Robert Pattinson film will continue to exist in its own separate universe – an outlier in Gunn and Safran’s overarching plans.

Those plans also include an additional, separate Batman movie with a different actor in the lead role called “The Brave and the Bold,” a “Supergirl” movie, a “Swamp Thing” film from director James Mangold, and an animated series called “Creature Commandos” for which Gunn has written all the scripts.

“Superman: Legacy” will be the first film released that was spearheaded by Gunn and Safran, but still to come are films from the previous regime including June’s “The Flash” and December’s “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.”

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