James Gunn Clears Up DC Timeline

The DC Universe is a bit of a mess right now. With a steady stream of cinematic releases adding more superheroes to the pile, recent multiverse shenanigans from The Flash, and James Gunn taking over as studio co-CEO you’d be forgiven for getting confused by it all.

Wait, what’s happening in the timeline? What universe are we in? Is the Nicolas Cage Superman really canon? Thankfully, Gunn himself has clarified the situation on his Instagram.

Responding to fans, he writes: “Nothing is canon until Creature Commandos next year. - a sort of aperitif to the DCU - & then a deeper dive into the universe with Superman: Legacy after that. It’s a very human drive to want to understand everything all the time, but I think its okay to be confused on what’s happening in the DCU since no one has seen anything from the DCU yet.”

So the first movie from Gunn’s new-era DC will be Creature Commandos, a refreshing of the slate. Next comes Superman: Legacy, which apparently will be connected to it in some way.

But what about this year’s crop of DC movies? According to Gunn, he’s not necessarily wiping the slate clean. He writes: “Xolo Maridueña will continue playing Blue Beetle in the DCU, as Viola Davis will Amanda Waller, and John Cena will Peacemaker.”

It’s good Gunn is retaining fan-favorite characters, but it leaves a few big-hitters noticeable by their absence. These include Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn, Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman, and Jason Momoa’s Aquaman, who’s up next in December’s Aquaman and the Last Kingdom.

The latter is a film with its own messy history. Here's how Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom cut 2 Batman cameos.