James Gunn Finally Confirmed Some Good News For Superman: Legacy
James Gunn confirmed on his Twitter account that he will direct Superman: Legacy.
After months of speculation over the future of the DCU following James Gunn and Peter Safran being hired as co-CEOs, we now know when to expect the first slate of films, dubbed “Gods and Monsters,” to kick off. James Gunn confirmed today that Superman: Legacy will still be out on July 11th, 2025. In addition, Gunn announced that he would be the film’s director.
The bright and colorful image of Superman shared in the announcement tweet is more optimistic than the dark colors used to market Zach Snyder’s Man of Steel. James Gunn previously said that Superman: Legacy would focus on a younger version of the character back when he was starting out as a reporter for the Daily Planet. It’s not an origin story and will instead bring a very different version of the character to the big screen, hopefully meaning that the audience can skip watching Krypton blow up for once.
Superman: Legacy will be the first of the newly rebooted DCU, kicking off the “Gods and Monsters” slate of content which includes Booster Gold, Swamp Thing, The Brave and the Bold, and The Authority, along with the streaming series Paradise Lost, Creature Commandos, and Waller. As exciting as all that content is, we have to wait over two years for the first movie to hit theaters, which is long enough for plans to change yet again.
Speaking of how plans can change, James Gunn confirms that he was originally offered an opportunity to direct a Superman film years ago but turned it down. While writing Superman: Legacy, he didn’t plan to direct the movie until one point when he realized that he loved the script and was very proud of what he was creating.
Warner Bros. Discovery had previously announced the July 11th, 2025 release date, but it’s good to have direct confirmation from the co-CEO. Now that he’s directing the film himself, the future is even brighter for the DCU. If anyone has proved they can make a successful film out of the strangest parts, it’s Gunn, so if he can make Groot, Rocket, and Starro into mainstream characters, what can he do with Superman?
It’s easy to forget that the Guardians of the Galaxy was a team of D-list characters irrelevant for years before Marvel released the “Annihilation” storyline and rehabbed all of their cosmic characters. Even with a newfound level of fame among comic readers, mentioning Star-Lord and Gamora would only confuse the majority of the population, making the first movie’s blockbuster success even more surprising. No one would have thought Drax the Destroyer and Mantis would be prominently featured in a trilogy or that Adam Warlock would make it to the big screen.
James Gunn’s directing, writing, casting, producing, and promoting Superman: Legacy is great news for the DCU. While the MCU is starting to collapse under its weight, now is the right time for the DCU to regain lost momentum. Getting Superman right and making him the beacon of hope that supports the entire cinematic universe is the best first step for Gunn.
Between now and then, though, audiences can enjoy Shazam: Fury of the Gods, The Flash, Blue Beetle, and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. All four will be out this later this year, and all four will likely be rendered mostly irrelevant by the time Superman: Legacy takes flight.
