The “Lanterns” news cycle just shifted from small-screen detective work to full-blown cinematic event. While Aaron Pierre‘s John Stewart has been rumored to be headed to the big screen, Jeff “The In” Sneider has confirmed that Pierre will officially reprise his role in James Gunn’s Superman sequel, Man of Tomorrow.
Reportedly, Pierre‘s role isn’t just a cameo; it’s the connective tissue the DCU has been promising since Chapter One: Gods and Monsters was first announced.
Stewart’s inclusion makes enormous sense from a tactical standpoint. If Lars Eidinger’s Brainiac is the threat we think he is—a world-collector forcing an alliance between Superman and Lex—having an intergalactic lawman like John Stewart on the ground is a necessity, not a luxury. Stewart is a marine; he’s a man of order and protocol. Watching him navigate the ego of Nicholas Hoult’s Warsuit-clad Lex Luthor while trying to save Metropolis may well be a highlight of the sequel.
By putting Pierre in Man of Tomorrow, Gunn is giving the general audience a reason to tune into the Lanterns series on HBO. It establishes Stewart as a major Justice League-caliber player before the team even officially exists.
Man of Tomorrow is set for a July 9, 2027 release.
As is often the case, DC Studios co-chair and Man of Tomorrow writer/director James Gunn took to social media to shoot down the growing buzz about Wonder Woman making her DCU debut in the Superman sequel. And now, a new report claims to reveal the true identity of the character.
According to Nexus Point News, the mysterious character will be the alien warrior-queen Maxima.
A member of the Royal Family of the planet Almerac, Maxima’s primary motivation is the survival and evolution of her bloodline. Considered the ultimate genetic prize of her species because of the unique structure of her DNA, she spent years traveling the cosmos in search of a “suitable” mate—someone whose power could match her own and produce an heir capable of ruling Almerac. And that quest led her to Earth where Kal-El’s Kryptonian heritage caught her attention.
A composite powerhouse with a wide array of super powers, Maxima first appeared in an antagonistic role before transitioning into an ally of Superman and, eventually, a member of the Justice League. Her appearance in the film might indicate Gunn has adapted the 1992 Superman crossover event, “Panic in the Sky,” that featured Maxima teaming up with Brainiac.
In an effort to destroy Earth, Brainiac used his telepathic abilities to enslave several cosmic heavy hitters into his army, including Maxima. Once she eventually broke free of his control, Maxima turned on Brainiac, lobotomizing him, and turned the tide of the battle in favor of Earth’s heroes.
It may have taken a little longer than anticipated to get The Batman-Part II ready to roll but it’s beginning to look like it may have been worth the wait.
According to Deadline, MCU vet Sebastian Stan has entered into talks to join the cast of The Batman-Part II. While the trade report didn’t reveal the nature of the role, it’s believed that Stan will portray Gotham’s White Knight, Harvey Dent.
Harvey Dent is a prominent character in DC Comics, best known as the tragic hero who transforms into the villainous Two-Face. He first appeared in Detective Comics #66 in 1942, created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger. Before his descent into crime, Harvey Dent was Gotham City’s youngest and most dedicated District Attorney. Known as the “White Knight” of Gotham, he was a close ally of both Batman and Commissioner James Gordon. Together, the three formed a secret pact to dismantle Gotham’s organized crime families from within the legal system.
The turning point in Dent’s life occurred during the trial of mob boss Sal Maroni. In an act of desperation, Maroni threw sulfuric acid at Dent, hideously scarring the left side of his face. This physical trauma, combined with repressed mental health struggles (often portrayed as dissociative identity disorder stemming from childhood abuse), caused a total psychological break and turned Dent into Two-Face, a criminal mastermind obsessed with duality.
News of Stan’s potential casting comes less than a month after fellow longtime MCU star Scarlett Johansson joined Matt Reeves-helmed sequel. Following her casting, industry insider Jeff “The In” Sneider reported that Johansson was set to play Gilda Gold, most famous for her role in Jeph Loeb’s seminal graphic novel The Long Halloween (which heavily influenced Matt Reeves’ first film). In a shocking twist at the end of that story, it is implied (and confessed by her) that she was the original “Holiday” killer. She is a tragic figure, deeply in love with Harvey but constantly terrified of his dangerous work fighting the mob. In The Long Halloween, she secretly murdered gangsters on holidays to thin out the mob’s ranks. Her goal was not power, but to lighten Harvey’s caseload so he could finally retire, and they could start a family.
Dent has been a central figure in nearly every Batman film or television series, including Batman: The Animated Series in which he was given a deeply sympathetic backstory that established his “Big Bad Harv” alternate personality before the accident that turned him into Two-Face.
Following the news of Stan’s casting, social media was abuzz with the possibility that it may portend the demise of Bucky Barnes in either Avengers: Doomsday or Avengers: Secret Wars. Currently a member of the Thunderbolts/New Avengers, Barnes’ death would serve as a potential catalyst for multiple plot points, including convincing Steve Rogers to get back in action.
James Gunn loves social media. Whether teasing his next projects or shooting nearly every false rumor to hell, the DC Studios’ co-chair’s impressive omnipresence feels reminiscent of one who observed the universe from a Mobius Chair. And something new has caught his eye.
A recent casting call for a new, male actor in Gunn’s next theatrical project, Man of Tomorrow, somehow quickly evolved into rumors that Steve Trevor was set to join the cast of characters of the Superman sequel.
Since this is spreading, there was a *rumor* that a new male character was being cast (it could literally be anyone, even for Brainiac) and seems like this source is just assuming it’s Steve. This is not a real rumor pic.twitter.com/ivitehNhyJ
Despite the complete lack of evidence AND cautionary rhetoric from some established rumor mongers and proven sources, the Trevor buzz took hold and, eventually, came to the attention of Gunn, who quickly took control of the situation with a single “nope.”
James Gunn shuts down claims Steve Trevor is being cast in ‘MAN OF TOMORROW’. pic.twitter.com/DSp3JOB9UY
With Trevor off the board, all fans can do is hope that somewhere in the depths of DC Comics’ vast stable of characters, Gunn has located one who can be a male. Though the odds may seem stacked against him, don’t count Gunn out just yet!
In between Zaslav’s tease and the announcement of Man of Tomorrow, fans discovered an unused storyboard from Superman in the behind-the-scenes featurette, Adventures in the Making of Superman,which they believed revealed the villain of the 2027 Superman sequel. The storyboard features Superman, Supergirl and Krypto flying but a closer look at the bottom corner reveals the head of one of the House of El’s greatest enemies: Brainiac. Gunn further teased the classic Superman villain by releasing a photo of the script for Man of Tomorrow with a brain front and center on the cover page, but stopped short of confirming his inclusion. Now, a trade report seems to have taken care of that.
According to The Wrap, Brainiac will indeed be the catalyst that causes Superman and Lex Luthor, complete in his Warsuit, to join forces in Man of Tomorrow.
Gunn previously revealed that the villain “was considered” for Superman and with Supergirl hitting theaters in 2026, it wouldn’t take much to give some background to Brainiac’s fascination with Kryptonions and reveal that he visited Krypton before it was destroyed and shrunk and stole the capital city of Kandor.
In the comics, Brainiac’s primary motivation is generally a cold, unquenchable thirst for absolute knowledge and self-improvement—which involves collecting and destroying civilizations; however, modern writers have created a more sadistic version of the character, will to torture and experiment on his enemies–or even his own clones in the Absolute Universe–and employ psychological tactics that are more calculated cruelty than logic.
Since it’s pretty obvious I can confirm I heard Claes Bang too. But there’s a handful of others who are going to be tested so it’s undecided https://t.co/MBAjzKsmg9
Following the news, social media scoopers collaborated to indicate that Claes Bang, who played the title role in Netflix’s Dracula, has already rested for the role. However, tests are ongoing and given Gunn’s previous work with DC Studios, will involve multiple rounds of testing, including reading with leads David Corenswet and Nicholas Hoult.
Following a successful theatrical launch in 2025 with Superman, another Kryptonian will headline DC Studios return to cinemas in 2026. Directed by Craig Gillespie, Supergirl stars Milly Alcock as Kara Zor-El–the cousin of David Corenswet‘s Kal-El–who made a brief appearance in Superman.
Kara was on Krypton. She was on a piece of Krypton that drifted away from the planet and she lived there for the first fourteen years of her life in a horrible situation where she watched everyone around her die. So, she’s a much harsher and more fucked up Supergirl than you’ve been used to thus far.
-James Gunn on Supergirl
Based on DC Comics Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, the film has been described by DC Studios’ co-chair James Gunn as a “little more rock and roll” than Superman…and maybe as rock and roll as one of Marvel Studios’ most beloved and successful franchises.
In an interview with Rolling Stone, Gunn compared the upcoming DC Studios’ project to Marvel Studios Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy.
While discussing the past and future of the DCU, Gunn said “Supergirl especially is a space adventure,” adding, “It’s like Guardians [of the Galaxy].”
Setting Supergirl in space not only allows for the film to hold true to writer Tom King‘s comic but also to expand the DCU into corners of the universe that have rarely been explored in live-action.
Supergirl is scheduled to hit theaters on June 26, 2026.
While Superman focused mainly on fleshing out the all-new, all-different DCU’s Metropolis and its cast of characters, the film’s opening text established a world in which metahumans have been a known quantity for 300 years. That allowed for plenty of room to introduce heroes and villains in the film without necessarily having to spend too much time on their origins, something director James Gunn took full advantage of in having the Engineer and Ultraman join Lex Luthor in taking on Superman.
Even though Maria Gabrielle de Faria’s Engineer didn’t land with audiences as much as Gunn had hoped, she was a key part of Luthor’s team, so with Superman’s arch enemy set to return in Man of Tomorrow, it shouldn’t be too surprising to learn that Gunn has plans for the Engineer as well.
As confirmed by Gunn from comments made in the Superman Director’s Commentary, de Faria will return in Man of Tomorrow where fans will learn what happened to the villain after she went toe-to-toe with Kal-El and lost.
“She’s out of the movie,” said Gunn of the character in reference to her not returning to the story after being knocked unconscious by Superman. “Where does she go? Well, you’re going to find that out in the next movie.”
That sounds a bit like PlanetWatch may end up getting involved in…watching the planet…when Brainiac attacks, which is a reasonable way of having Lex and Superman team up in Man of Tomorrow. However, the Engineer wasn’t the only other villain in Superman.
“We discover that Ultraman is a clone of Superman. [In the comics], Ultraman is from Earth-3, where he’s a part of The Crime Syndicate and an evil version of Superman. There are some similarities here,” said Gunn. “Also, you might ask yourself, ‘Where does Ultraman go at the end of the movie?’ He sends him up into the black hole. Is this the end of Ultraman? I don’t know.”
While obviously more opaque than the plans for the Engineer, it does sound as though while Ultraman’s fate might be unknown to the audience, it’s a little more defined in Gunn’s mind.
Could Gunn be hinting at a Crisis on Two Earths-type film as part of his Superman Saga? It’s certainly not one on many fans’ bingo cards and would be incredibly ambitious; however, if executed properly, it would also likely stand as a giant among comic-booky comic book films.
When James Gunn and Peter Safran pulled back the curtain on the first chapter of DC Studios’ planned slate, The Brave and the Bold…and nearly three years later, that’s proven to be the case as the project has struggled to gain any positive momentum.
Inspired by Grant Morrison‘s Batman and Son arc from his epic run on Batman that began in 2006, The Brave and the Bold was described by Gunn as “a very strange sort of father-son story” featuring Bruce Wayne and his son, Damian, who Gunn referred to as “a little son of a bitch.”
[The Brave and the Bold is] a story of Damian Wayne, who’s Batman’s actual son that he didn’t know existed for the first eight to ten years of his life. He was raised as a little murderer and assassin.-James Gunn
Originally set to be directed byIt and The Flash helmer Andy Muschetti, the film was also intended to introduce “other members of the extended Bat-Family” who Gunn explained had “been left out of the Batman stories in the theater for far too long.” With so many details available by mid-2023, it seemed likely that The Brave and the Bold would follow closely behind Superman and help build a solid foundation for the all-new DCU.
However, by late 2024, progess on the film had seemingly stalled leading to Gunn explaining that the studio had “no set timeline for anything,” and that production on The Brave and the Bold–and any other DC Studios project–would not get made “until we have a screenplay that I’m totally happy with.” And now, as 2025 winds down into its final quarter, Gunn has provided a bit of a discouraging update on that screenplay.
“The script isn’t done,” Gunn revealed in an interview with The Ringer-Verse. “I mean, we’ve got somebody writing a script, I think it’s really good,” he quickly clarified. And that wasn’t the only downer Gunn dropped.
With it recently becoming crystal clear that Matt Reeves‘ Batman Epic Crime Saga is set outside the DCU’s main continuity and that Robert Pattinson will not be the DCU Batman, Gunn was asked if he had found his Batman yet. The short answer is no.
“Do I have ideas about actors who could play Batman? Absolutely, I do. I have guys I like. I have guys that are top of the list for me, just like I had people that were at the top of the list for Superman,” Gunn said.
“People can guess and maybe they’ll be right about certain things. We’d have to screen test, we’d have to do the whole thing. Okay, I see what you’re doing. ‘1923’, it’s a really good TV show, like I can’t believe how good that show was,” said Gunn, likely referring to rumors that Brandon Sklenar was in the mix for the DCU’ Dark Knight.
Notably, Gunn’s comments about screen tests stand out as in the cases of both Superman and Supergirl, trades caught wind of the DC Studios’ short lists for Superman, Lois Lane, Lex Luthor and Supergirl. It’s safe to assume a role as big as Batman would catch the attention of the trades again. And while that means fans are no closer to finding out who will play Batman, Gunn does know someone who won’t… though he isn’t quite ready to share who that is.
“One actor in particular, a pretty big star, wants to be Batman,” teased Gunn before saying, “we’ve talked about it, but I don’t think that’s the case,” he said.
With so little seemingly working on the right direction and multiple other projects further along in development, it seems as though The Brave and the Bold won’t hit theaters until 2028 or later.
Announced via social media on September 3, Man of Tomorrow will see Superman stars David Corenswet and Nicholas Hoult reprise their respective roles and, it seems, team up against an as-yet-unrevealed threat. Though additional cast has not been officially revealed, Gunn teased that the film would feature characters from “within the group of characters we’ve already met,” leading to speculation that the Justice Gang might appear. Indeed, Isabel Merced teased that possibility shortly after Gunn‘s announcement, but Gunn has been tight-lipped about what other characters will appear in the film…until now.
In response to a question on Threads, Gunn confirmed that Rachel Brosnahan will return as Lois Lane for Man of Tomorrow in an “important role.”
Given the importance of her role in Superman and in the character’s long history in DC Comics, it’s unsurprising that Brosnahan will return for Man of Tomorrow; in fact, it’s likely she’ll be a key player in the entire Superman Saga and, perhaps, play a role in the larger, overall narrative of the DCU.
Cameras are now rolling in Liverpool on DC Studios’ third film, Clayface, and plenty of interested onlookers have taken to social media to share photos and videos from the set. While nothing too spoilery has been captured so far, a scene being filmed at The Queen Elizabeth Law Courts, which has been transformed into Gotham General Hospital, revealed that a very familiar face has joined director James Watkins‘ horror film.
As seen in the photo and video below, shared by Egg Boy, Ray Donovan star Eddie Marsan is now part of the DCU.
The first looks don’t reveal anything too telling about Marsan‘s role, though he was also seen walking on set with Tom Rhys Harries, the film’s titular character, which could mean Marsan‘s role is substantial.
Starring Harries as the Matt Hagen version of the classic Batman baddie, Clayface will “center on an ascending actor whose face is disfigured by a gangster. As a last resort, the actor turns to a fringe Elizabeth Holmes-style scientist for help. At first, the experiment is a successful but … well, it wouldn’t be a horror movie if the story ended right there, would it?” Based on additional photos from the set, it seems possible that low-level mob goon Jimmy “Red” McCoy may be the gangster responsible for Hagen’s disfigurement.
Written by Mike Flanagan and described by DC Studios’ co-chair James Gunn as “a complete horror film,” Clayface is set to release on September 11, 2026.
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