Murphy's Multiverse

Tag: DCU Features

  • The Ultimate List of What to Watch Before ‘Creature Commandos’

    The Ultimate List of What to Watch Before ‘Creature Commandos’

    The all-new DCU kicks off on December 5th when DC Studios’ animated streaming series, Creature Commandos, debuts on Max with a two-episode premiere. Created by DC Studios’ co-chair James Gunn, the series tracks a secret team of incarcerated monsters recruited for missions deemed too dangerous for humans. The seven-episode series stars Indira Varma as The Bride, Zoe Chao as Nina Mazursky, Frank Grillo as Rick Flag Sr., Alan Tudyk as Dr. Phosphorus, Maria Bakalova as Princess Ilana, Anya Chalotra as Circe,  Sean Gunn as GI Robot & Weasel, David Harbour as Frankenstein and Viola Davis as Amanda Waller. 

    Even though it’s the first project of the new DCU, recent comments by Gunn have made it clear that a pair of projects he created and directed prior to the birth of DC Studios are also canon to the new continuity…at least kind of.

    “I think of [The] Suicide Squad and Peacemaker as pretty unreliable memories of what happened in the DCU.”

    “Well, it’s whatever we mention in anything,” said Gunn while explaining what events from his DCEU projects should be considered canon to the DCU. “Listen, Peacemaker is pretty easy. Peacemaker season 1 is basically canon outside of the appearance of the Justice League at the end, which you’ll see something about that in Peacemaker season 2. [The] Suicide Squad is probably a little bit looser. We know that Rick Flag Sr. is angry because his son was killed by Peacemaker, so we know that situation happened in the past, we have something to refer to to think of what it might be like that that happened, but that exists as canon because it was mentioned in Creature Commandos, not necessarily because it existed in [The] Suicide Squad.”

    Though it may be a bit confusing, certainly nobody has thought about it more than Gunn and we’re willing to roll with the looseness for now. To that end, it sounds as though there’s a little homework to do before jumping into Creature Commandos. Even though the two-episode premiere is just a week away, you still have time to prepare by checking out the projects included in THE ULTIMATE LIST OF WHAT TO WATCH BEFORE CREATURE COMMANDOS!

    Tier One

    Tier One projects are the bare minimum, non-negotiable prep you’ll need to do to fully enjoy the latest, greatest project you’re going to watch. In this case, there are none of those.

    Tier Two

    The Suicide Squad (2021)

    Gunn’s first project for Warner Bros. Discovery, The Suicide Squad was released simultaneously in theaters and on HBO in 2021 while theaters were still bouncing back from the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s unfortunate that more people didn’t see it in theaters, or at all, because it’s a damn good movie despite working with a roster of characters most people hadn’t heard of before the film came out and probably still don’t know.

    As Gunn pointed out, Frank Grillo‘s Rick Flag Sr. has a massive chip on his shoulder as a result of the events in this film. There are also plenty of other references to The Suicide Squad in Creature Commandos and at least one other member of the squad may make a surprise appearance at some point. However, there’s enough exposition in Creature Commandos to help catch up the uninitiated which means The Suicide Squad is not a must watch…just a should watch.

    Peacemaker, Season 1 (2022)

    Spinning out of the events of The Suicide Squad, Season 1 of Peacemaker picks up right where the film left off. Recovering from injuries that should have killed him, John Cena‘s Christopher Smith finds himself working against his will for Amanda Waller’s A.R.G.U.S.. While the series will be (mostly) canon to the DCU, it’s hardly required viewing to enjoy and understand Creature Commandos. Outside of a brief appearance by series regular John Economos, voiced by Steve Agee, and a reference or two to the events of Season 1, Peacemaker is really just going to help you understand Amanda Waller a bit more and why A.R.G.U.S. is in the position it’s in.

    Source: Collider

  • Shadow of the Bat: With Two Robins on the Way, the DCU’s Batman Won’t Be Far Behind

    Shadow of the Bat: With Two Robins on the Way, the DCU’s Batman Won’t Be Far Behind

    As James Gunn and Peter Safran work to build out their vision of the DCU, the DC Studios’ co-chairs have made it clear that the shared narrative will extend beyond the screen and into multiple other media. Live-action streaming series, animated streaming series and video games will all help create the all-new, all-different canon of the DCU and part of the plan to maintain a sense of continuity is to have one actor play a role across all the different medium.  As an example, Frank Grillo will enter the DCU as the voice of Rick Flag Sr. in the animated Creature Commandos and then reprise the role in live-action in Season 2 of Peacemaker.

    Television, movies and games all intertwine within the same universe. We’re going to cast actors that are going to be able to play the characters in this, as well as in other things, some of which we’ve already cast.

    -James Gunn

    According to Gunn, part of the reason that they’ll seek to maintain continuity between the different projects is to ensure that all DC Studios’ projects are in equal ground. “We don’t want the series to feel in any way like step-children or lesser than,” said Gunn in a 2023 interview. It’s an intriguing way to move forward as it may continue to allow, as is the case for Grillo, actors to enter the DCU first with their voice before physically embodying their character.

    With that notion in mind, the recently announced animated film, Dynamic Duo, could become the door through which the DCU’s Caped Crusader enters the chat.

    Animation will lead into live action and back into animation. It’s a way to tell stories that are gigantic and huge, but without spending, you now, $50 million an episode.

    -James Gunn

    As part of the initial reveal of DC Studios’ Chapter One: Gods and Monsters, The Brave and the Bold was announced and described by Gunn as “a very strange sort of father-son story.” As one of the first five movies to be announced, it was easy to assume that The Brave and the Bold would make its way to screens sooner rather than later but for a multitude of reasons, that’s not yet come to pass. And that brings us to the newly announced Dynamic Duo.

    It’s important to note that as of now, there’s no clarity on whether or not Dynamic Duo will be set within the DCU, only that despite Matt Reeves‘ 6th and Idaho producing the film, it is not set in Reeves‘ Batman Epic Crime Saga. Indeed earlier this year Gunn cautioned that not every DC Studios’ animated project would be set in the DCU and Dynamic Duo may be the first example of that; however, if it is not, then it seems extremely likely that a project which features two Robins would also include Batman. In fact, Reeves pretty clearly indicated it would.

    I have wanted to make a film with Arthur and Swaybox for many years, and for that film to be Dynamic Duo, an incredibly special and unique Batman and Robin story for families, is a dream.

    With a script by Coco and Lightyear scribe Matthew Aldrich already in the works and a director on board, work could begin on the project at any time which means casting could get underway imminently. When that happens, will Gunn be searching for the voice of (and eventually the face of) the DCU’s Batman? Hopefully, given his social media presence, that question is answered by Gunn before long.

    Sources: CBR, Cartoon Brew, Deadline

  • 5 Alternate Versions of Kal-El Who Could Appear in ‘Superman’

    5 Alternate Versions of Kal-El Who Could Appear in ‘Superman’

    Buzz has grown that DC Studios’ Superman will feature some sort of evil doppelgänger of the Man of Steel that David Corenswet‘s Kal-El will have to take on. Is it true? Who knows? Also, who cares? This type of buzz around CBMs is part of the process and it’s always fun to play with the possibilities and so we present…

    5 Alternate Versions of Superman Who Could Appear in Superman!

    To be fair, not everyone on this list is truly an alternate universe Superman. Perhaps it’s more accurate to label some as copies or imitations of the real deal. Regardless of the description, the idea remains the same: a Supes vs. Supes type battle will ensue.

    Bizarro

    Certainly the most well-known alt Supes, El-Kal is probably not the odds-on- favorite to actually appear should these rumblings prove accurate. The idea of Nicholas Hoult‘s Lex Luthor already having been hard at work cloning Superman doesn’t seem to fit with what little is known about the film but a Bizarro World Bizarro does seem a bit more reasonable.

    Cyborg Superman

    The Snyderverse tackled xenophobia pretty well so the Hank Henshaw version of the character may not make his way into the DCU but as is almost always the case with DC’s stable of characters, there’s another option. Would Kal-El’s uncle, Zor-El, the father of Kara Zor-El, aka Supergirl, be an option? Kara is rumored to be showing up in Superman, so perhaps her believed-to-be-dead daddy could show up…but that wouldn’t require Corenswet to double up, as is the rumor. So maybe a full-on cyborg built by one of Kal’s enemies could do the trick.

    The Eradicator

    The buzz around a potential “second Superman” appearing in DC Studios’ Superman has grown steadily over the past few weeks. Nothing has been officially shared about James Gunn‘s 2025 film but with production underway, it’s possible that bits and pieces of the plot could have trickled out and the one heard the most is that David Corenswet will be playing two versions of Kal-El.

    A character who has been reinvented over the years, the most recent version of the Eradicator went head-to-head with Kal-El over his choice to father a human/Kryptonian hybrid, Jonathan Kent. They won’t work in Gunn’s Superman since Corenswet’s Kal is still in the early days of his heroic journey; however, the original idea of the Eradicator–as devised by Roger Stern and Curt Swan–as a creation intent on preserving Kryptonian culture by ERADICATING all non-Kryptonian cultures could work.

    Red Son

    In 2003, Mark Millar‘s Superman: Red Son brilliantly explored a “what if” scenario that revolves around baby Kal-El being found and raised by Russians rather than in Smallville. In Red Son, Lex Luthor uses some of Soviet Superman’s DNA to create “Superman Two”, an abomination of a clone who becomes weaponized by the U.S. government. Gunn could pull a switcheroo in Superman, having the Russians creating Супермен 2 to take on the original version. Gunn would certainly take some heat for coming so close to the plot of Superman IV but it would likely only come from people who never saw that movie anyway.

    Ultraman

    Outside of the Nazi version of Overman, Ultraman is the most despicable version of Kal-El in the Multiverse. The Kal-El of Earth-Three, Ultraman is truly the embodiment of everything Superman should never be. Selfish rather than selfless; heartless rather than compassionate; simply evil rather than purely good. Ultraman leads the Crime Syndicate, an evil version of the Justice League and is actually strengthened by exposure to kryptonite. Given what Gunn has said about his ideas for Superman in the film, Ultraman could be the best choice on this list for the film’s antagonist.