Another DC movie could be on its way from DC Studios as James Gunn teases that a new project has been pitched. With Gunn’s Superman movie less than a month out from its theatrical release, DC Studios is just getting started, as they have multiple DC Universe projects in the works. However, there will still be a focus on standalone films and TV shows that exist outside of the DCU timeline, as they will go under an “Elseworlds” umbrella.

It seems another “Elseworlds” movie could be in the works, as Gunn was recently asked by Entertainment Weekly in a new interview about how he and his fellow co-CEO, Peter Safran, about the status of non-DCU projects and where they fall into the studios’ overall plans. That is when Gunn brought up that a very big Hollywood star has actually pitched a DC movie to him, as he shared the following in detail:

James Gunn: Well, it is going to be mostly DCU, and then occasionally there’s some Elseworlds tales. There are things that naturally lend themselves to Elseworlds tales. We have a lot of animated projects and they are sort of a different beast; they aren’t all like Creature Commandos. The truth is, the DCU, we give people a lot of freedom to tell different stories, but also we have to be really involved to make sure that, say, the power set of Supergirl and Superman are the same. There’s a lot of really silly s— that we have to give notes on in screenplays, like powers or what cities exist in the DCU that don’t exist in other places. We aren’t the regular world; we’re the DCU. There isn’t necessarily Seattle, but there’s an Evergreen. There isn’t necessarily a New York, but there’s a Gotham. So all of that type of stuff needs to be dialed in.

So there’s definitely room for people to tell other stories…And when it’s somebody who’s important, like Matt Reeves — who I’ve had an admiration for a long time as one of the very, very few filmmakers who is out there making spectacle, commercial fair, that is also an artist — then you have to stand up and listen. The script still needs to be good. We’re not going to make it unless we like the script. But I think that there are exceptions. I told it to one person who came in and pitched something that was an Elseworlds tale. It was a very, very, very famous movie actor. I said, “It depends on how the screenplay comes out…If it’s a masterpiece, I’ll make it, but it has to be a masterpiece.” [Laughs] And he is like, “I don’t know if it’s a masterpiece.” He got all funny. He’s still working on it, though. He is still trying to do it, so we’ll see. Masterpiece might be pushing it, but it’s got to be really great.

If it’s an Elseworlds tale, then it’s worth telling something that might tend to confuse a few people. But also part of our thing is really being clear about what is Elseworlds and what is DCU. And the other thing is not just giving away properties like they’re party favors to people doing low-budget TV shows or stuff that we have no quality control over because we’re making a few thousand dollars on the rights. It is having some sense of quality control over everything.

What James Gunn’s Elseworlds Comments Mean

While Gunn may be keeping the actor’s name under wraps for the time being, it’s most likely because he doesn’t want to get fans’ hopes up yet in case the project doesn’t go forward at DC Studios. As the DC filmmaker has been open about it before, if a script doesn’t work out, it simply doesn’t get greenlit, including how Gunn confirmed that a DC project was recently killed, because they couldn’t get the screenplay to where they needed it. But the fact that actors are coming to DC Studios with Elseworlds ideas is still really exciting, showing that Gunn is open to various ideas.

This is also a good reminder that while there are many mystery DC Universe projects still in the works that they haven’t announced, DC Studios doesn’t want to get too premature with revealing what the actual тιтles are, as they aim to finalize the creative visions before getting them fully revealed. That very same approach for Elseworlds movies and TV shows is just as important for DC Studios. Given how DC has had a track record in the past in rushing projects that lead to poor results, DC Studios wants to avoid those same mistakes.

Our Take On James Gunn’s Elseworlds Comments

Hearing Gunn confirming that a well-recognized actor has an idea for an Elseworlds movie, that is currently being written, it will be exciting to see what character and story it could be, given how large the DC canon is. It’s even possible this could lead to something similar to the new Clayface spinoff movie, which wasn’t initially part of the DCU’s Chapter 1: “Gods and Monsters” slate. Hopefully, as 2025 progresses forward, more updates on this mysterious DC Elseworlds movie will be revealed over time.

Source: Entertainment Weekly