The DCU Justice League Doesn't Exist (Yet) and Other Major Details We Learned About James Gunn's Superman

James Gunn’s Superman is easy 1 of the astir hotly anticipated movies of 2025. Not lone does the movie present a marque caller cinematic incarnation of the Man of Steel and his supporting cast, but it besides kicks disconnected the live-action broadside of Gunn’s and Peter Safran’s DCU. There are a large galore questions astir however precisely Superman introduces this shared cinematic beingness and what relation David Corenswet’s Kal-El plays, but things are becoming clearer acknowledgment to a caller roundtable interrogation from Entertainment Weekly.

From the information that the DCU has a Justice Gang alternatively than a Justice League to the amazingly heavy past of metahumans successful this world, present are the biggest takeaways from the EW interview.

Justice League oregon Justice Gang?

Superman’s chap DC heroes similar Nathan Fillion’s Guy Gardner, Isabela Merced’s Hawkgirl, and Edi Gathegi’s Mister Terrific person featured prominently successful DC’s selling truthful far. We cognize that these heroes service connected the DCU mentation of the Justice League, a squad seemingly spearheaded by Sean Gunn’s Maxwell Lord (a motion to the Justice League International comics of the ‘80s). But what we didn’t cognize until present is that this squad isn’t really called the Justice League. They’re the Justice Gang.

That 1 alteration speaks volumes astir the squad and their spot successful the wider DCU. There’s a definite harder borderline inherent to the Justice Gang, partially due to the fact that their sanction besides dredges up images of the supervillain squad from the comics known arsenic the Injustice Gang. Rather than consisting of the best, brightest, and astir noble heroes the satellite has to offer, the Justice Gang is comprised of hotheads and abrasive personalities. We saw from the caller Peacemaker Season 2 trailer that Lord and his squad aren’t peculiarly respectful of their chap heroes.

Ultimately, the Justice Gang is inactive a unit for bully successful the DCU. They conscionable aren’t needfully blessed with the aforesaid inherent consciousness of kindness and decency arsenic Superman himself. "They're good. They conscionable are not saintly," Gunn tells EW.

That speaks to a larger tendency connected Gunn’s portion to research the afloat spectrum of morality successful the DCU. Corenswet’s Superman and Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor correspond polar extremes, but astir characters autumn determination firmly successful the mediate of the good/evil spectrum.

"There are immoderate characters that are truly astir saintly, similar Superman," Gunn says. "There are immoderate characters who are astir beauteous terrible, similar Lex Luthor. But I don't deliberation Lex is each bad, and I don't deliberation Superman is each good. All those radical successful between, the Guy Gardners and the Jimmy Olsens of the world, are adjacent much analyzable successful their moralities and what they deliberation is okay."

Fillion besides points retired an important favoritism erstwhile it comes to Guy Gardner and Green Lanterns successful particular. They’re recruited into the Green Lantern Corps not due to the fact that they’re the astir heroic beings successful the universe, but simply due to the fact that they consciousness nary fear. That’s however you upwind up with a arrogant jerk similar Guy wielding a powerfulness ring.

"I emotion the thought that if you person an exigency and you request a Green Lantern — there's thousands of them retired determination successful the postulation — this is the past 1 you want," Fillion says. "What is precise existent astir Guy Gardner, and what James understands precise well, is you don't person to beryllium bully and axenic of bosom to beryllium a Green Lantern. You conscionable person to beryllium fearless. You conscionable person to person the will. And Guy Gardner thinks helium tin instrumentality connected Superman. That's however fearless helium is. No, you can't instrumentality connected Superman, dude."

Lois and Clark Are Already Dating

The latest Superman trailer shines a airy connected the dynamic betwixt Corenswet’s Clark Kent and Rachel Brosnahan’s Lois Lane. As Lois grills Clark connected his caller arguable actions successful Boravia, it becomes wide that she knows his concealed individuality and isn’t acrophobic to telephone him retired for his mistakes. What wasn’t wide from the trailer, however, is whether Lois and Clark are actively dating arsenic the movie opens. Yes, we spot the 2 buss successful 1 shot, but is that a aboriginal improvement oregon an hold of an existing romance?

Gunn present confirms that the second is true. Superman is acceptable successful a satellite wherever Kal-El and his chap heroes person been progressive for immoderate clip already, and that extends to his relationships with the Daily Planet crew. Lois and Clark person known each different agelong capable that she already knows his concealed and has travel to admit the galore sides of Superman.

“This isn't similar the interrogation successful the [Richard] Donner movie wherever Lois doesn't cognize that he's Clark," Corenswet says. "Lois knows everything astir him, truthful he's successful a precise susceptible position. He's madly successful emotion with this pistillate and desperately wants her to recognize him and admit him and emotion him back."

This dynamic betwixt Lois and Clark volition play a precise salient relation successful the film, to the constituent wherever it fundamentally affects Corenswet’s performance. This is simply a leader who puts connected 1 nationalist look arsenic Superman and different arsenic bumbling newsman Clark Kent. Lois becomes 1 of the precise fewer radical to cognize and admit the existent antheral that exists betwixt those 2 facades.

"We besides had this 3rd character, of who Clark is erstwhile he's successful a country with idiosyncratic who knows some sides of him,” Corenswet says. “He's not truly playing the quality of Superman, but he's besides not truly playing the relation of Clark, either. It's a property that lone comes retired with his parents and with Lois, erstwhile she truly gets to cognize everything astir him."

The DCU’s Long Metahuman History

We’ve known from the opening that Superman takes spot successful a satellite with a rich, existing past of superheroes and metahumans. But until now, we didn’t recognize conscionable however heavy that past goes. Gunn reveals that the DCU is simply a spot wherever the wide nationalist is intimately acquainted with the beingness of metahumans. These figures person been nationalist cognition for astir 300 years by this point.

"If you saw a shark-man walking down the street, you'd astir apt vomit and s--- yourself to death," Gunn says. "If they saw one, it would beryllium much similar if you saw Paul McCartney connected the sidewalk successful New York."

At this point, we tin lone speculate arsenic to the metahuman-related conflicts the DCU has dealt with successful the past. No uncertainty this is simply a satellite where, similar successful the comics, galore heroes and villains played parts successful World War II. The 300-year timeline astir apt besides encompasses the Paradise Lost series, which volition research the governmental turmoil and strife connected Wonder Woman’s location land of Themyscira. And that’s to accidental thing of immortal metahuman characters similar Vandal Savage.

How The Engineer Is Different From the Comics

By now, it’s go wide that María Gabriela de Faría’s Angelia Spica/The Engineer is 1 of the main antagonists successful the film. The trailer shows The Engineer battling Superman alongside the mysterious Ultraman and adjacent clashing with Superman’s faithful pup Krypto. This is simply a quality who volition disagree from the root worldly successful presumption of some powers and motivations.

When it comes to the former, The Engineer has been reimagined truthful that she’s nary longer a T-1000-style shape-shifting, liquid metallic lifeform. Instead, she’s a quality modified by precocious nanotech, allowing her to make deadly weapons from axenic thought.

De Faría provides immoderate penetration into her character’s motivations, revealing Angela to beryllium a existent believer successful Lex Luthor’s imaginativeness for humanity. And portion this isn’t overtly referenced successful the film, determination whitethorn beryllium a romanticist attraction driving her arsenic well.

“I imagined that Lex and Angie had this enactment narration wherever they respect each different truthful much," she says. "Angela highly believes successful Lex's thought of making the satellite a amended place. She's practically fixed her beingness to Lex for this greater good. But astatine the aforesaid time, I consciousness similar there's an constituent of an underlying narration going connected betwixt the 2 of them.”

De Faría adjacent reveals she told Gunn, “I consciousness similar these guys f***.”

Metamorpho’s True Purpose

Some DC fans person noted interest astir the ample ensemble formed of what is ostensibly a Superman-centric movie, pointing to the beingness of galore different metahuman heroes and villains arsenic a motion the movie is excessively crowded for its ain good. Though if the Guardians of the Galaxy movies proved anything, it’s that Gunn has a knack for drafting successful each mode of characters without making them superfluous to the plot.

That looks to beryllium existent for Superman arsenic well, particularly present that we cognize precisely what relation Anthony Carrigan’s Metamorpho is meant to play successful the struggle betwixt Superman and Lex Luthor. It seems that Luthor sees Rex Mason arsenic a invaluable weapon. A antheral whose assemblage tin transmute itself into immoderate constituent is the world’s astir ready-made root of Kryptonite. Rex, naturally, is little than thrilled astatine becoming a pawn successful Luthor’s anti-Superman crusade.

"You're successful a concern wherever it's having to wounded someone, having to beryllium an cause of the atrocious guy. And astatine the aforesaid time, there's this conflict to privation to beryllium good," Carrigan says. "What the movie does brilliantly is it puts you successful this concern of, 'Oh! He has nary choice.' He has to beryllium doing this, and you spot however achy it is."

Gunn Is Developing a Superman Follow-Up

Superman is conscionable 1 measurement successful a overmuch larger roadmap for the DCU. Gunn and Safran announced a fig of movies and bid erstwhile they archetypal revealed DCU Chapter One: Gods and Monsters successful 2023. With the accent connected getting scripts ironed retired earlier moving guardant connected immoderate project, the merchandise lineup has shifted somewhat successful the years since, but Gunn decidedly has a program he’s engaged executing.

We’ve known for a small portion that Gunn is engaged penning his adjacent large DCU task aft Superman and Peacemaker Season 2. But present the manager is confirming that he’s specifically processing a follow-up to Superman (whether oregon not these are the aforesaid task remains unclear). Not needfully a nonstop sequel, but 1 that builds connected the characters and crippled points introduced successful the archetypal DCU movie.

"What I'm moving connected is successful immoderate way…I mean, yes, yes, yes, yes,” Gunn says. “But is it a straight-up Superman sequel? I would not accidental necessarily."

It appears that Gunn’s adjacent respective projects volition beryllium astir establishing much connective insubstantial successful the DCU and making it much wide what the Gods and Monsters program really entails.

“The astir important happening is the circumstantial stories, but determination is besides a overmuch bigger communicative that we're telling that volition instrumentality a small spot longer to tell," Gunn says. "That's benignant of wherever my adjacent mates of things are going to be."

Part of that process whitethorn impact introducing a existent Justice League successful the DCU. Gunn cryptically hints, "There is nary Justice League successful this world… not yet."

Again, we present cognize that Lord’s squad successful Superman is the Justice Gang alternatively than the Justice League. That favoritism is adjacent much important if it turns retired the thought is to physique toward the debut of a due Justice League down the road. As the DCU debuts its versions of cardinal heroes similar Wonder Woman (who’s confirmed to beryllium getting a caller movie) and Batman (the DCU mentation of whom volition debut successful Batman: The Brave and the Bold), Gunn’s extremity whitethorn beryllium to present a much accepted Justice League squad comprised of these iconic heroes conscionable successful clip for the climax of Gods and Monsters.

Do you privation a much accepted Justice League squad successful the DCU, oregon bash you similar the misfit Justice Gang? Cast your ballot successful our canvass and fto america cognize your thoughts successful the comments below.

For much connected the aboriginal of the DCU, brushwood up connected each DC movie and bid successful development.

Jesse is simply a mild-mannered unit writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intelligence thicket by pursuing @jschedeen connected BlueSky.