James Gunn and Peter Safran are stepping down as co-CEOs and co-chairmen of DC Studios effective Dec. 1, following Skydance’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery last month.
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Gunn → step → Discovery
Gunn, the former Marvel filmmaker who directed last year’s Superman and its upcoming sequel, was tapped alongside Safran in 2022 to lead a new era of storytelling featuring some of the biggest heroes from the pages of DC Comics.
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who → direct → Comics
Marvel alum Jeremy Latcham has been chosen to replace them as president and chief creative officer of DC Studios.
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Latcham → choose → Studios
“Four years ago, we set out to unite DC under one creative vision.
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we → set → vision
In that time, we helped restore Superman to the heart of DC, while opening new doors and telling new stories in film and television with Peacemaker, Creature Commandos, Lanterns and Clayface,” Gunn and Safran said in a statement shared with Variety addressing their abrupt departure.
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Gunn → restore → departure
“We’re immensely proud of the team that turned that ambition into something real, including the actors, crews and executives we had the opportunity to collaborate with.
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we → ’re → opportunity
We’ve shared a creative history with Jeremy going back to Marvel, and we’re eager to see the perspective he brings to DC’s next chapter.
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he → share → chapter
We’re excited to return to what drew us to this job in the first place, which is telling the stories we love, including the next chapter of Clark and Lex’s journey in Man of Tomorrow.”
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we → ’re → Tomorrow
Gunn confirmed the news in a statement on Instagram on Monday, thanking “all of you who have supported me.”
“There have been so many highs along the way,” he continued, name-checking his work on Superman, Clayface and Peacemaker.
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he → confirm → Superman
“Thank you so very, very much for embracing the characters and stories we’ve put on screen,” Gunn wrote.
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Gunn → thank → screen
Skydance chairman and CEO David Ellison and co-CEO Ynon Kreiz praised Gunn and Safran in a separate statement, saying the pair “launched a new era for DC Studios and led it through a period of real transformation.”
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pair → praise → transformation
“We’re grateful for their passion, contributions and commitment to this legendary brand,” Ellison and Kreiz added.
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Ellison → ’re → brand
Latcham, who made a name for himself working on Iron Man, Iron Man 2, The Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy, Avengers: Age of Ultron and Spider-Man: Homecoming, said he’s “excited and honoured for the opportunity to now lead DC Studios into its next era.”
Gunn and Safran’s tenure running DC was a mixed bag
Gunn and Safran were put in charge of DC in 2022 by then-Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav in a bid to compete with Marvel’s slate of superhero movies.
They came in after DC pulled the plug on Zack Snyder’s Snyderverse, which featured Ben Affleck as Batman, Henry Cavill as Superman, Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, Jason Momoa as Aquaman and Ezra Miller as the Flash.
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which → make → Flash
The pair’s first movie, a rebooted Superman, was a modest success, selling $618 million in tickets worldwide.
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movie → reboot → tickets
But this summer’s Supergirl was a massive bomb, taking in just $126 million on a reported $170-million budget.
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Supergirl → take → budget
Their latest movie, last month’s Clayface, has barely broken even, earning $109 million on a $44-million budget.
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movie → break → budget
Despite their decision to exit DC Studios, Gunn and Safran still have a slate of projects on the way, including Superman: Man of Tomorrow and 2028’s The Batman: Part II.
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Gunn → exit → Tomorrow
The duo also have a new TV series due out next year, The People v. Gorilla Grodd, which will see Skyler Gisondo reprise his Superman role as Jimmy Olsen.
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Gisondo → have → Olsen
Gunn and Safran had other planned movies on the horizon, including The Brave and the Bold, which was supposed to introduce Batman to the DCU.
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which → have → DCU
But that film is now a question mark, along with the possibility of future Superman movies starring current Man of Steel David Corenswet.
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film → star → Corenswet
It also remains to be seen what will happen with another unnamed DC project Gunn was currently writing.
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Gunn → remain → project
Although Gunn won’t get to see the full vision he had planned to unfold over the course of a decade, he said he was happy he agreed to take the job leading DC Studios.
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he → get → Studios
“It’s simply telling the big story,” Gunn told Postmedia in 2022, shortly after he was announced as DC Studios’ new co-head.
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he → tell → head
“Getting to tell the biggest story ever told is what excited me about it.”
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what → get → it
But in his lengthy social media statement, he hinted that writing and directing films while leading a studio sometimes put him at odds with the corporate side of the job.
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writing → hint → job
“What only the closest people to me have known over the past four years is my time at DC Studios has been trying, to say the least.
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time → know → least
I dislike the at-times corporate nature of the job,” he wrote.
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he → dislike → job
“I will miss being the co-caretaker of these great characters, but I’m also incredibly relieved and excited to get back to pure filmmaking.”
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I → miss → filmmaking
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