James Gunn Had Big Plans for More Low-Budget DCU Horror Movies Before His DC Studios Exit
Hollywood just can't seem to leave a good thing alone. Following the moderate success of Clayface, James Gunn reportedly wanted to make more low-budget horror movies set in the DC Universe. It was a pretty awesome direction for DC Studios, but with Gunn now reportedly out, those plans could be dead.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Gunn was interested in expanding the DCU's horror side with smaller, less expensive films that would give some of DC Comics' stranger characters a chance to shine.
It's exactly the kind of filmmaking I'd love to see. Not every comic book movie needs a $200 million budget, a world-ending threat, or a dozen superheroes fighting a giant CGI monster. Sometimes a creepy little horror movie with a great concept is all you need.
Gunn also has a history with horror, so the idea of him returning to those roots while playing around with DC's massive collection of monsters and villains sounds like a hell of a good time.
Unfortunately, Hollywood's corporate machinery had other plans. Gunn and DC Studios co-head Peter Safran were reportedly assured repeatedly that Paramount's acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery wouldn't threaten their positions.
Four years after taking control of DC Studios, however, both executives have reportedly been pushed out as the new ownership continues overhauling Warner Bros.
The changes have been pretty extensive. Warner Bros. film chiefs Mike De Luca and Pam Abdy were replaced by Paramount-appointed executives, and the restructuring under Skydance has now reached DC Studios.
Taking over is Jeremy Latcham, who will serve as DC Studios' president and chief creative officer. Latcham has a solid superhero résumé, having worked at Marvel Studios on Iron Man, The Avengers, and Gunn's own Guardians of the Galaxy.
Gunn had reportedly been developing a third Superman movie and wanted to keep the Man of Steel appearing in a new project every two years. There were also other announced and developing DCU projects that could now face changes under the new leadership.
As of now, DC Studios hasn't revealed an updated release slate, and Gunn is expected to maintain some creative involvement in upcoming projects. How much influence he'll actually have remains to be seen.
What frustrates me most about this whole situation is the high possibility that Gunn's smaller DC horror movies will never happen. Clayface showed that there's an audience for this stuff, and DC has plenty of bizarre, creepy characters who could carry their own horror films without breaking the bank.
I would've loved to see Gunn continue exploring that corner of the DCU, especially if it meant giving filmmakers more creative freedom to make weird, nasty, character-driven genre movies.
But there's another side to this that I find even more exciting. If Gunn is free from running DC Studios, he could go off and make his own original low-budget horror movies instead.
No shared universe to maintain, no corporate franchise roadmap to follow, and no need to make every creative decision fit into some massive interconnected superhero plan. Just Gunn making whatever twisted, ridiculous, disturbing horror stories he wants.
That's a pretty awesome possibility. As much as I would've enjoyed seeing him turn more DC characters into horror movie nightmares, I'd be even more interested in watching him create something completely original.
Gunn helped build a new DC Universe, but he doesn't need DC Comics to tell a great story. Give the guy a modest budget, a messed-up idea, and the freedom to run with it.
I'd buy a ticket to that movie in a heartbeat.