James Gunn Says PEACEMAKER Season 2 Tackles Two Dimensions, but It’s Not Your Typical Multiverse Story

With Superman now dominating theaters, the DCU is charging ahead, and next up is Peacemaker Season 2, which drops on HBO Max August 21. Ever since James Gunn announced the new DC Universe, fans have been wondering how Peacemaker, a series born in the old DCEU, would make the leap.

After some trailers teased a possible multiverse angle, Gunn has finally shed light on what’s coming, and it’s not what you think. He told Rolling Stone:

“People are realizing that Peacemaker season 2 is about two dimensions, and that's really the core of the show. But it's not as if one of these is old DCEU and one's DCU. That's dealt with in a different way, very upfront in a season where most everything in season 1 is canon and some things are not.”

That first trailer hinted at a mind-bending twist when we saw two versions of John Cena’s Peacemaker staring each other down. A new trailer, shown exclusively in theaters, makes it even clearer that the season is diving headfirst into a two-dimension storyline, and it looks like our heroes will be hopping between worlds. What isn’t clear yet is why.

When asked previously about these alternate realities, Gunn explained just how big of a deal they are:

“The whole [second] season of Peacemaker revolves around that. Yes, absolutely it is. You’ll see in Peacemaker [season 2], too… It’s just Lex’s version is much jankier than the one in Peacemaker. The one in Peacemaker works better. What the whole season of Peacemaker revolves around is that.”

But if you’re expecting something like Spider-Man: No Way Home or the chaotic mash-up of Deadpool & Wolverine, Gunn says to think smaller and more personal:

“I think of Peacemaker as more of a high-concept story about one other world. It’s more akin to Philip Roth’s [1996 novel] The Counterlife than it is to the third Spider-Man movie… I love that movie, but it isn’t about that. It isn’t Deadpool & Wolverine. It’s really a very simple, simple story about [Chris Smith’s] relationship to this one other world.”

This intimate approach suggests season 2 isn’t just fan service with cameos and chaos, it’s a character-driven exploration of Peacemaker’s identity across realities. Still, Gunn teased that this storyline plays a crucial role in the DCU’s larger narrative:

“It’s not what anyone thinks. It’s not what anyone would guess. But I think if people watch the next season of Peacemaker, they’ll see where a lot of these things are going, and have a little bit more of a sense of maybe what can happen.”

For those struggling to keep track of what’s canon and what’s not, Gunn is making things easier. He’s launching a companion podcast alongside Steve Agee and Jennifer Holland to break down every episode:

“We did every episode of Peacemaker, and in those episodes, I talk about what's canon and what's not. I basically chip off little things from Peacemaker season 1 that aren't canon, like Aquaman. But most of the stuff is canon.”

Gunn seems ready to prune a few other details from Season 1 too, but he’s keeping those specifics under wraps for now.

Peacemaker Season 2 arrives August 21 on HBO Max, and it sounds like we’re in for a wild, reality-bending ride.