James Gunn has found himself in quite a pickle with DC fans. The co-CEO of DC Studios made two comments about Superman on Twitter that has made the fandom confused at best and angry at worst. Gunn took to Twitter to clarify Superman’s age in the new DC Universe and also made a shocking revelation about “Superman: Legacy,” which made fans livid for Henry Cavill.
James Gunn Clarifies Superman’s Age In His DCU
Back in December 2022, when Henry Cavill announced that he was leaving behind the role of Superman, James Gunn simultaneously explained through a tweet why the actor couldn’t be a part of his DCU. As per the director, his version of the iconic superhero was young, and Cavill had crossed the age bracket to play him. However, recent comments by Gunn have made DC fans confused about Superman’s age.
Back when James Gunn and Peter Safran announced the new DC Universe slate, The Hollywood Reporter said that Gunn’s Superman was going to be around 25 years old. Till now, that is what the fanbase has assumed. But in a recent tweet, Gunn said that he had never specifically said what the Man of Steel’s age is in the DCU. He said that all he had mentioned was that the last son of Krypton was going to be younger than 40 years old and that Batman could be a couple of years older than him.
Rather than offering clarification on Superman’s age, Gunn’s words sent everyone fuming. Many fans commented on his post and asked him why they couldn’t the director hire Cavill, who is 39 years old. It could be because Gunn never said that Superman was going to be closer to 40, either, just that he’s within 40 years of age. So he could very well be 30 years old.
In fact, Gunn doesn’t outright refute the THR claim that Clark Kent is around 25 years old as well. Instead, he cheekily increases the age range to perhaps mislead fans a little. However, it seems to have had the opposite effect. But this wasn’t the only instance where DC fans were raging over the supposed injustice done to the actor.
James Gunn Talks About The Development Of ‘Superman: Legacy’
Many assumed that “Superman: Legacy” was a new project that had recently gone into development after Gunn took over as the co-CEO of DC Studios. In an Instagram story, Gunn clarified that the Superman project, as well as “Creature Commandos,” have been in development for a long time. When a fan tagged him on Twitter and asked him how long his Superman project was getting worked on, the director replied with six months.
This made fans raise their eyebrows because it meant that the movie was getting written in September of 2022, before Cavill’s “Black Adam” cameo as well as his announcement that he was returning as Superman. Many were livid at Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) for stringing the previous “Man of Steel” actor along since Gunn’s confession meant that there was already a Superman movie in development way before “Man of Steel 2” was even rumored.
However, the co-CEO stepped in again to clarify that “Superman: Legacy” was a separate project from “Man of Steel.” but that didn’t help. Instead, it fanned the flames of war since Cavill’s fans took it to mean that the WBD was double-crossing him by putting another Superman film in development.
Was Henry Cavill Wronged By WBD?
Before decoding whether Henry Cavill was indeed wronged or not, we need to understand that the merger with Discovery was a tumultuous time for Warner Bros. Back then, there was no DC Studios, which planned a slate of interconnected films. It seemed like the executives in charge had no idea how to effectively utilize the comic book treasure they had to make money. So it was speculated that they were giving multiple characters various projects to see what worked.
James Gunn, in his press conference for the slate reveal, called this out as well. He said that the executives previously gave out DC IPs to anyone who wanted them. Back then, after the disastrous reception to Zack Snyder’s DC films, Warner Bros. was allegedly not interested in bringing Cavill back. As such, they were trying to make different kinds of Superman films to try to bring the premier superhero back on screen.
“Superman: Legacy” was perhaps one of them. But it wasn’t the only one. There was also the Ta-Nehisi Coates-written Black Superman film that Warner Bros. was interested in making. It was then rumored that it was The Rock who allegedly strong-armed executives to bring back Cavill, and when that happened, the actor was supposedly not given a contract. Instead, it is speculated that all he had were promises that the company was going to make the “Man of Steel 2” film. But after the formation of DC Studios and Gunn and Safran’s coming to power, those promises meant nothing. So Gunn could start over.
So James Gunn definitely didn’t string along Henry Cavill since he wasn’t even in the position of power to do so back in September 2022. In fact, he was the one who let him go instead of giving him further false promises. As such, it looks like the responsibility for Cavill getting the short end of the stick falls on The Rock and other WB executives. After all, they allegedly brought back Cavill to ensure that “Black Adam” turned a profit with the help of his fan base without thinking about giving him a solid contract.
During the press meet, James Gunn also said that Henry Cavill was screwed around by previous regimes, and it looks like he was absolutely right about that. But now, at the very least, DC and Cavill’s fans aren’t in limbo about the actor’s status in the DC universe. As for “Superman: Legacy,” it remains to be seen who is the new man of steel in Gunn’s universe.
See more: James Gunn Mentions Talking To Netflix About Some Projects; What Could They Be?