Superman: Legacy Gets An Official Start Date From James Gunn
Superman: Legacy has been confirmed to begin filming January 2024.
Right now, James Gunn is really having a moment. Fans and critics have generally lauded Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol. 3 as a breath of fresh air after the disappointing Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. But this Marvel alumnus is now also the creative head of DC Studios, and in a recent interview, he gave us an important update about the biggest superhero of all: Gunn’s film Superman: Legacy will begin filming in January 2024.
At first blush, it’s a relief for fans of the big, blue Boy Scout to know that Superman: Legacy has a firm start date. However, it’s worth pointing out that Gunn likely chose this as a “safe” date that he could promise to fans. As we previously reported, James Gunn is typically stepping down for this movie that he is both the writer and director of because he is standing in solidarity with the Hollywood writer’s strike.
What is much less certain is whether Superman: Legacy will still release in 2025 as James Gunn had previously promised. He announced that release date the same day he gave announcements about many upcoming projects, including the much-anticipated sequel to The Batman. But all of this was before the writer’s strike, and between not knowing when the strike will end and knowing how long it takes to put such big-budget movies together, a 2025 release date may now be considered quite optimistic.
A more cynical way of looking at any delays brought on by the strike is that it will give James Gunn more time to tweak the script for Superman: Legacy based on how fans react to other DCU projects such as The Flash. This Ezra Miller film is going to narratively establish a new status quo for the DC Universe while bringing in high-profile cameos such as Michael Keaton’s Batman. It looks like this film may be throwing everything at the audience to see what they do and do not like, all of which will likely inform the direction Gunn takes his Superman movie.
And there is a lot of pressure on Superman: Legacy because many see that film as the “true” introduction of the DCU under Gunn’s supervision. Right now, we still have multiple films coming out that were originally greenlit for the DCEU, including the aforementioned The Flash as well as Aquaman 2. Superman: Legacy kicks off a brand-new cinematic universe for DC, and it’s an open secret that Warner Bros. Discovery is hoping to get things right this time as they continue to lose ground to Marvel at the box office.
Around here, we’re very interested in seeing Superman: Legacy if only to see if James Gunn plays the film straight or indulges in his famously quirky sense of humor. The former Troma director is known for slipping strange jokes into his films and shows, including peppering Peacemaker full of R-rated quips about the superhero world. And if Superman: Legacy is even half as entertainingly wacky as The Suicide Squad, Peacemaker, and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 were, then we’ll be pre-ordering our tickets faster than a speeding bullet.
