Who will make history and be the first Black superhero movie of James Gunn’s new DCU? The DC Studios boss announced exciting new details about Chapter 1 of the new DCU slate titled Gods and Monsters. The 10 new projects adapting DC Comics characters, including Batman, Superman, and more, were part of the new announcement and will be coming out over the next few years. Gunn informed fans that his announcement would not be a complete list of all the projects in development for Chapter 1.
DC Comics is full of comic book characters of various backgrounds and histories. DC Comics celebrates Black History Month with several promotions and products, including the comic DC Power. When it comes to film, Black characters have been featured in multiple animated DC films such as Green Lantern John Stewart, Vixen, and more. However, live-action films hit a rough patch with Shaquille O’Neal’s Steel (1997) and Halle Berry’s Catwoman (2004). Fast forward to today, and two rumored Black Superman movies are in development by J.J. Abrams and Michael B. Jordan. James Gunn’s recent DC Studios announcements included an Amanda Waller series and a Green Lantern show that would co-star John Stewart. Sadly, Gunn didn’t seem to mention any Black characters that would lead a film in his DCU.
The omission of any notable Black DC characters in the first chapter of the DCU prompted film critic Emmanuel “E-Man” Noisette to post a tweet directed at Gunn. The film critic asked who would make history as the first Black DC character to lead in a DCU movie. To be more specific, this question was not about featuring Black leading characters in the DC Elseworlds division, but rather the main continuity of the DCU.
Dear @JamesGunn,
Today is the 1st day of #BlackHistoryMonth . Thanks for bringing Waller & John Stewart to TV.
Who's going to make history and become the 1st Black lead in a live-action DCU movie? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/1h5tufNIbo— Emmanuel (E-Man) Noisette (@EmansReviews) February 1, 2023
And true to form, James Gunn actually saw the tweet and liked it for all the world to see.
The reaction comes amid a busy season for the creator, who has been promoting the new DC Studios. Fans would certainly love a black superhero movie as part of the new DCU cinematic slate. Thankfully when it comes to options they have plenty of characters available to choose from. Judging from the comments of the original tweet, fans have been suggesting Black heroes such as Static Shock, Icon, Vixen and others to be featured. Gunn is known for being extremely active on social media. He is also known for being very selective regarding which topics he chooses to interact with. While it’s understandable that he may not directly comment under the tweet about Black superheroes, it is nice to know that he at least saw it and acknowledged it. Maybe DC Studios didn’t think about a Black leading character until now. Maybe they already have something planned but weren’t ready to announce it yet. Either way, similar to how Marvel Studios broke records with Black Panther by featuring their first prominent Black character, DC studios has a prime opportunity to do something similar.
What do you think this public show of support from James Gunn on this tweet may mean? This should be enough to get the rumor mill churning. That’s all for now…
