The DC Universe has had a creative resurgence thanks to James Gunn taking over as its co-leader. Now receiving more planning and forethought than ever, the shared universe formerly known as the DC Extended Universe is being prepared for big things. In fact, some of Gunn's recent comments suggest that the DCU could go for a grander scope than even Marvel has attempted.
Teasing the "biggest story ever told" across multiple mediums, Gunn's tentative plan for the DCU hint at the movies and various TV shows building up to an adaptation of Crisis on Infinite Earths. Though this landmark story was already used for a crossover on The CW's Arrowverse, a movie version incorporating even more worlds will be a game-changer. It could even eclipse Marvel's upcoming plans.
James Gunn's Crisis Plans Could Involve the Current Crop of DC TV Projects
At the moment, several disparate DC TV shows are unconnected to the DC Universe of movies. These include Titans, Doom Patrol, Stargirl, Superman & Lois, Pennyworth and The Flash. Likewise, non-DCU films include Todd Phillips' Joker and its upcoming sequel, as well as the further projects stemming from Matt Reeves' The Batman. In the case of the shows, most are in their last seasons or soon to be there, but they might become part of an even bigger future James Gunn.
When Gunn stated that he wanted to tell the biggest story, there's no bigger DC story than Crisis on Infinite Earths. This comic book involved various worlds throughout the multiverse, which would be the perfect premise to incorporate all of these TV shows and movies. It was rumored that a Crisis film project was in the works before Gunn came on board, but given DC Studios' ten-year plan for the shared universe, it finally sounds like it could work. A decade is a decent amount of time to build up to such an event and make it stick the landing, as shown in the similar span of time for Marvel Studios' Infinity Saga. Ironically, this may give the cinematic DC crossover a leg over Marvel's next big event.
A Crisis on Infinite Earths Movie Could Surpass Marvel Studios' Secret Wars
The final part of Marvel Studios' current Multiverse Saga will be the movie Avengers: Secret Wars. Based on a multiversal crossover event from the past decade in the comics, it also shares its name with a previous Marvel crossover released around the same time as the Crisis on Infinite Earths comic book. Though Marvel Studios has the upper hand when it comes to crossovers, its current path may present a way for DC Studios to come out on top.
As mentioned, the Infinity Saga wrapped up after 11 years of movies, but the Multiverse Saga that began with Phase Four in 2021 concludes with 2026's Secret Wars. That leaves less time to set up the multiversal threat, especially since the central villain, Kang, is still so unknown. The DCU won't have this problem if it follows Gunn's 10-year map, allowing the threat to its multiverse of shows and movies to properly be developed without coming off as rushed. The final result could be a movie that gives the multiverse its deserved grandeur, especially since the version in the Arrowverse had to contend with a CW budget.
There are still bugs to be gotten out of the system, but hiring James Gunn appears to be a good decision for the nascent DC Studios. By emulating the past successes of Marvel Studios and avoiding what seems to be a current mistake of theirs, the film studio has the potential to make the cinematic Crisis on Infinite Earths the biggest movie event ever. Worlds will live, worlds will die, and the DC Universe will never be the same again.