According to James Gunn, Superman: Legacy and Creature Commandos were already taking shape when he and Peter Safran took charge of DC Studios.

Gunn shared the news on his Instagram story, posting a screenshotted response to the notion that he and Safran fast-tracked the DC Universe's first chapter of film and television projects. "Not THAT fast-tracked really since [Creature Commandos] (and Superman Legacy) were both in development before we took over as DCU Studios chiefs," Gunn wrote. He also confirmed that Creature Commandos is now in production.

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James Gunn Instagram Story

This revelation makes sense given that Creature Commandos and Superman: Legacy are the furthest along in the development process. Gunn has already written all seven episodes of Creature Commandos and cast some of the characters. He is currently working on the script for Superman: Legacy, the only project from Gunn and Safran's lineup of new DCU properties to have a confirmed release date thus far (July 11, 2025).

The Man of Steel's New Flight Path

News of Superman: Legacy being in development before Gunn and Safran took over DC Studios on Nov. 1, 2022, may still come as a surprise to some fans given that Henry Cavill announced his return as Superman on Oct. 24, 2022, just over a week before Gunn and Safran officially assumed control. On Dec. 15, 2022, following a meeting with the DC execs, Cavill announced that he would not return as Superman after all. It was later reported that Cavill had not signed an official contract to reprise the role of Superman when he announced his return in October 2022.

In January, Gunn assured fans that he and Safran did not fire Cavill. "We didn't fire Henry. Henry was never cast," he clarified. "For me, it's about who do I want to cast as Superman and who do the filmmakers we have want to cast. And for me, for this story, it isn't Henry." The DC boss also shared his admiration for Cavill and lamented the actor's treatment under Warner Bros. and DC's previous management. "I like Henry, I think he's a great guy," he said. "I think he's getting dicked around by a lot of people including the former regime at this company. But this Superman is not Henry, for a number of reasons."

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Though Superman: Legacy will cover "an earlier part of Superman's life," the film sees Clark Kent already established as the Man of Steel and a reporter for the Daily Planet. Gunn recently put a damper on rumors that the new Superman would be around 25 years old -- a theory tied to a rumor Gunn also debunked that pegged Euphoria's Jacob Elordi as the frontrunner to be the DCU's new Man of Steel. "It keeps getting repeated but I never said that," he tweeted in response to speculation on the new Superman's age. "People are speculating about both ages," he said in a follow-up tweet concerning Superman and Batman. "All I ever said was Superman was younger than in his forties and Batman MIGHT be a couple years older than Superman."

In addition to debunking various rumors surrounding Superman: Legacy, Gunn has shed some light on his version of the character. "He's a big ol' galoot," he said. "He's a farmboy from Kansas who's very idealistic. His greatest weakness is that he'll never kill anybody. He doesn't want to hurt a living soul. I like that sort of innate goodness about Superman; it's his defining characteristic." While Grant Morrison's All-Star Superman is an inspiration for Superman: Legacy, Gunn asserted that the film is not a direct adaptation of Morrison's work. "He's not [the] All-Star Superman [version of the character]," he said, "but again, I'm a huge fan of All-Star Superman, and I'm very inspired by [that comic book series]."

Gunn and Safran have not yet set an official release date for Creature Commandos, but fans can look forward to Superman: Legacy hitting theaters on July 11, 2025.

Source: Instagram