James Gunn gives an update on casting Superman: “We’re narrowing it down”

After taking hold of the reins of the DC Universe, James Gunn and Peter Safran are working on building out their own continuity with the hope of competing with the monster Marvel Cinematic Universe. But first, Gunn has a huge make-or-break job on his hands: recasting the Man of Steel for the new movie Superman: Legacy.

Although it will kick off the new DCU, Superman: Legacy will not be an origin story. Rather, according to Safran, it will tell “the story of Superman’s journey to reconcile his Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing as Clark Kent of Smallville, Kansas.”

Gunn and Safran are making good progress on the casting side of things. After a huge number of auditions, they’ve got a shortlist of potential candidates. “Now that we’ve kind of done a lot of auditions, we’re narrowing it down,” Gunn told Inside of You with Michael Rosenbaum. “We’re not done yet.”

Naturally, there will be many rumors about who will play the next Sueprman. And no, nobody has guessed it yet; even is someone did, Gunn wouldn’t say anything anyway. “There’s things in there that are completely false, but I I can’t go out there and say, ‘Oh this isn’t true, and this isn’t true’ without going through everything,” Gunn said. “And by the way, it’s not the audience’s — at this point, I don’t think it’s the business of anyone who is screen-testing for a role. That is a very private thing.”

Gunn has previously stated on Twitter that fans shouldn’t believe anything that doesn’t come from either him or Safran. That’s good practice, of course, but this is the internet; gossip is going to get around.

In the interest of adding to those rumors, current names being tossed around for the role include Nicolas Hoult, David Corenswet and Tom Brittney. Superman: Legacy doesn’t have a release date yet, but the movie is expected to premiere in 2025. Sounds like progress is being made!

When can we expect Peacemaker season 2?

Another DC project James Gunn has in the works is Peacemaker season 2. The debut season of The Suicide Squad spinoff was a pretty big success; it was hilarious and had one of the best intro sequences every put to screen.

The good news? Season 2 is officially on the way! The bad? It could be a long time before it hits screens.

Gunn said that the Superman movie takes priority over Peacemaker. “No, Peacemaker’s coming back right after Superman. That’s my next thing,” he said. “Yeah, [I] go straight from Superman to Peacemaker.”

Current Superman Tyler Hoechlin weighs in on the recast

Superman & Lois star Tyler Hoechlin first donned the red and blue costume back in 2016’s Supergirl, and he’s had an incredible journey as the hero so far. Of course, he knows that there’s always going to be apprehension over recasting. For every Christian Bale Batman there’s a George Clooney Batman. That said, speaking at the Metropolis Superman Celebration in Metropolis IL, he implored viewers to give the new guy a chance, whoever he ends up being:

"I would just encourage everybody to whoever the next person ends up being [cast as Superman] give them a chance because I’m sure they will be awesome. I think anyone who does this has a huge love for it and a real care for the character, even me, who didn’t really grow up with the character – you know what Superman means to people, and I think it’s just something that you don’t mess with unless you really have a care for it. I’m excited to see whoever the next person is."

Hoechlin’s journey as Superman isn’t over yet. The CW recently announced Superman and Lois season 4!

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h/t Screenrant