With Superman preparing to properly launch the DC Universe (after Creature Commandos on Max served as an animated prelude), the possibilities are truly limitless for what character from DC Comics lore could show up in this franchise. For years, it’s felt like live-action DC Comics movies and TV shows suffered from primarily focusing on characters associated with the Superman and Batman mythos. However, given that Gunn’s exploits in Guardians of the Galaxy and The Suicide Squad have concentrated on the most obscure comic book characters, that shouldn’t be the case for the DC Universe’s future.
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Heck, Superman alone will introduce audiences to the likes of Metamorpho and The Engineer, significantly lesser-known DC Comics figures than Superman or Wonder Woman. Wherever the DC Universe goes next, James Gunn must not monkey around and make sure one particular DC Comics staple gets a richly deserved movie.
Give Detective Chimp His Roses
Detective Chimp was introduced in the early 1950s, a darker era for DC Comics. Once the ’80s rolled around, Detective Chimp was resurrected and began intersecting with the larger DC Comics lore and some of its most famous characters, including Martian Manhunter and Green Lantern. Detective Chimp is exactly what he sounds like: a primate who solves crimes, often with a trusty magnifying glass and spiffy cap in hand. The character has had various origins over the years to explain how he’s so insightful, but he truly is just a chimp with a high IQ and a penchant for solving crimes. Unlike Comet the Super-Horse or even one iteration of Marvel’s Lockjaw, he’s not a human trapped in the body of an animal.
Naturally, Detective Chimp has become a fan-favorite character among DC Comics readers and writers alike. This explains why he’s shown up with super-teams as varied as Justice League Dark and the Legion of Super-Pets over the years. Starting in the late 2000s, he’s also begun appearing in various animated productions. The animated programs Batman: The Brave and the Bold and Teen Titans Go! have made room for the character, as well as two LEGO video games. Detective Chimp’s awesomeness can no longer be contained just within the world of comics.
Bringing this figure into the world of movies would only make sense for the DC Universe. After all, Krypto in Superman (not to mention Weasel in Creature Commandos) establishes that animal characters exist in Gunn and Peter Safran’s franchise. Suddenly throwing in a simian detective wouldn’t be out of place. Plus, murder mysteries and investigative stories are incredibly popular right now thanks to the Knives Out movies and Poker Face. Detective Chimp could extend this phenomenon nicely. Most importantly, though, Chimp would be a natural evolution of Gunn’s comic book movie fascinations.
Gunn Has Always Loved Comic Book Animals
Detective Chimp’s placement in the DC Universe, particularly as a solo movie lead, feels like the next step after Gunn directed comic book movies heavily focusing on the likes of Rocket Raccoon, Lylla, and King Shark. Other filmmakers look at the talking animals that widely populate classic comics and immediately recoil at such “outlandish” material. Gunn, meanwhile, finds the humanity and emotion within these critters. A talking walrus or an oblivious shark becomes a character that captures your heart above all else.
Gunn isn’t just committed to bringing these characters to the screen, he also wants to make them more than a punchline. That would be a divine gift when handling Detective Chimp, who does have some dark material in many of his storylines, particularly when concerning more modern-day comics. Alcoholism and societal ostracization creep into his plotlines, elements which other directors might abandon if they even gave the oddball character a second look. Gunn, though, could see the potential in this DC Comics legend to not just appear in live-action, but star in his own motion picture.
Seventy years after debuting in the comics, Detective Chimp continues to fascinate people as more than just a novelty character. He’s a genuinely compelling figure who explores twisty-turny mystery narratives that keep you on the edge of your seat. That material could make for a perfect movie, particularly for the DC Universe, as it tries to prove any kind of motion picture can exist in this franchise. Given his proclivity for turning oddball animal comic characters into beloved entities, James Gunn just might be the perfect person to make Detective Chimp into the movie star he was always destined to become.
Superman hits theaters on July 11.
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