James Gunn has already cast doubt on the development of a direct sequel to the first DC Universe movie, 2025’s Superman. David Corenswet burst into theaters as a new Man of Steel on July 11, 2025, and the DCU’s first feature film has already become a fast success for the reshuffled DC Studios under the command of James Gunn and Peter Safran. Despite its popularity and opportunities for direct sequels being rife, Gunn continues to keep mum about the development of a Superman sequel.
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“Define ‘Superman 2,’” Gunn replied to @fermintalkswork on Threads when asked about when a possible sequel to Superman might release. As of July 13th, Superman has already grossed a total of $217 million worldwide, almost matching its budget of $225 million, and has achieved an 83% critics rating and 93% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. The movie’s quick success surely makes the possibility of direct sequels even more likely, but it seems that James Gunn is relying more on fleshing out the rebooted DC Universe in other projects first.
Peacemaker season 2, Lanterns, and Supergirl – all of which were teased in Superman – will be the next projects releasing in the DCU. These instalments will develop the budding franchise further, perhaps exploring more of the 300-year history of Metahumans and introducing us to new locations and characters taken straight from the pages of DC Comics. During the promo of Superman, David Corenswet and Lex Luthor actor Nicholas Hoult took lie detector tests together for Vanity Fair, during which Corenswet confirmed he’s contracted for a Superman sequel, but Gunn hasn’t been so forthright.
“What I’m working on is in some way… I mean, yes, yes, yes, yes,” Gunn revealed to Entertainment Weekly when asked whether he’s working on a sequel to Superman. “But is it a straight-up Superman sequel? I would not say necessarily.” This seems to suggest that Gunn is instead planning on delivering a standalone or spiritual sequel to Superman rather than an honest-to-goodness Superman 2. Superman set up many future projects thanks to the debut of the Justice Gang members, Milly Alcock’s appearance as Supergirl, Superman’s new popularity, the introduction of Ultraman, and more, so standalone sequels might make sense.
While any number of these standalone stories or spinoffs would make sense in the wake of Superman, it would still be great to see David Corenswet return to headline another solo movie. James Gunn previously directed the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy for Marvel Studios and is preparing to premiere season 2 of Peacemaker, so he’s not afraid of follow-ups and sequels. While Corenswet’s Superman is likely to appear in many upcoming DCU movies and shows, a direct sequel to Superman is the best opportunity to develop him properly.
Do you want to see a direct Superman sequel in the DCU’s future? Let us know in the comments!
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Image courtesy of HBO
