The Suicide Squad Director James Gunn Confirms Peacemaker Takes Place in DCEU

As part of an Instagram post announcing a trio of new cast members joining Peacemaker for HBO Max, Guardians of the Galaxy and The Suicide Squad director James Gunn confirmed for anybody still wondering that, yes, Peacemaker takes place in the shared universe of DC's big-budget, interconnected films. That universe, which launched with Man of Steel and included David Ayer's Suicide Squad, is the setting for Gunn's The Suicide Squad, which will be a very different kind of movie but still features Ayer's original actors in the roles of (at least) Harley Quinn, Amanda Waller, Captain Boomerang, and Rick Flag.

Gunn's matter-of-fact "revelation" was really a formality; while every new DC project since Man of Steel has come with questions about its level of connectedness to what some fans call the "DCEU," it has been pretty clear from the get-go that The Suicide Squad takes place in that universe, and since Peacemaker is a spinoff, it stands to reason it would, too. That said, Gunn notes that Peacemaker is set to be the first TV series explicitly set in that universe.

You can see Gunn's post below.

View this post on Instagram

I get to share too much good news with you guys today. ALSO joining the cast of #Peacemaker is @ripfighter as Auggie Smith, @jenniferlholland , reprising her role as Emilia Harcourt from #TheSuicideSquad movie, and Chris Conrad as Adrian Chase/Vigilante. How could I not be stoked having the Terminator 2 and Dennis from my favorite Tv show ever - and of course Jenn - joining @johncena & @daniebb3 in our show. Thanks @HBOMax for being a great partner so far and letting us do something truly over-the-top. And, yes, for those of you asking, this show is connected to the DC film universe. I think we’ll be the first show to air that is. Correct me if I’m wrong @wbpictures gods!

A post shared by James Gunn (@jamesgunn) on Nov 11, 2020 at 11:34am PST

Of course, The Flash (Ezra Miller) from the DC film universe appeared in The CW's "Crisis on Infinite Earths" event, which connected the movies to a multiverse that includes not just The CW's core superhero shows, but also series like Lucifer, Smallville, and Titans; plus films like Superman Returns and Tim Burton's Batman, all of which had characters who appeared in "Crisis."

Gunn previously worked with Man of Steel and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice director Zack Snyder on the 2004 remake of Dawn of the Dead, which Gunn wrote and Snyder directed. Snyder, too, has an HBO Max series coming out in the form of Zack Snyder's Justice League, although depending on how many changes it makes to the theatrical cut's continuity, it may or may not be canon to the DC film universe.

DC has a number of projects set to debut on HBO Max in the next few years, including Green Lantern (from Arrow's Greg Berlanti and Marc Guggenheim) and a Gotham-like series set in Matt Reeves' The Batman universe, which is not the same timeline as the main DC Films universe.