Supergirl Proves That the DCU Needs to Be Bigger than James Gunn

This article contains spoilers for Supergirl.

Even those of us who liked Supergirl can’t call the movie a coherent vision. In the same way that Supergirl herself was constantly depowered, Milly Alcock’s vulnerable and ferocious take on the Maid of Might was undercut time and again by clunky story choices, a bland aesthetic, and distracting needle drops, culminating with a rendition of Jimmy Eat World’s “The Middle” by indie artists Kelty Greye and KidMotel. Those last two points highlight the feeling that director Craig Gillespie was doing his own cover, emulating the work of DCU co-head James Gunn.

Turns out, Gunn did in fact influence the movie, but not necessarily by Gillespie’s choice. A postmortem published by The Hollywood Reporter revealed that DC Studios responded to unfavorable test screenings last winter by creating two cuts, one by Gillespie and one by the studio. Test audiences were shown both cuts, and while “the scores surprisingly dropped significantly” from when there was just one cut, the “studio’s inched out ahead of Gillespie’s.” The studio cut made it to theaters, and while the article only specifically identifies the inclusion of “The Middle” as his decision, it’s hard to imagine that Gunn didn’t drive that version. In light of this revelation, the problems in Supergirl only underscore the fact that the DCU needs to evolve past James Gunn if it wants to succeed.

Gunning for Success

It’s easy to see why Warner Bros. wants to lean so heavily on Gunn. Kevin Feige and Marvel have defined the modern superhero movie landscape, with Feige serving as the ultimate auteur. As demonstrated by his Guardians of the Galaxy movies, Gunn was one of the few who figured out how to maintain his voice within Feige’s system. Moreover, Gunn has both the knowledge and the passion for the deep cuts of DC Comics, bringing weirdos like Peacemaker and the Creature Commandos to the wider public. When Gunn proved that he could do a respectful, interesting take on Superman, a character far outside his wheelhouse, he seemed to cement his position as the right filmmaker to guide the DCU.

That reputation only grew as Gunn touted a creator-first approach that contradicted the Marvel factory. Gunn insisted that no project goes into production without a finished script and foregrounded his screenwriters, putting Supergirl screenwriter Ana Nogueira on the press tour alongside Alcock and Jason Momoa.

At first glance, the behind-the-scenes debacle of Supergirl seems to undercut Gunn’s ethos. Studio cuts, reshoots, and excessive marketing are nothing new to the world of big-budget, IP-driven filmmaking. But Gunn seemed above that, and if there’s truth to the claims of the unnamed sources quoted in Hollywood Reporter saying Gunn and Gillespie “were not creatively aligned,” then it appears that Gunn’s principles couldn’t resist standard studio operating procedure.

But the signs of problems were clear even before Supergirl started shooting. Gillespie has certainly had his hits, including the Oscar-winner I, Tonya and the Disney origin story Cruella, but it’s hard to say he has a distinctive voice. Or, if he does, it’s one similar to and lesser than Gunn’s: messy lead characters, a self-awareness, lots of needle drops. For the much-anticipated Batman flick The Brave and the Bold, Gunn chose director Andy Muschietti, a guy whose greatest successes might be getting It and The Flash to the screen after messy productions. The next DCU movie is Clayface, which boasts a script from the incredible Mike Flanagan, but is directed by James Watkins, a filmmaker whose best decision was to just let James McAvoy go nuts in Speak No Evil.

Crisis in the Gunn Universe

Looking at this list of filmmakers, it sure seems like Gunn hasn’t strayed from the Mighty Marvel Movie Method: get a bunch of journeymen to direct movies conceived by the studio head. Except it’s even worse, because Feige is very much a studio head and Gunn is very much a director.

Gunn has a take on DC Comics characters, and he knows how to bring out the best in them. Gunn never shies away from the inherent silliness of those who put on bright tights to fight crime, but he also treats them as three-dimensional figures, real people in an absurd world. Moreover, Gunn knows how to tackle heavy themes without ever becoming pedantic or sacrificing the fun of a superhero spectacle, as demonstrated by making Starro the Conqueror a weapon of mass destruction in The Suicide Squad or making black site prisons a key part of Superman.

Yet as wonderful as Gunn is at telling these stories, he’s not the only one who can do it. Even within the MCU, Taika Waititi and Ryan Coogler both managed to make superhero movies that felt personal. Certainly, nearly two decades after the launch of the MCU, other filmmakers have had their own wild ideas on superheroes. It’s time for Gunn to find them and give them the same freedom he affords himself. In particular, Gunn needs to find filmmakers who do not approach superheroes in the same way.

For all Gunn does right, he does have his limitations, and his raunchy sensibilities do clash with the fact that superheroes are fundamentally for kids. Surely, someone out there knows how to make an excellent kid-friendly DC movie that Gunn would have never imagined.

Elseworlds and Other Voices

Despite the disappointments of Supergirl and the concerns about the next few DCU movies, there is reason to hope that the universe will expand beyond its studio head’s perspective.

Of course, there’s The Batman Part II, a film that reflects the vision of director Matt Reeves and has no connections to the rest of the universe. This August sees the release of Lanterns, a show that does not at all feel like a James Gunn project. While TV vet Chris Mundy serves as showrunner, Lanterns also boasts as co-creators Tom King and Damon Lindelof, two guys know for their ideosyncratic (and sometimes infuriating, as anyone who read Heroes in Crisis will tell you) takes on established characters.

Even more exciting is Dynamic Duo, a movie about Robins Dick Grayson and Jason Todd. The film comes from animation studio Swaybox, who specializes in combining traditional animation with puppetry. Not only does it promise to be completely different from the usual superhero offerings, it will certainly appeal to kids in a way other DCU movies haven’t.

In light of these projects, it’s clear that the problems with Supergirl raise concerns for the DCU, but don’t yet signal the demise of Gunn’s tenure. You might even say we’re in the middle of the ride.

Supergirl is now playing in theaters.