In late 2022, Warner Bros. Discovery tasked writer/director James Gunn and veteran producer Peter Safran (“Aquaman”) to establish the first DC Comics-centric studio with DC Studios. At a recent press event apprising their slate, the DC Studios chiefs shared updates on a string of projects affirming what is ready to go (“Superman” and “Peacemaker” season two), what needs more time before filming, and what is still coming along in early development phases.
“We are writer-driven,” Gunn told outlets like THR and Variety of their creative and greenlighting process at DC Studios. “We are not going to greenlight or put anything into production until we are happy with the script….It is hard enough making a good movie with a good script, it’s almost impossible to make a movie with a script that you’re writing on the run.”
To that end, Gunn and Safran admitted that some projects had been put on the back burner and some had been delayed because their scripts weren’t ready. Among them are the Viola Davis-starring “Waller,” itself a “Peacemaker”/” Suicide Squad” spin-off, “The Authority” and more.
READ MORE: ‘Sgt. Rock’: Daniel Craig Drops Out Of Luca Guadagnino’s Upcoming DCU Project
“We’ve taken a couple of cracks at it but still haven’t been able to land,” Safran said regarding the tricky development of the “Waller “project intended to be a TV series. “‘Waller’ has been a bumpy road.”
Likewise, “The Authority,” a movie adaptation of the comics centering on a “Suicide Squad”-esque team with “Justice League”-level powers, hasn’t gotten very far either. The project had a script apparently—though the writer is unknown— that “has had a harder time coming along,” Gunn said. “It hasn’t been much of a priority.”
James Mangold’s “Swamp Thing” movie was one of the first high-profile projects announced in the first wave but seems to have fallen to the wayside as Mangold is busy with his awards campaign for the Bob Dylan biopic “A Complete Unknown.” Mangold is also working with Lucasfilm/Disney on “Star Wars: Dawn of The Jedi.” While no one said “Swamp Thing isn’t happening, it also doesn’t sound like that one is a huge priority for them.
“We talk about it occasionally,” Gunn said tersely. And given that ‘Dawn Of The Jedi’ comes first, fans might be waiting several years if “Swamp Thing” does happen.
 Despite Luca Guadagnino’s WWII actioner “Sgt. Rock” recently losing Daniel Craig as its star and all this bad news about delayed projects, there were some positive updates here, too.
A “Teen Titans” movie was confirmed alongside an animated series further exploring the pre-DCU superhero, “Blue Beetle” (one of the few DC characters like Peacemaker” to carry over to the mainline DCU).
Lastly, when Safran was asked about a second season for the acclaimed and award-winning DC series “The Penguin,” he was much more abstract with his response, and it also doesn’t sound like it’s coming anytime soon or at all.
 “We don’t know. There are a lot of moving pieces, probably most importantly Colin himself. And 800 pounds of makeup,” he explained. With that said, Colin Farrell is expected to appear in “The Batman” sequel, and everyone involved would likely need to know of Oz’s fate and Farrell’s scheduling before doing any follow-up seasons.
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“Creature Commandos” has already kicked off the DCU (including a Batman tease). Still, we’re more curious to see how global audiences react to Gunn’s reboot of “Superman” in July, as that will indeed be the DC Studios’ first big test.