As the DC Universe undergoes a massive shake-up, under the combined leadership of James Gunn and Peter Safran, DC Studios’ new co-presidents, there is some confusion among the fan base about which projects are still canon. The old DCEU movies, under Zack Snyder’s creative oversight, have already been removed from the canon. But, James Gunn’s first entry in the DC Extended Universe, The Suicide Squad, has sat in canon limbo since the director was announced to be taking over the DCU. Thankfully, Gunn has come to the aid of confused fans, clearing things up online… kind of.
“Short answer: Only Creature Commandos forward is pure canon,” James Gunn wrote on Bluesky, in response to a fan’s question. Creature Commandos, released in December 2024, is the first official project in the new DC Universe. His answer clarified things well, and he probably should have hit send after writing that. But, Gunn followed it up with more “clarification,” that only made things more confusing. He wrote:

“For instance, Rick Flag Jr was killed because we heard Rick Flag Sr talking about it in Creature Commandos, not because we saw it in The Suicide Squad.”

The convoluted response was just half of the full answer. “Long answer: Only CC forward is pure canon; Peacemaker is almost entirely consistent with that canon other than the Justice League,” Gunn continued. “The Suicide Squad has a lot of consistencies but I think of it as an imperfect memory.” If that left your brain more scrambled than Harley Quinn, let’s simplify things. Creature Commandos is canon in the new DC Universe. Season 1 of Peacemaker and The Suicide Squad aren’t canon, but their stories follow the current canon, except for the Justice League scene.
James Gunn Teases His Next DCU Project

It’s hard to see how James Gunn finds the time to respond to fans online, considering his current workload. As well as overseeing the entire DC Universe, he is also in post-production on Superman, and is currently shooting Season 2 of Peacemaker (which is canon). Somehow, James Gunn has also found the time to work on his next, secret DCU project. The director hasn’t revealed any details about what his next project will be. Fans are constantly speculating whether it is one of the already announced movies in the ‘Gods & Monsters’ phase, or if it’s a new, unannounced project. Keeping on Bluesky, Gunn teased the fan base about his next project, writing:

“The bulk of my time is dealing with post-production on Superman and Peacemaker, but I’m also spending a fair amount of time pre-writing my next DC Studios project and watching dailies and offering ideas on the other projects. It’s much less overwhelming than when I was directing.”

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The Suicide Squad

Release Date

August 5, 2021

Runtime

132 minutes

Franchise(s)

DC Extended Universe, The Suicide Squad