Every upcoming DC movie and TV series after Joker 2

The DC movie universe is in a state of flux. The new bosses of DC Studios — James Gunn and Peter Safran — have announced a huge slate of new movies and shows that will wipe the slate clean, and launch the new under the banner Chapter 1: Gods and Monsters.

The modern era of the DC Comics movie universe launched in 2013 with Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel. From its very first entry, the DCEU (DC Extended Universe) made waves with bold decisions and dark choices.

With more controversial movies released within a two-year period (Batman Vs Superman, Suicide Squad, Justice League) than the MCU managed in a decade, the DCEU had a hard time staying on course. Gunn and Safran were recruited to lead a rebirth and they’ve already made a huge impact to the studio’s slate.

Read more: Every upcoming MCU movie and TV show

So, there’s plenty of hope in the DC’s future. But is it enough to compete with Marvel? Let’s examine every single entry scheduled for release — as well as some that are yet to secure a premiere date — to see if we can find an answer.

The Penguin | 19 September, 2024 (Sky Atlantic/NOW)

The Batman director Matt Reeves will expand his vision of Gotham in a spin-off series based on Colin Farrell’s Penguin — also known as crime boss Oswald Cobblepot.

Set just weeks after the climactic events of The Batman, the eight-episode series will follow the villain as he “grabs violently for power in Gotham.” Farrell’s co-stars will include Cristin Milioti and The Shawshank Redemption actor Clancy Brown.

Joker: Folie à Deux | 4 October, 2024

Existing in another DC universe entirely — DC Elseworlds — Todd Phillips’ Joker movie was a runaway hit for DC in 2019, so a sequel was guaranteed to follow.

The follow-up is titled Joker: Folie à Deux, the French referencing a medical term relating to a mental disorder which affects two or more people.

Joaquin Phoenix will reprise his role as Arthur Fleck, with Lady Gaga starring opposite him as queen of chaos Harley Quinn. Other cast members will include Alan Partridge star Steve Coogan and In Bruges’ Brendan Gleeson.

Superman & Lois season 4 (The CW) | 7 October, 2024

Set in a world adjacent to the Arrowverse, Superman & Lois has managed to secure a fourth series despite the company overhaul at DC. However, its fourth outing will be its last.

Creature Commandos (Max) | 5 December, 2024

Gunn has written this seven-part animated series for streaming service Max. The comic incarnation was a team of classic monsters assembled into a team to fight Nazis.

The cast includes Viola Davis and Steve Agee, who both reprise their roles from The Suicide Squad and Peacemaker. They will be joined by The Witcher’s Anya Chalotra and two Marvel stars, Maria Bakalova and David Harbour.

Superman | 11 July, 2025

James Gunn is rebooting Superman with a new take on the Man of Steel, played by David Corenswet, to officially kick off the new DCU. The Guardians of the Galaxy filmmaker is writing the script, and will direct too.

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’s Rachel Brosnahan will play Lois Lane, with Nicholas Hoult playing Superman’s nemesis Lex Luthor and Nathan Fillon playing a Green Lantern.

“It’s not an origin story,” Safran said. “It focuses on Superman balancing his Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing. He is the embodiment of truth, justice and the American way. He is kindness in a world that thinks that kindness is old-fashioned.”

Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow | 26 June, 2026

Sasha Calle made her debut as Kara Zor-El/Supergirl in 2023’s The Flash, but House of the Dragon’s Milly Alcock will take over the role for solo movie Woman of Tomorrow. The film will be directed by Craig Gillespie, who previously helmed Cruella and I, Tonya.

The blockbuster will take inspiration from the DC comic Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow, with Gunn describing the new take on the character as “a very different type of Supergirl”.

Gunn said: “We will see the difference between Superman, who was sent to Earth and raised by loving parents from the time he was an infant, versus Supergirl, raised on a rock, a chip off of Krypton, and who watched everyone around her die and be killed in terrible ways for the first 14 years of her life and then come to Earth.”

The Batman Part II | 2 October, 2026

After the rip-roaring success of Matt Reeves’ Dark Knight reboot, a sequel to The Batman was as inevitable as the murder of Bruce Wayne’s parents.

Robert Pattinson will don the cowl and cape again to return as the defender of Gotham, with Reeves also back to write and direct the sequel. Colin Farrell will reprise his role as The Penguin, fresh from his own spin-off show.

Waller (Max) | TBA

Following directly from Peacemaker’s season one cliffhanger, James Gunn’s untitled Amanda Waller series is said to be a much more serious affair.

The already perfectly cast Viola Davis (who’ll also executive produce) will reprise her role from Suicide Squad and The Suicide Squad for the series. It will be written by Christal Henry (Watchmen) and Jeremy Carver (Doom Patrol).

“This is also going to you know have some of the team Peacemaker and is the regulars on the show,” said Gunn. “This basically follows up Peacemaker.”

Peacemaker season 2 (Max) | TBA

The enormously successful Peacemaker series was renewed for a second season in February 2022, with James Gunn set to write and direct every single episode (he directed every episode of season one).

With the Amanda Waller series forming a bridge to Peacemaker’s second season, expect a significant crossover between the two The Suicide Squad spin-offs. Gunn confirmed on Twitter that Waller would be out first, with season 2 of Peacemaker following after.

Lanterns (Max) | TBA

Greg Berlanti’s long-gestating Green Lantern series has been scrapped entirely and replaced with this TV series which is described as being “in the vein of True Detective.”

It will feature two Green Lanterns — Hal Jordan and John Stewart — and is set on Earth. “This plays a really big role in leading into the main story we are telling across film and TV,” said Safran. “These guys are basically, you know, super cops on precinct Earth.”

Paradise Lost (Max) | TBA

This Max series will return to the world of Wonder Woman for a Game of Thrones-style drama set on the island of Themyscira, the birthplace of Diana Prince. Set before the events of the Wonder Woman films, you can expect political power plays, back-stabbing, intrigue, and an all-female cast.

Wonder Woman star Robin Wright told Yahoo she was keen to be involved in the series, saying: “I kinda feel like I was the leader of an Amazon tribe in my past life. I haven’t received that call [about Paradise Lost] yet. Maybe I’m too old!”

The Brave and the Bold | TBA

The DCU will introduce its own take on the Dark Knight, separate from Robert Pattinson’s version, with The Brave and the Bold, as well as Robin in the shape of Damian Wayne.

Damian is the son of Batman, first introduced in Grant Morrison’s Batman run from 2006, and he’s described by Gunn as “a little son of a b***h... It’s a very strange father-and-son story.”

Arkham Asylum series (Max) | TBA

A procedural The Batman spin-off set in the Gotham City PD about a corrupt cop was announced in July 2022 for Max, with Boardwalk Empire's Terence Winter set to write and act as showrunner.

However, after the release of The Batman it was revealed that this had been canned in favour of a series about Arkham Asylum, based on an idea from Matt Reeves. “It’s like a horror movie or a haunted house that is Arkham,” Reeves told Variety about the series.

Booster Gold (Max) | TBA

Another Max series, Booster Gold is centered on a cult DC character who is “a loser from the future who uses basic future technology to come back to today and pretend to be a superhero.” Gunn said it is about “imposter syndrome as superhero".

Swamp Thing | TBA

Inspired by the long-running DC character, Swamp Thing promises to be a horror-influenced origin story for the cult anti-hero. It’s also been mooted as the final part of the DCU’s Gods and Monsters phase.

The Authority | TBA

Previously released under the Wildstorm comics imprint, this movie will bring the rogue heroes into the DCU. Created by Warren Ellis and Bryan Hitch, and also written by Mark Millar and Grant Morrison, The Authority are a superhero team who resort to extreme measures to protect the Earth,

“One of the things of the DCU is that it’s not just a story of heroes and villains,” said Gunn. “Not every film and TV show is going to be about good guy versus bad guy, giant things from the sky come and good guy wins. There are white hats, black hats and gray hats.”

Untitled Val-Zod series (Max) | TBA

Originally developed as a feature starring Michael B Jordan, the Val-Zod Superman project is instead being developed as a limited series for Max. In whatever final form it takes, the project will follow the DC multiverse’s African American Superman Val-Zod.

Darnell Metayer and Josh Peters are writing the scripts, with Michael B Jordan producing (he’ll also still star, if his schedule allows).

Constantine 2 | TBA

After years of fan demand, the creative team behind Keanu Reeves’ 2005 supernatural DC movie are reuniting for a sequel. Akiva Goldsman is back to write the script with Francis Lawrence also attached to direct.

Reeves has admitted to pestering Warner Bros. execs “every year” until the sequel was put into development.

“I don’t know if it was unfinished business but it was definitely a role that I loved,” he told Total Film, adding: “I’m looking forward to it, and hopefully it can happen. You don’t know how these things go. But I’m definitely going to try my darndest to try and realise that dream.”

J.J. Abrams’ Superman project | In development

In 2021, it was announced that J.J. Abrams was working on his own Superman project and had enlisted author-turned-screenwriter Ta-Nehisi Coates to pen a script. Plot details were non-existent but we did learn that Abrams’ Man of Steel would be a stand-alone story existing outside of any primary Superman storyline.

After that news broke, updates went quiet... until new DC boss Gunn confirmed that the project was still in development in January 2024.

Wonder Woman 3 | Status unknown

Despite being confirmed immediately after the release of Wonder Woman 1984, Wonder Woman 3 soon shifted into limbo after director Patty Jenkins left the project shortly before Gunn’s DC takeover was announced.

For a while, it was unclear just how Gal Gadot’s Amazonian Queen fit into Gunn and his partner Peter Safran’s new vision until Wonder Woman herself shared some positive news. “From what I heard from James and from Peter is that we’re gonna develop a Wonder Woman 3 together,” she said.

However, just as these rumours landed they were swiftly debunked by DC sources. As of writing, it looks like we may have seen the last of Gadot’s Wonder Woman.

Untitled John Constantine series (Max) | Cancelled

Executive produced by JJ Abrams and written by Guy Bolton, this Max series would have seen John Constantine make his DCEU debut, following the non-canon Keanu Reeves film, and the 2014 series, Constantine, starring Matt Ryan.

Variety reported in October 2023 that the series had been cancelled, despite having been “far enough into development” that an actor was already in talks to join the show.

Madame X | Cancelled

Another JJ Abrams Max series, Madame X would’ve followed the adventures of Madame Xanadu, a magical mystic with ties to Arthurian legend. However, in September 2022 the project was officially canned.

Zatanna | Cancelled

You wait for one JJ Abrams-led project about a magical lady, and two come along at once. Zatanna was to follow the titular superhero stage magician (who does actual magic), who has previously appeared in live action on the Smallville TV show (played by Serinda Swan).

Oscar-winner Emerald Fennell (Promising Young Woman, Saltburn) was writing the script, and Abrams was to produce before the project fell apart. In late 2023, Fennell confirmed its cancellation.

Justice League Dark (Max) | Cancelled

Developed as a feature way back in 2013 by Guillermo del Toro, Justice League Dark was being retooled as an Max series, which would have been overseen by Abrams. This was officially cancelled as of February 2023.

The Justice League Dark is a superhero team led by John Constantine, that deals with magical threats to the universe. The original line-up also featured — you’ve guessed it — Madame X and Zatanna, as well as Deadman, and Shade: The Changing Man.

The plan appeared to be to release several solo series on Max before the team-up show, similar to what Netflix did with its Defenders property.

Batgirl | Cancelled

The Batgirl film was scrapped by Warner Bros. in August 2022, just months before its planned release. Leslie Grace was due to star as Barbara Gordon/Batgirl, alongside Zack Snyder’s choice for Commissioner Gordon, J. K. Simmons. Michael Keaton was also set to appear as Bruce Wayne/Batman.

Batgirl is unlikely to ever see the light of day, despite the studio having spent $90m on the Batman spin-off. CEO David Zaslav said: “We’re not going to put a movie out unless we believe in it.”