James Gunn's "Superman" does a lot of things right, but arguably the best thing the movie does as the first film in the new DC Universe is create a vast world that feels lived-in. The opening text crawl opens the door for a universe where superheroes have been around for centuries (if not millennia), while the rest of the movie paints a picture of a superhero universe full of magic. Here, kaiju attacks in Metropolis are just another day for the people of the city. Pocket universes are not just theory,
they are so real that they simply annoy characters when they find out a villain is using them. This is a world filled with heroes, and one where there's already a corporate superhero team.
And it seems James Gunn is building up to another team, but not the way you think.
In an interview with ScreenRant's Ash Crossan, James Gunn revealed that he has an overarching idea for the DC Universe that revolves around the story of a singular character. "I think I do know whose story it is, and it probably isn't anyone anyone would ever expect," Gunn said, confirming that it is someone we have already seen in this universe.
Now, what would be the most James Gunn thing to do, but to make an inconspicuous and silly character the protagonist of his universe? Perhaps make it a character played by someone close to him, like his brother Sean Gunn? That's right, we are throwing down the gauntlet now and declaring that the DC Universe (at least its first big story arc) is all about Sean Gunn's Maxwell Lord.
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The DC Universe Is Maxwell Lord's Story
Here's why this is not just a silly hypothesis but a proper theory. Gunn is saying the DC Universe is the story of a character we've met, but not an obvious one, so it's not going to be a hero. He also said that if audiences watch the next season of "Peacemaker," we'll see "where a lot of these things are going." Out of the characters we know for sure are coming back after appearing in "Superman," Maxwell Lord is set to be in the new season of "Peacemaker" — even being a part of recent promos for the show.
It would make a lot of sense, too. "Superman" already improved upon one of the worst decisions of the Snyderverse by not trying to form the "Justice League" right away. Instead, by the time the movie begins, there already is a superhero team but not one audiences are familiar with. The Justice Gang is a brilliant idea that already does the heavy lifting of bringing together vastly different heroes, paving the way for the inevitable foundation of the more famous Justice League.
Now, Maxwell Lord is best known in the comics as the founder (and sponsor/owner) of the Justice League International, which is definitely something the DC Universe is building toward. But, as Gunn said in his interview, the DC Universe is building toward a big event, just "not what anyone thinks." The formation of the Justice League is a given, but that's too obvious. To guess at what Gunn might be building to, we have to look at the other thing Lord is best known for — trying to use his superhero team to take over the world.
In the comics, Lords uses the Justice League International for his own ends, all while gathering sensitive information about every superhero on the planet (who he hates for various reasons and considers a threat to humanity). He even sabotages his own Justice League team to render them as ineffectual as possible, until he gains control of Brother Eye, a satellite system Batman created to monitor metahumans worldwide. With Brother Eye under his control, Lord creates an army of robot soldiers named OMACs to kill all superhumans.
Blue Beetle Already Paved The Road To Brother Eye
The most obvious big event the DC Universe can build toward is a confrontation against Darkseid, the DC equivalent of Thanos in "Infinity War" and "Endgame." This would be the wrong path to take, as comparisons with Marvel are unavoidable, and it would simply be a fight with a big alien. Instead, something like Brother Eye and the OMACs, with the idea of a device created by Batman to surveil his fellow heroes being taken over by a megalomaniac, is a fresh idea that would put not just the Justice League but every hero in peril. The OMACs provide the faceless army that the heroes can destroy without remorse, and someone smart rather than strong like Maxwell Lord (especially if he gains his mind control abilities from the comics) can make for a different and more morally complex kind of final confrontation.
According to Gunn, the seeds of the big story of the DC Universe will be planted in "Peacemaker" which could mean Maxwell Lord forming his team while hiding nefarious business dealings. Or, there is another option. We know that "Blue Beetle" is part of Gunn's new DC Universe, and that movie already introduced the idea of the One Man Army Corps (or OMAC). We could see "Peacemaker" tie to that movie by way of some OMAC files making their way out into the world and Lord acquiring them, slowly building up to Brother Eye down the line.
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Read the original article on SlashFilm.
