Because of the characters they’ve elevated to the most important roles in the series, DC has recently unmasked the heroes of the DCU who have reached the level of being inducted into the Justice League.
DC has now revealed which characters in the DC Universe are considered to be heroes on par with the Justice League. A fresh start is being made possible for the DC Universe as a result of recent personnel changes at DC Studios.
There is a great deal of conjecture on what will take place in the future, despite the fact that James Gunn and Peter Safran have not revealed their long-term plans. In the past, the co-CEOs of DC Comics have stated that Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and Harley Quinn will continue to be a part of the company’s future.
Gunn, on the other hand, has hinted at the existence of a few new DC Universe heroes who have the potential of becoming important figures in DC’s future. Everything leads to the Justice League getting back together at some time in the future.
It appears that the Justice League-level heroes that would play an important role in the future have been announced, according to a banner that was shown at CCXP 2022.
Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), Batman (Robert Pattinson), Black Adam (Dwayne Johnson), Aquaman (Jason Momoa), and Superman are seen on a banner that was prominently featured by Warner Bros. Discovery.
This essentially provides the DC Universe with a “Big 5” of heroes that might feature in the development of the Justice League film series. This “Big 5” of heroes is comprised of the latest iteration of DC’s Trinity, an additional strong champion of the Justice League, and a significant new anti-hero.
The marketing choice is particularly important since it reveals which Justice League characters will not be included.
DC’s Justice League-Level Heroes Fit Into WB’s Strategy Quite Well
When it comes to the task of molding the future of the DC Universe, one of the most crucial orders of business for James Gunn and Peter Safran is to decide what the next step is for the Justice League.
The present composition of the DC heroes explains why the DC CCXP Justice League teaser makes perfect sense, despite the fact that there will almost certainly be new heroes and villains that emerge to play major roles.
Although Black Adam has an existing connection to Superman, the other 3 highlighted characters have all previously served as active members of the Justice League.
Although the Batman portrayed by Robert Pattinson does not presently serve as a member of the Justice League, he is nonetheless the most recent iteration of the character that fans noticed.
Although the banner is lacking a number of DC Comics heroes, every hero that appears is on par with those in the Justice League. Wonder Woman and Aquaman are 2 of the most well-known characters in the DC Comics universe and important representatives of the Justice League. Because of the incident that took place after the credits, Superman has also been brought back into the fold.
It is not surprising that Black Adam would make an appearance seeing the tremendous success of the film he starred in and the star power of Dwayne Johnson.
The alternative casting choice, which has Robert Pattinson as Batman rather than Ben Affleck, also makes sense. Pattinson is the one who will inherit the role in the future, despite the fact that he presently resides in a separate reality.
Since the DCU is now going through a time of transformation and rebranding (which includes getting rid of the unofficial DCEU franchise designation), it makes perfect sense to use CCXP to start promoting the Big 5 as the most powerful heroes in the franchise.
Wonder Woman and Aquaman have led the way for the two standalone movies in the main DC Universe timeline that have made the most money.
They even have sequels that are actively being developed, which further demonstrates their significance to the future of the DCU. In addition, it is anticipated that Black Adam and Superman will meet each other in a subsequent film.
In the meanwhile, Robert Pattinson is planning to take the helm of a shared universe based on The Batman, which would maintain one of the most prominent characters from the brand in the spotlight even if he does not cross over.
Will DC Reboot the Justice League in the Near Future?
The fact that the DCU’s Justice League-level heroes have been hinted at in a teaser is a strong indicator that the squad will come back to star in a future film.
The film adaptation of Justice League which was launched in 2017 did not live up to anybody’s expectations of what the film would be like when it was first advertised. Following Zack Snyder’s departure and Joss Whedon’s reshoots, the picture had a negative reception, which resulted in the #ReleaseTheSnyderCut movement, Ray Fisher’s accusations towards WB, and other related issues.
The aftermath of the scandals surrounding Justice League will not preclude another movie starring the team from being created.
DC Studios, which is run by James Gunn and Peter Safran, ought to be working toward the production of a brand-new Justice League film.
It is possible that it will not occur for a number of further years as the franchise starts to take form as a result of its vision, although it would be surprising if the DCU did not make use of the brand’s most successful squad.
When it does occur, whatever it is, it will be considered distinct from the ideas that Zack Snyder has for the Justice League sequel. It’s possible that they won’t even call it Justice League 2, as Gunn and Safran could want to differentiate their movie from the ones that came before it.
Instead, the title could be Justice League Unlimited, Justice League Rebirth, or a different name entirely.
Will Black Adam Become a Member of the Justice League?
The prominence given to Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam in the CCXP 2022 banner provides a further link between his DC Universe (DCU) future and the Justice League.
Johnson continues to be one of the most prominent performers connected with the DC Universe, despite the fact that Black Adam’s box office may not have achieved some of the heights that were anticipated.
In addition to that, he has just been cast in the role of one of the most formidable characters in the global superhero genre.
Because of this, it has always made the perfect explanation that Black Adam would have some kind of interaction with the Justice League, whether this interaction takes the form of Black Adam playing a villainous role in Justice League 2 or becoming a member of the League himself.
Since the beginning, discussions about Black Adam’s future in the DC Universe have centered on the character’s potential to face off against Superman at some point.
DC continues to link the characters by having them share space in the advertising material, suggesting to the viewer one more time that Black Adam’s post-credits sequence is the first of numerous occasions that they will come into contact with one another.
Because it is possible that the Justice League may not come together for some time, there’s a possibility that Black Adam’s position as an anti-hero could be completely reversed, and he will become a hero instead so that he can fight with Superman.
The Reasons Behind Why Pattinson Is DC’s Primary Batman (& Not Affleck)
The fact that the CCXP banner features heroes on the level of the Justice League also serves as more evidence suggesting Robert Pattinson is DC’s primary Batman.
Pattinson is the actor that DC is concentrating their efforts on, despite the fact that Ben Affleck is the Batman in the primary DCU chronology that all of the other characters are affiliated with and Michael Keaton has impending appearances slated.
Given that Batman represents the latest Batman performance, it seems reasonable for his name to be prominently displayed on the banner.
The fact that Robert Pattinson’s Batman exists in a separate realm is the only thing that can cause confusion. Despite this, it does not seem that this will be much of an issue for DC.
Even if Ben Affleck were to make a comeback to the role of Batman in the DC Universe and become the primary iteration of the Dark Knight in this timeline, it would not alter the reality that Robert Pattinson is now DC’s primary Batman for the foreseeable future.
The next performances that Ben Affleck will have with DC will be in secondary roles, and it is probable that this will be the degree of his engagement in any future performances that he makes.
On the other side, Pattinson is at the helm of a whole new film series and cinematic world. Irrespective of whether or not the Batman star will enter the normal DC Universe timeline in the future so that Robert Pattinson may be a member of the Justice League, the Batman star signifies the destiny of the cape.
Which Superheroes From The DC Universe’s Justice League Are Still Missing?
There are a handful of the franchise’s most prominent characters that are not among the DCU’s Justice League-level heroes. The lack of Ben Affleck is explicable when compared to the presence of Robert Pattinson; nevertheless, other representatives of the Justice League, like The Flash (Ezra Miller) as well as Cyborg (Ray Fisher), are not present.
The lack of Flash may have something to do with the various scandals that have occurred in recent times, as well as the potential that DC would recast Miller when The Flash is released.
The fact that Cyborg is not included on the banner may be a direct consequence of Fisher’s accusations made against the previous administration of DC Films.
It comes as a little bit of a shock that there is no indication that Shazam, played by Zachary Levi, is being deemed a hero on the same level as the Justice League. Peter Safran, co-CEO of DC Studios, is already associated with the brand, and according to canon, Shazam has previously spoken to Superman.
However, because Shazam: Fury of the Gods is the next DC Universe film that will be released, including him in this film would have made sense from a marketing standpoint.
It appears that Shazam is absent since he is not a figure that is as well-known as the others.
There’s also a significant number of potential Justice League characters who are absent, including a Green Lantern as well as previously established DC Universe heroes such as Black Canary and Hawkman, amongst others.
