The weekend has barely started and one things seems abundantly true already: DC Studios’ “Superman,” from writer/director James Gunn is already a hit, should gross more than $120 million domestically this weekend and will outperform every Marvel opening of 2025 and very likely every Marvel opening of the last three years minus “Deadpool & Wolverine.”
And so with the playing field wide-open for DC and two films already on deck for 2026—“Supergirl” and “Clayface”—DC and Gunn are looking towards the future.
A new Wall Street Journal piece about the mess that was DC for years and how Gunn, co-DC Studios chief Peter Safran, and Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav fixed it, reports that Gunn and Safran are already eyeing spin-off ideas from the Man of Steel movie beyond just “Supergirl.”
The movie introduces more than just Superman, but also superheroes like the Justice Gang, aka The Justice League, with characters like Green Lantern, Hawkgirl and Mister Terrific. According to the WSJ, Gunn is considering TV spin-off projects for Terrific and Jimmy Olsen, the cub reporter and photographer of the Daily Planet who work alongside Clarke Kent and Lois Lane.
In the film, Mister Terrific is played by Kenyan-American actor Edi Gathegi, known for “The Harder They Fall” and “X-Men: First Class.” Skyler Gisondo takes on the role of Olsen, known for roles in “Licorice Pizza,” “Booksmart,” and “Vacation.”
While a whole show based on Jimmy Olsen may seem weird, one, it could be a series based around the Daily Planet and feature some of those actors (Rachel Broshanan, Wendell Pierce, Mikaela Hoover, Beck Bennett, Christopher McDonald, etc.) and two, it would not be the first time Gunn has considered a show centered around a civilian character. Ever since his “The Suicide Squad” movie, Gunn has been trying to make a series around Task Force X boss Amanda Waller, played by Viola Davis, but the show has not yet made it through the development process.
Other tidbits of information scattered throughout the WSJ article include the fact that DC Studios’ output hopes to produce two live-action films per year, multiple live-action shows and one animated show annually.
On deck beyond the two scheduled DC Studios films—“Supergirl” and “Clayface”—include the “Lanterns” TV show and “Creature Commandos” season two, on top of several other series and animated projects in development.
The “Superman” budget was reportedly $225 million, and the studio hopes the film flies north of $500 million worldwide. Given what looks like a very promising opening weekend, those final tallies don’t sound unrealistic. Can “Superman” beat tracking projects and hit north of $120 domestic this weekend? We’ll find out soon enough.
