James Gunn Reveals DC Has More Scrapped Projects Than Fans Realize

Aaron Fonseca
Jun 24
2 min read

Several DC projects have been scrapped over the years. However, DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn recently revealed that the list is longer than fans realize.

Responding to a list of scrapped projects that span decades, shared by X user Bradley Osborn, Gunn said, "Great list. So many more too!" The list includes titles like a third Batman film from legendary director Tim Burton, Batman: Year One from filmmaker Darren Aronofsky, a Superman movie starring Nicolas Cage as the titular hero, a JJ Abrams-directed Superman project and a sequel to Superman Returns.

While Gunn didn't name names, Warner Bros. has quietly buried dozens of DC projects over the years. Among the most famous is George Miller's Justice League: Mortal, a nearly greenlit epic that would have starred Armie Hammer as Batman and D.J. Cotrona as Superman. Joss Whedon penned a Wonder Woman script in the early 2000s that never took flight. There was even a pre-DCEU Batman vs. Superman film in development long before Zack Snyder tackled the crossover in Dawn of Justice.

The list doesn't stop there. A live-action Teen Titans movie was once in the works along with a Flash film that would have tied into Green Lantern and potentially spun off a shared universe. A Plastic Man movie that may have starred Keanu Reeves was an idea that was floated, along with an Aquaman film starring Leonardo DiCaprio. A grounded, prison-break-style Green Arrow movie titled Escape from Super Max was also reportedly in development.

There were also discussions about a Green Lantern trilogy that would have focused on John Stewart instead of Hal Jordan. Solo outings for Cyborg and Static Shock never materialized. The ill-fated New Gods project from Ava DuVernay and Tom King never saw the light of day. There was also supposed to be a very different Suicide Squad sequel before Gunn took over the franchise. Guillermo del Toro's Justice League Dark rounds out the list with the unmade solo Batman film starring Ben Affleck.

Fans Have Several DC Projects To Look Forward To

Gunn's comments come after he recently admitted to axing another upcoming DC Universe project because the script didn't meet the standard he was hoping for. "We just killed a project," he said, without mentioning its name. "Everybody wanted to make the movie. It was greenlit, ready to go. The screenplay wasn't ready. And I couldn't do a movie where the screenplay's not good," he explained. For fans, the news is a mix of heartbreak and what-ifs.

While some of these projects were doomed by creative differences or shifting studio leadership, others were casualties of a larger universe-wide reboot, like the one under Gunn and Peter Safran's leadership. Fortunately, several films have made the cut in terms of quality. "[We've] been really lucky so far, because Supergirl's script was so f*****g good off the bat. Clayface, same thing. So f*****g good," Gunn said. "So we have these scripts that we've been really lucky with or wise in our choices or whatever the combination is."