DC Shocker: James Gunn & Peter Safran Exit DC Studios, Marvel Alum Jeremy Latcham Takes Over

In an industry shake-up, James Gunn and Peter Safran are stepping down as co-presidents of DC Studios, Variety reports.

I have been waiting for this change, which felt inevitable when Paramount took over Warner Bros. I was a massive fan of James Gunn and the creativity he brought to DC, but he never really had the time to establish a universe.

And I didn't think Ellison would just let one person continue their vision for such a big part of the IP. I figured that with Ellison taking over, he would want to restart something that felt more like him, starting from scratch.

Marvel Studios veteran producer Jeremy Latcham will take the reins as DC's new President and Chief Creative Officer.

Gunn took to Instagram with extensive comments on the world he was allowed to build.

The Box Office Realities of the Gunn-Safran Era

Like I said in the opener, we never really got an extended era of Gunn and Safran. These were guys who took over with a lot to sort out after the Snyder era and who were tasked with restarting every major title and building out a world.

We got one Superman movie, a couple of other smaller titles, and another Superman on the way, plus a delayed Batman.

It felt like they were just spreading their wings, but they had a rough summer during the Warner Bros. acquisition. Supergirl made $126 million against a reported $170 million budget and got memed to death.

Now, the surprise hit of Clayface should be seen as a win, where a mid-budget horror turned a modest profit, bringing in $109 million on a $44 million budget, and that's growing weekly.

Superman: Man of Tomorrow, scheduled to hit theaters next summer, but I could also see the new DC writing it off completely and starting over again.

The thing is, Gunn took over at a volatile time and stabilized the place. Now, we're seeing a new owner make it crazy again.

For their part, Ellison and co-CEO Ynon Kreiz praised Gunn and Safran for “[launching] a new era for DC Studios and [leading] it through a period of real transformation.”

Ellison and Kreiz put out a statement in which they continued, “We’re grateful for their passion, contributions and commitment to this legendary brand.”

Enter Jeremy Latcham

In the same statement from Ellison and co-CEO Ynon Kreiz, they went on to say, "Jeremy has been a longtime creative partner to both, and we have complete confidence that James and Peter will ensure a smooth, collaborative transition and continue this work with care. We look forward to working with Jeremy to build the next generation of DC storytelling and to doubling down on our commitment to fans.”

This will be a hard job for the Marvel alum. DC has been trying to build an extended universe for what feels like 20 years, but so far they've only found modest hits on TV and in movies.

Luckily for DC, Jeremy Latcham brings a blockbuster track record to DC Studios as a former key executive at Marvel Studios. Latcham served as an executive producer on foundational MCU hits including Iron Man, The Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy, Avengers: Age of Ultron, and Spider-Man: Homecoming.

He worked with Kevin Feige and helped define the most profitable era of Marvel movies and shows.

So what can he do for DC? Time will tell, but as Skydance shapes what it wants for the next era, it'll be interesting to see how it schedules and builds differently than the eras before it.