According to DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn, the DCU will not shy away from starting development on R-rated projects.
DC is no stranger to doling out mature ratings for projects both on TV and on the big screen. Gunn gave his first DC movie, The Suicide Squad, a fabled R-rating along with Max’s Peacemaker series, which was a direct spin-off from that movie.
Moving forward, Gunn is even kicking off his new DCU with an R-rated project as Creature Commandos boasts that rating in anticipation of its December 5 premiere on Max.
DC Studios Developing Multiple R-Rated Projects
Speaking with Collider, DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn addressed the future of the DCU from an MPAA film rating perspective.
Asked whether ratings were considered during development, Gunn confirmed the process solely focuses on “telling a story” and that it’s “totally ok” for a project to be R-rated.
“It’s not about testing out to see if this thing works. It’s just about telling a story. If a story is going to be R-rated, we’re totally okay with that. If it’s going to be PG, PG-13, or G, I don’t care — whatever is worthy of the story, that’s what we’re going to do.”
He further explained that there is “more than one thing” currently in the works that could have an R-rating and might be greenlit for the DCU.
Collider also brought up the recent record-breaking success of Marvel Studios’ Deadpool & Wolverine, the MCU’s first R-rated movie, to which Gunn emphatically said, “That’s right” in response.
Gunn commented on how much fans “love that character” and compared it to his work on Peacemaker being “unrated, basically.” From there, he looked ahead to how many different kinds of projects the DCU could develop moving forward:
“People love that character. People love that format for that thing. You know ‘Peacemaker’ is unrated, basically. So, we have all sorts. I like the idea of doing all sorts of different things.”
What R-Rated Projects is DC Studios Developing?
As of writing, the only project confirmed to be developed with an R-rating in the main DCU timeline (Chapter 1: Gods and Monsters) is Creature Commandos, which officially kicks the new franchise off on December 5. However, there are a few other potential options for projects that could share that rating.
John Cena’s Peacemaker series, which will return for Season 2 in 2025, started with a TV-MA rating on Max and is expected to bring more of that same brutal violence into its new episodes.
The same is expected for Viola Davis’ Waller series, which brings her Amanda Waller back after two R-rated appearances since 2021.
One other potential option is a movie like Swamp Thing, which is already confirmed to be the DCU’s first dip into the horror genre. Its director, James Mangold, has already seen massive success with the R-rating after his work on Logan, and the leading character could be one that uses the rating effectively.
On the Max side of things, Gunn’s work on the upcoming Lanterns series might be another sneaky place to see an R-rating come to life.
The series is being compared to projects like True Detective in terms of tone, and with the violence and maturity seen in that show, Lanterns could very well use similar filmmaking tactics for its own story.
For the time being, fans will simply have to wait to see what other projects use this rating, although Gunn is adamant that new R-rated entries are on the way.
James Gunn’s DCU begins with Creature Commandos on Max starting on Thursday, December 5.
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