James Gunn Said Darkseid Isn’t The ‘Big Bad’, But It Seems The Villain May Still Have A DCU Future

by

Darkseid is one of DC Comics’ most iconic villains, known for battling the New Gods and challenging heroes like Superman and the Justice League. While Zack Snyder originally intended him to be the main villain of a planned Justice League storyline in the DCEU, DC Studios’ James Gunn announced last October that Darkseid won’t be the primary antagonist in the new DCU. However, recent comments from Gunn suggest that this powerful cosmic threat might still appear in the franchise’s future.

In June 2025, DC Studios and Warner Bros. Animation greenlit the upcoming DC TV show Mister Miracle, but it was unclear at the time if it would take place within the DCU or be set in a different continuity, like fellow forthcoming animated series Starfire and My Adventures with Green Lantern (a spinoff of My Adventures with Superman). Today, Gunn confirmed Mister Miracle will indeed be DCU canon in an Instagram post celebrating the character’s 55th anniversary. The skilled escape artist, also known as Scott Free, was created by Jack Kirby in 1971 and debuted in the first issue of his own comic book series.

HBO Max subscriptions are available starting at $10.99 per month. With a subscription, you can watch a wide range of DC movies and shows, including new releases like Creature Commandos, Superman, and the second season of Peacemaker. See the deal here.

If you didn’t hear about it before, the new animated series Mister Miracle is based on the 12-issue comic book by Tom King and Mitch Gerads. Since the comic featured Darkseid, it’s highly likely he’ll be in the show too. Even without considering the comic’s story, the character’s history in DC Comics makes Darkseid’s appearance almost certain. In the main storyline, Scott Free’s father made a deal with Darkseid, trading Scott for Orion. So, a Mister Miracle show without Darkseid just wouldn’t make sense.

Let me be clear: this Mister Miracle series isn’t building towards a huge Darkseid invasion of the entire DC Universe, at least, that’s not what I think is happening. I’m guessing Darkseid’s story will stay within the New Gods corner of things, which is fine with me, as long as we get more stories focused on them after this. But honestly, I’m really hoping we’ll also get to see the main DC Universe’s Darkseid brought to life in a live-action project someday – that would be amazing!

When the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) was still in development, Ava DuVernay was slated to direct a film focusing on the New Gods, including characters like Darkseid, Mister Miracle, Big Barda, Highfather, and Granny Goodness. However, the project was canceled because Darkseid appeared in Zack Snyder’s Justice League. Ultimately, the decision to end the DCEU in late 2022 made the film unnecessary. Now, the New Gods are getting a chance to be explored again, this time as an animated project instead of a live-action movie.

We don’t have a release date for Mister Miracle yet, and it’s unclear if it will stream on HBO Max or another platform. However, the first DCU show, Lanterns on HBO, is currently planned to premiere sometime this summer in 2026.

Read More

2026-01-15 17:10