Yesterday, James Gunn and Peter Safran stepped down from their positions as co-presidents at DC Studios. This was after just four years on the job and only three movies in the new superhero cinematic universe they were overseeing. The pair has now been replaced by ex-Marvel producer Jeremy Latcham, whose evangelical history has given some DC fans pause. So what happened? According to a new report by The Hollywood Reporter, trouble had been brewing for the pair as soon as the Skydance merger went through earlier this year.
According to THR‘s sources, on Friday, November 6, Skydance co-CEOs David Ellison and Ynon Kreiz informed the pair that, despite previously being told they would be part of the company moving forward, there had been a “change of plans.” The shake-up had reportedly been in the works since “early fall,” with Latcham having been contacted about potentially taking over DC Studios by Skydance Motion Picture Group co-chair John Greenstein, who worked with Latcham during his time at Marvel.
THR says that there were multiple points of “tension” between Gunn and Safran on one hand and the Skydance execs on the other. Gunn and Safran initially reported directly to Warner Bros. CEO David Zaslav, and their contracts said they would maintain that kind of direct reporting structure even in the event of a change in leadership, so they would have reported to Ellison following the merger. Meanwhile, Greenstein and co-chair Dana Goldberg were reportedly trying to consolidate movie production under their leadership, while Gunn and Safran had grown “accustomed to having strong control” over anything under the DC Studios banner.
Other points of contention included that Gunn and Safran were reportedly “slow” and “not forthcoming” in sharing plans and footage with the Skydance leads.
Many will point to Supergirl‘s box office bomb as a sticking point, and I’ve even seen a lot of people joke that Gunn and Safran only got “one bad movie” before they were thrown out. While Supergirl‘s performance is noted as a problem by THR‘s sources, apparently even their biggest hit, Superman, wasn’t doing enough in the eyes of their corporate overlords. That film, which grossed $618 million on a $225 budget, “did not net out, or have the kind of pop culture impact, in the way that kind of movie should,” in the eyes of Skydance.
Sources say that Gunn is “somewhat relieved” to be out of the business side of things and now focusing on filmmaking. His DC next film, Man of Tomorrow, is set to premiere next year.
As for Latcham, THR‘s sources call him a “down-the-middle shooter” who is more concerned with making “hits for the masses” than Gunn, whose projects often feature somewhat profane writing and obscure characters.
Clayface, the last DC Studios project produced while Gunn and Safran were company co-presidents, is in theaters now.