James Gunn Just Debunked a Major DCU Fan Theory About Salvation

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Speaking with New Rockstars, Gunn addressed whether or not Salvation meant Darkseid is part of the overarching DCU plan. “Using Darkseid as the big bad now is not necessarily the thing … because for a lot of reasons,” he said. “Zack [Snyder] did it so cool in his way and because of Thanos and Marvel.”

What James Gunn’s Comments Mean for the DCU’s Salvation

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The Darkseid theory seemed very plausible given the source material, but it’s arguably for the best that Gunn isn’t bringing the villain into the fold now. Still in its infancy, the DCU is trying to carve out its own identity as a shared universe, so it makes sense that Gunn wants to avoid inviting comparisons to the DC Extended Universe or Marvel’s highly successful Infinity Saga. The idea is for the DCU to stand apart from other mega franchises by doing its own thing, meaning Gunn isn’t interested in copying someone else’s playbook. This isn’t to say Darkseid will never become a part of the DCU, but it sounds like that won’t happen until many years down the line — after Zack Snyder’s Justice League and the Infinity Saga aren’t as fresh in viewers’ minds.

This means the DCU won’t be doing a 1:1 adaptation of Salvation Run from the comics (so no supervillain civil war with Lex Luthor and the Joker on opposite sides). In the same interview, Gunn mentioned that he liked the concept of Salvation as a metahuman prison, so it sounds like he’s going to cherry pick specific elements and then build an original story around that. He couldn’t get into too much detail about what the future holds for Salvation, but we do know it will play a key role in Man of Tomorrow, which explores the brewing conflict between the United States government and metahumans. Lex Luthor working alongside Rick Flag Sr. is just one thread the film should flesh out. Once Superman learns about Salvation, he’ll likely have a few choice words for ARGUS.

Speaking of Man of Tomorrow, Gunn’s comments debunk one possibility for the grave threat that forces Superman and Lex Luthor to team up. Some fans were thinking that Darkseid’s parademon forces could invade the DCU’s main Earth, which would certainly be a situation that would call for something drastic like Superman working with Lex. Instead, it appears a different antagonistic force will make the arch enemies form an uneasy alliance. The Brainiac theories sparked by the Man of Tomorrow script cover page will get a new lease on life; in DC Comics lore, there aren’t many supervillains powerful enough to have Superman and Lex temporarily set aside their differences. With Darkseid and his forces off the table, Brainiac is a logical option.

Since Salvation isn’t being used as a launch pad for Darkseid (yet, anyway), it will be interesting to see how this thread is developed over the next handful of DCU projects. The prison angle seems to be the thing that interests Gunn the most, so that should be a key source of conflict and drama for various movies and TV shows. There could be a lot of fun in doing a deep dive into the gray morality of what Salvation is and whether or not Rick Flag Sr. is abusing his power as the head of ARGUS. While Superman wants to see criminals off the street, someone who chooses to see the good in everyone probably won’t like the idea of an inescapable prison that offers no shot at rehabilitation. It remains to be seen where the DCU’s “Gods and Monsters” saga is ultimately going, but that ethical dilemma is compelling enough to serve as a foundation for a few projects.

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