In Peacemaker Season 2, Episode 1, we get two major Batman references. That’s not including new Peacemaker character Sasha Bordeaux (Sol Rodríguez) who, in the comics, is a bodyguard of Bruce Wayne who figures out he’s Batman. It remains to be seen if that connection will come to the DCU, but two others are undeniable.
Firstly, a report on The Sphere News references metahumans breaking out of “Belle Reve and Arkham.”
Secondly, when Chris Smith sees the alternate version of Keith, his brother says: “I thought you were in Blüdhaven.”
What Arkham & Blüdhaven Being Canon Means For The DCU’s Batman
Superman had a Gotham City Easter egg that quite literally pointed to its existence in the DCU, with the location featured on a traffic sign. So while we already knew it existed, Peacemaker Season 2 fleshes out that world a little more with the inclusion of Arkham. That should also mean several Batman villains already exist in this universe, since it’s typically the home to a lot of them, and will likely be part of Batman: The Brave and the Bold‘s story. With one of 2026’s DCU movies being Clayface, about the character who is usually a Batman villain, it’s also possible he will end up in Arkham at the end of that film.
Blüdhaven, meanwhile, had technically already been referenced in this world, as one of the DCU connections in Creature Commandos. Still, its presence in live-action solidifies its existence, even though this mention takes place in an alternate universe. One of Peacemaker‘s trailers described that dimension as “exactly the same,” and so, combined with Creature Commandos, it’s fair to assume it exists in the main DCU.
Again, it’s interesting to think about its meaning. Assuming Gunn still goes ahead with plans for The Brave and the Bold, that would tell a story about Batman and his son, Damian Wayne, who takes on the role of Robin. That could well mean that another Robin, Dick Grayson, has already left the Batcave behind by the time that movie happens: Blüdhaven is his base of operations after he becomes Nightwing. Establishing that early would make sense for making the DCU feel like a lived-in world.
This fits the pattern of Gunn’s DCU so far, where Superman not only skipped Kal-El’s origin story, but revealed that metahumans have existed on Earth for three centuries. Heroes like Green Lantern, Hawkgirl, and Mister Terrific are already active, so it’d make sense to take a similar approach to worldbuilding when it comes to Batman. It may still be a few years before we get to see the Caped Crusader himself in the DCU’s Gotham City but, thanks to Peacemaker Season 2, we’re a couple of steps closer.
Peacemaker Season 2, Episode 1 is now streaming on HBO Max. New episodes release Thursdays at 9pm ET.
