Peter Safran says “Swamp Thing” is still on the DC Studios slate, offering the clearest sign yet that the studio’s plans hold steady after its parent company’s merger. Safran, who runs DC Studios with James Gunn, said director James Mangold’s film remains in development.
“The script is being written as we speak,” he said, adding that a start date depends on Mangold’s schedule. The project dates to the first DC Universe lineup Gunn and Safran announced in January 2023. Mangold said then that he would write and direct a standalone gothic horror story about the monster’s dark origins.
The update follows a period of corporate upheaval. The Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery deal, valued at roughly $111 billion, produced a new company called Skydance, which took shape Oct. 6. CEO David Ellison and co-CEO Ynon Kreiz named Gunn and Safran DC Studios co-chairmen in their leadership lineup. Warner film chiefs Michael De Luca and Pamela Abdy are leaving. Gunn and Safran now report directly to Ellison and Kreiz, and their current contracts run through April 2027.
Gunn said Ellison already knows the core of the DC plan. He told The Hollywood Reporter that Ellison pressed him for details, including where the story goes after “Man of Tomorrow.” A source familiar with the executives’ earlier meeting with Ellison described the message in four words: “Keep doing what you’re doing.”
The near-term calendar is full. “Clayface” arrives Oct. 23, followed by “Man of Tomorrow” in July 2027 and “The Batman Part II” in February 2028. Projects in early development include “Savage Hunters,” a Bane and Deathstroke film, “Batman: Brave and the Bold,” a live-action “Teen Titans,” a Wonder Woman reboot and “Constantine 2.” Early development means no cast and no release date.
The reassurance carries weight for fans and investors. Gunn and Safran took over in late 2022 under former Warner Bros. Discovery chief David Zaslav, who wanted DC run as a label with its own identity. Safran arrived fresh from “The Conjuring,” “Shazam” and “Aquaman,” Gunn from “The Suicide Squad” and “Peacemaker.” The contract deadline looms over the optimism. Ellison has praised the duo, but an April 2027 expiration will force a decision on their future once the first Skydance-era DC releases reach theaters.
