Superman director James Gunn has shared the “complicated” reason his hit film is already on streaming services.
The DC superhero reboot, starring David Corenswet and Rachel Brosnahan, was released in cinemas on 11 July. Just over a month later, the blockbuster has already landed on Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV+ to buy or rent.
The film has earned more than $330m at the domestic US box office, but according to Gunn it is now available to watch at home because of another DC project.
“Well, it’s very complicated, but the truth is it is because of Peacemaker,” the 59-year-old told Screen Rant.
Gunn said that he initially believed that season two of Peacemaker, on which he serves as a showrunner., would be released on Prime in September. However, the Suicide Squad spin-off series starring John Cena is now debuting on 21 August.
Gunn said that the events of Superman lead directly into the new series, setting up future events in the new DC Universe.
“There were a lot of things that are beyond our control, so that Peacemaker is coming out now, and, at the end of the day, I wanted everyone to be able to see Superman that wanted to, even those people who couldn’t get to a theatre before Peacemaker,” he added. “And that’s really the reason for it.”
“It’s a big part, definitely Superman leads directly into Peacemaker,” he told The Hollywood Reporter. “It should be noted that this is for adults, not for children, but Superman leads into this show and then we have the setting up of all of the rest of the DCU in this season of Peacemaker, it’s incredibly important.”
The first season of Peacemaker picked up where 2021’s The Suicide Squad left off, with the violent titular character continuing his mission to enforce the law and maintain peace at any cost – even if it means killing people who get in his way.
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The season two trailer already revealed some big cameos from Gunn’s 2025 movie Superman, including Nathan Fillion’s Green Lantern, Isabela Merced’s Hawkgirl, and Sean Gunn’s Maxwell Lord.
Gunn teased in another interview that a “bunch of other characters” from Superman will appear in the second season, with a bombshell cameo at the end of the series.
