One Year Ago, James Gunn’s DCU Delivered Its First Major Retcon, But Left a Literal Door Open to Zack Snyder’s Universe
In January of 2023, James Gunn and Peter Safran rolled out to the world their vision for the new “DCU,” a fully connected movie and TV universe based on DC Comics characters that would be a fresh starting point with a new tone compared to what had been done previously. If it sounded familiar, it’s because it was the second time DC had attempted to announce a fully mapped-out universe of movies, sequels, spinoffs, and TV shows. The success of Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel in 2013 marked the studio’s first attempt, using the new take on Superman as an entry point to try and compete with Marvel Studios and the billion-dollar grosses of The Avengers.
As we know, things got complicated for DC, with studio problems, poor reception to the movies, and other factors resulting in the “DCEU” (as it was colloquially known) hitting a slew of roadblocks and largely ending up as a ship without a captain. Films and sequels were still being made that were “connected,” but by bringing in Gunn and Safran, DC was committing itself to making things right. The only way to really do that was by wiping the slate clean and starting over; the only problem is that Gunn didn’t want to get rid of everything that came before it, like John Cena’s Peacemaker (which was one of his creations). There was a problem, though: He was clearly from the previous universe.
Peacemaker’s Season 2 Premiere Retconned the Season 1 Finale
A year ago today, August 21, 2025, the Season 2 Premiere of Peacemaker arrived, and in the more than three years between episodes, the DCEU had ended as a franchise and the start of the DCU as the all-new take on the characters had begun. As a result, there was a problem, as Peacemaker Season 1 ended with a major Easter Egg and saw the character literally cross paths with the Zack Snyder Justice League team, including Jason Momoa as Aquaman, Ezra Miller as The Flash, plus the implication of Henry Cavill’s Superman.
To his credit, Gunn knew that this was something that would need to be addressed, so when Season 2 of Peacemaker kicked off with its “previously on” recap, the filmmaker made one change. Instead of Snyder’s team arriving on the scene of the aftermath, the Justice Gang from the just-released Superman movie is present, along with the Man of Steel himself and his cousin, Kara Zor-El. Even before it aired, he was clear that this was something that would need to be addressed, telling IGN back in November 2024: “The truth is almost all of Peacemaker is canon with the exception of Justice League… which we will kind of deal with in the next season of Peacemaker.”
After the episode debuted, Gunn teased that he wished he could go back and “Lucas the sh*t” out of Season 1 (referencing George Lucas’ many alterations to the original Star Wars movies), but that it wasn’t possible. In the end, this major retcon marked the first real time that connectivity between the previous batch of movies and shows had to be addressed in the still nascent DCU. That said, Peacemaker then delivered an interesting trick, one that literally left the door open to the previous universe.
Peacemaker Literally Left the Door Open for the DCEU
Central to the plot of Peacemaker Season 2 was the character’s Quantum Unfolding Chamber, a device introduced in the first season that offered a doorway into other dimensions. In the first episode of Peacemaker, it’s revealed that the central hub of the Quantum Unfolding Chamber that Peacemaker likes to explore can also be accessed by other universes, as Cena comes face-to-face with a version of his father from another universe.
By the episode’s end, Peacemaker is in a battle with a version of himself from that same Earth, not only making it clear that the larger multiverse has potential for exploration but also that they could all be accessed from the same point. The series even gave a specific number, revealing that 99 other universes could be accessed from the central hub of the QUC. Peacemaker would eventually go on to explore some of those universes, revealing that they’re quite different from just being alternate DC universes (like a black hole dimension or zombie dimension), but the question remained: Could one of these doors lead back to the DCEU?
DC Universes interacting with each other is nothing new, and has been a staple of the publishing line for decades. To that end, it made Peacemaker Season 2’s big moves so distinct and somewhat confusing; the show clearly went out of its way to make it clear that the story had always been set in one universe by altering canon, only to then offer a place with a doorway that could lead back to the old one.
It’s worth noting, of course, that there has been zero indication that the DCU intends to ever have some kind of Crisis on Infinite Earths-style storyline where it meets the previous incarnation of the heroes, but that hasn’t stopped fans from wondering if it will come. A year ago today the DCU did its best to shut the door, but it literally opened another one to keep the conversation alive.
