James Gunn and Peter Safran are leaving their posts as co-CEOs of DC Studios effective December 1, according to Gizmodo. Jeremy Latcham, a former Marvel Studios executive, will take over the division. Gunn confirmed the change himself in a post on Threads, and the news was carried across multiple outlets, including The Hollywood Reporter, Variety, Deadline and Bloomberg.
Why it matters
The pair had run DC Studios since 2023, a stretch in which they were tasked with rebuilding the studio's film and television output around a single connected continuity. Their departure removes the architects of that plan at a point when parts of it have yet to reach audiences. It also hands the brand to an executive with deep ties to the rival Marvel operation, which is likely to shape how DC's characters are handled from here.
Gunn cites toll of the job
In his Threads statement, Gunn described the past four years as difficult in ways only those closest to him knew about. He said he dislikes the corporate side of the role and credited Safran with absorbing most of that burden. Gunn added that while he works hard by nature, filmmaking had at least allowed him short breaks to recover, and that he had given up even that time, taking it from himself and his family.
Gunn indicated the pair are not finished with DC entirely. He said Man of Tomorrow arrives this summer, that he is writing another DC project the two have recently taken on, and that the characters they established will continue. In a joint statement, Gunn and Safran said they share a creative history with Latcham dating back to their Marvel years and are keen to see what he brings to DC's next phase. They described the move as a return to the work that drew them to the job, including the next part of Clark and Lex's story in Man of Tomorrow.
David Ellison, chairman and CEO of Skydance, and co-CEO Ynon Kreiz praised the outgoing leaders in comments provided to The Hollywood Reporter. They said Gunn and Safran opened a new chapter for DC Studios and steered it through substantial change, rebuilding its foundation and assembling a slate the company is proud of. They thanked them for their dedication to the brand.
Latcham takes the chair
Latcham comes to the role after helping Kevin Feige build the Marvel Cinematic Universe in its early years. In his own statement, he called DC's roster of characters one of the most recognizable in American popular culture. He said he has been fortunate to help adapt celebrated superhero stories for the screen and is honored to guide DC Studios into its next period. He described the responsibility of serving longtime fans while bringing these stories to a new generation as one he takes seriously.
How the transition came about is not settled. Gizmodo notes that only weeks before the announcement, Gunn and Safran were widely regarded as secure following Skydance's acquisition of Warner Bros., and Gunn had said as much publicly. Whether they were pushed out or chose to go will likely be debated for some time.
Open questions for DC's slate
The change raises practical questions about projects already in motion. Gizmodo points out that Latcham will almost certainly want a Batman film of his own, while The Batman Part II is already in production. Gunn and Safran had been firm that the world of that film would stay separate from the continuity they built. Whether that separation holds, and whether Robert Pattinson's Batman could be folded into the main DC Universe, is now uncertain. Titles still in development, such as Swamp Thing, face similar questions.
Watch for the first public signals from Latcham about the shape of DC's slate, and for any word on whether the standalone Batman films remain outside the shared universe.
