James Gunn has been known to openly discuss his projects at all stages of development, and yesterday was no exception. The beloved director answered a fan’s question via Twitter of what his biggest inspirations for his hotly anticipatedPeacemakerseries were, and he shared quite the list. He replied with the following revelations.
“My biggest inspiration is@JohnCenataking a costume home to see what it’s like to nap in it. Other big inspirations are Better Call Saul, Dance Dance Revolution, tightie-whities, Def Leppard, the 1970’s Captain America TV movie, and a rotten childhood.”
Well, that is certainly an amusing yet expansive set of of genres. Let’s dig into what this might mean for the series. His addition ofBetter Call Saulis not necessarily shocking as Gunn’s previous works share similar tones with the AMC show. Gunn is often praised for his expert ability tocombine heart and humorwith intense situations, soPeacemakersharing similar vibes withBetter Call Saulmakes sense. As for what he could mean with his addition of the video gameDance Dance Revolution, your guess is as good as mine.
My theory is that we may get more than one comical dance sequence in the series, whichJames Gunnhas effortlessly pulled off before in theGuardians of the Galaxyfilms. His inclusion of Def Leppard insinuates we may get some 1970’s era rock music as the soundtrack. Gunn has already mentioned thatThe Suicide Squadwill feel like a 1970’s war movie, so this tracks. Finally, Gunn mentions the cult classicCaptain AmericaTV movie. This was never in doubt as Peacemaker’s costume is as comically ridiculous as anything in the DC universe thus far.
Putting all of these clues together, we can most likely expectPeacemakerto be a fast-paced, cheesy, nostalgic, dark, and hilarious superhero show. It will also mark the first live-action show set in the DC Extended Universe, so it will be an exciting watch.
In addition toPeacemakerandThe Suicide Squad(coming to theaters and HBO Max on August 6), James Gunn has plenty of experience in the world of superhero films. He is acclaimed for movies likeSuper,Brightburn, and of courseThe Guardians of the Galaxyseries (he is slated to complete theGuardianstrilogy along with a holiday special. With a resume like that, I think it fair to assume that we are in great hands with both of his upcoming DC projects.
Peacemakerwill star John Cena as the titular villain (antihero?), Steve Agee as John Economos (reprising his role from the Gunn’s other upcoming projectThe Suicide Squad), Danielle Brooks as Leota Adebayo, Chris Conrad as Vigilante, Christopher Heyerdahl as Captain Locke, Jennifer Holland as Emilia Harcourt, Chuckwudi Iwuji as Clemson Murn, Nhut Le as Judomaster, and Robert Patrick as Auggie Smith. It is still not known when the series will take place so as not to spoilThe Suicide Squad. My money is on it being a prequel because I expect Peacemaker to be one of the many Suicide Squad members to die, but don’t take my word for it. The show will premiere onHBO Maxin January 2022.
