James Gunn and Peter Safran out at DC Studios as Skydance appoints Marvel veteran

Skydance chairman and chief executive David Ellison is turning to Jeremy Latcham to steer DC

James Gunn  at the world premiere of 'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3' in April 2023. File picture: Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP

Superman, Batman, and the rest of the DC heroes are getting a new boss, yet again.

Skydance Motion Picture Group has announced that James Gunn and Peter Safran are stepping down as co-chief executives after four years leading DC Studios.

Although their first film leading the superhero factory, Superman, reached cinemas only last year, their DC run has come to an abrupt end.

Gunn and Safran initially survived Skydance’s acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery. The studio’s merger with Paramount Pictures was finalised just as DC’s Clayface was released.

However, it turns out Gunn and Safran are not surviving the merger. Instead, Skydance chairman and chief executive David Ellison is turning to Jeremy Latcham, a veteran of Marvel Studios, to steer DC.

“James and Peter launched a new era for DC Studios and led it through a period of real transformation, resetting the foundation and building a slate we’re incredibly proud of,” Ellison said in a statement. 

“We’re grateful for their passion, contributions, and commitment to this legendary brand.” 

Latcham was a leading executive for Marvel, including the first wave of the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Iron Man and The Avengers. He also worked with Gunn and Safran on their Guardians of the Galaxy.

The changeover will take effect on December 1.

But a long pipeline of projects already in production ensures that Gunn and Safran’s fingerprints will be on DC Studios for a while to come.

Gunn is currently in post-production on the Superman follow-up, Man of Tomorrow. Other upcoming releases include the series The People v. Gorilla Grodd and The Batman Part II.

But the decade’s worth of planning that Gunn and Safran instituted will no longer come to fruition.

Their reign has been characterised by more idiosyncratic comic book adaptations and genre gambles, such as Clayface, which fused superhero with horror. Earlier this year, Supergirl flopped, a major setback in just their second release.

Latcham takes on the roles of president and chief creative officer of DC Studios. He will report to Dana Goldberg and Josh Greenstein, co-chairs of Skydance Motion Picture Group.

“Jeremy brings a deep reverence for DC and its passionate fanbase, recognising that they are the very foundation of this storied, multi-generational brand,” Goldberg and Greenstein said.

Gunn’s biggest success leading DC was Superman, which struck a decidedly different and more comedic tone than the previous treatments of the hero in Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel. But it also did not reach the box-office heights of the biggest superhero hits.

From the start, Gunn, a prodigious filmmaker, was an unusual choice for such a prominent corporate leadership role. In exiting DC, he seemed eager to concentrate again on writing and directing.

“We’re excited to return to what drew us to this job in the first place, which is telling the stories we love, including the next chapter of Clark and Lex’s journey in Man of Tomorrow,” Gunn and Safran said in a statement.

Latcham had been out of the superhero business. In 2017, he departed Marvel to set up Latcham Pictures, producing films including Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves and Bad Times at the El Royale.

“I’ve had the privilege to help bring some of the most celebrated superhero stories to life on the big screen, and I’m excited and honoured for the opportunity to now lead DC Studios into its next era,” Latcham said.