James Gunn’s Superman Is Tied Up In Legal Drama

Superman is set to be the lynchpin in James Gunn and Peter Safran’s rebooted DCU, but the flagship project recently ran into some legal troubles that might complicate things for the studio and the new franchise it’s trying to establish.

Superman was the standout project when Gunn and Safran revealed their slate for Phase One of the new DCU, with the then-new heads of DC Studios putting it front and center in their plans and having it be the first live-action project from the new franchise to hit theaters. While the DC Elseworlds success—hello, The Batman—and the good reception for Creature Commandos were good early signs for the new DCU, most of the battle for fan interest rests squarely on Superman, a fact that Gunn acquiesced to early on. Unfortunately for Gunn, Safran, and DC Studios, a lawsuit cropped up that could mean Superman’s release would be blocked in several countries.

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The timing couldn’t be worse for the studio if Superman’s highly motivated take on Lex Luthor planned it all out himself, and the case has unfortunately not gotten much closer to a clear resolution. As confirmed in a recent report from Variety, DC’s legal counsel has filed a motion to dismiss the case brought by Mark Peary, the nephew of the late Superman co-creator Joe Shuster, that aims to invalidate the rights that DC Studios has to use the character in select markets including the UK, Canada, Australia, Ireland, Israel, Singapore, Hong Kong, India, New Zealand and South Africa. This claim was made in January, despite Peary’s mother signing off all rights to the character after the passing of her brother, Shuster. While Peary’s lawyer claims that this only applies in the US, DC’s representatives disagree. As counsel for the studio stated, “There are no carve-outs in the controlling 1992 agreement for any foreign copyrights, much less for the copyrights in the 10 countries Peary now alleges in the Complaint.”

Legal action concerning big IPs is nothing new, with Amazon and Tolkien’s estate recently fighting off a lawsuit concerning The Rings of Power. The main issue with the Superman suit is the timing, as the negative publicity and potential punitive action will fall right on the eve of the project’s big international premiere. The legal merits of the case will be settled between the two parties, but the idea of Superman being removed from DC’s purview is unthinkable for most fans and even casual observers. Except for Spider-Man, there’s likely no character outside of DC more iconic than the Man of Steel. DC certainly seems to have the stronger case, and according to their representatives, this same action has also been shot down in previous court cases.

It’s clear that Gunn is making the right stylistic choice with Superman, and it would be a shame for the movie to suffer a stalled release, or (worst case scenario) not even be seen by fans in certain markets due to the lawsuit. While there’s almost no chance that DC will let this happen without a fight, legal proceedings can take months to settle even the most straightforward disputes, and the film’s current July release date doesn’t afford Gunn’s side that much time to sort things out. While most fans will get to see the film when it hits theaters at the appointed time, moviegoers in the disputed territories will have to wait and see which way the pendulum swings on the case first.

Superman is currently set for theatrical release on 9 July, 2025 in the US.

Superman

Release Date

July 11, 2025

Director

James Gunn

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Source: Variety