The current state of the DC extended universe, or the DCEU, is a bit fractured. On one hand, some movies are still invested in the formally unified front of the Justice League days, but on the other, movies like The Batman or Joker seem completely independent of any shared continuity. And then, there’s James Gunn’s Suicide Squad, which seemed to be a little of both–a return for some characters and actors who have existed in the DCEU before, but a fresh start for others.
The Suicide Squad managed to skirt the issue of the context of any larger shared universe by relying solely on name-drops and vague allusions to other heroes or villains, and, by and large, its spin-off TV show, Peacemaker, followed the same formula. Yes, characters like Batman and Superman “existed” in the world, Peacemaker himself would often name-check them with childish insults, but the question of which versions of these characters he was talking about never actually had to be clarified.
That is, until now. Peacemaker has finished its ten episode Season 1 run on HBO Max this week and brought some spectacular cameos with it. Here’s what they (and that ending) mean.
Major spoilers for Peacemaker Season 1 ahead.
After the team was successfully able to blow up the “cow” and stop the butterflies from taking over the world (though, we do learn that the butterflies’ motives were at least somewhat altruistic) they’re left to haul themselves out of the barn’s wreckage. On their way out, however, they’re intercepted by the arrival of four, instantly recognizable silhouettes. Superman, Aquaman, Wonder Woman, and The Flash have arrived–but it’s too little, too late of course. The threat is already abated.
While it wouldn’t be the first time a DC movie has used the outline or silhouette of one of their A-list characters to imply a cameo (without actually bringing in the actor–remember the stinger from Shazam?) Peacemaker takes it one step further and actually brings both Jason Momoa and Ezra Miller into focus. They both share an extremely R-rated, Peacemaker-appropriate quip, before the scene transitions.
Notably, neither Superman nor Wonder Woman are given any legitimate screen time. Also, perhaps more notably, Batman and Cyborg are nowhere to be found.
This is at least partially unsurprising. Both Aquaman and The Flash have movies coming up this year and we’ve seen bits of both as part of DC’s Super Bowl clip, so the question of whether or not Momoa and Miller were going to reprise their roles was never left unanswered. Wonder Woman 3 has been greenlit, and reportedly has Gal Gadot attached to reprise Diana, but no official casting announcements or production schedules have been released. Superman and Henry Cavill remain in a bit of a limbo with no projects announced or confirmed.
Meanwhile, The Batman is just around the corner with Robert Pattinson taking over the role–though this film has no official connection to any shared universe that we know of yet. Also, both Ben Affleck and Michael Keaton are reprising their respective turns as the Dark Knight in Flashpoint, putting the Batman franchise in the rather awkward position of having a bunch of Bats to go around, but no stable ground to stand on in terms of the future of the bigger franchise universe.
Less surprisingly, Cyborg is missing from the line-up. This follows Ray Fisher’s string of allegations against the conduct against not only Justice League director Joss Whedon but several DC and Warner Bros higher-ups as well. Fisher has since been removed from a planned cameo in Flashpoint and no news about the future of Cyborg within the DCEU has been announced.
Peacemaker, however, has been greenlit for a Season 2, meaning that all of the surviving characters–Peacemaker himself, Vigilante, Adebayo, Harcourt, and Economos–can be expected to come back in some capacity or another. We left Peacemaker grappling with the death of his father and his place in the world, Vigilante escaping from the hospital, Harcourt being saved in the hospital, Adebayo returning to her wife, and Economos returning to work at Belle Reve.
Also notably, Adebayo took the time to blow the cover on Task Force X and her own mother, Amanda Waller, which will no doubt put a major damper on things in the future of the Suicide Squad and whatever spin-offs might come about. It will be hard to run a covert black ops team made up of criminals when the truth about the project has been blasted out on the news.
As of right now, no confirmed production plans, casting, plot details, or tentative schedule have been released for Peacemaker Season 2. Peacemaker Season 1 is now streaming in its entirety on HBO Max.
Source: Gamespot
