James Gunn Spurs More Kingdom Come Speculation

Movies

There’s more evidence that one of the plates James Gunn is spinning at DC Studios is an adaptation of “Kingdom Come.” Exactly one week ago, Gunn made an account on Hive, a social media app, and he used an image from the (rightly) celebrated Elseworlds story as his cover photo. It was a neat idea, and I was happy to speculate, but it seemed more like Gunn just chose the image because it looked cool, not because he was hinting at what was to come. Then, a few hours ago, he posted the same image on Twitter and said, “Making plans.”

Making plans. pic.twitter.com/cubPgga066

— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) November 30, 2022

I’m trying to keep my expectations tempered, and lots of people are saying the same thing I thought a week ago: it’s just a picture, not a promise. They also point out that it’s a picture of Superman making plans with a bunch of other DC superheroes, a visual representation of Gunn’s “Making plans” comment. And that’s fair; maybe Gunn likes the image and decided to use it again. But… the same image from the same graphic novel a week to the day after the first instance of its use? And Gunn keeps abreast of the rumors about DC Studios, so he’s definitely aware that people were speculating about a “Kingdom Come” adaptation. Is he having fun with fans, or is he really planning to bring this story to the screen? I was skeptical at first, but now I think he does have his sights set on “Kingdom Come.” It makes sense; if he and Peter Safran are trying to make a splash, this is a surefire way to do it. And it jibes with Gunn’s confirmation that some of the films and shows he produces will be stand-alone. Having thought about it a bit, maybe it will be an animated movie; that might be the best route to go, especially with all the heroes being older and the obvious expense a live-action film would necessitate. That would be great; DC has made some terrific animated movies, and they’ve tackled classic comic stories like “The Dark Knight Returns” and “The Death of Superman.” I hope this isn’t a tease, because it’s too big to dangle in front of fans for the lulz.