Door’s open: James Gunn would 'bend over backwards' to bring back Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn
James Gunn has thrown the DCU’s doors open to Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn — and he’s prepared to go the distance if she wants back in.
Trying to keep track of DC Studios these days is a bit like trying to remember which timeline we're in after a couple of pints too many — the whole DCEU-to-DCU saga has been, let's say, less than straightforward. With James Gunn and Peter Safran at the controls, we've seen a handful of familiar faces survive the big reboot — but now there's fresh chatter over whether Margot Robbie will get another run as Harley Quinn in this new chapter.
Margot Robbie is one of my favourite actors to work with. She is so good in the movie. I love her as Harley. I don’t know where Margot’s head is with all of this. Harley is a character I’m almost certainly going to use in the DCU, and if Margot wants to play her, then I’ll bend over backwards to explain that in the world. But if she doesn’t, then I might go with somebody else, where I don’t have to be attached to what happens to Harley in this movie.
That's Gunn on a recent podcast, laying out just how open he is to Robbie coming back — but also, how tricky it actually is to slot her Harley Quinn into this rebooted universe. Gunn makes a point of saying Harley's past, especially her connection to the Joker, is so tangled with previous films that it's awkward to claim she neatly fits into the new continuity. Especially since the Joker hasn't been established at all in the DCU version.
So the door is open—and it's not just open, he'll apparently push the whole thing off its hinges for her. If Robbie's up for another go-round, Gunn's eager to find a way to make it work. Otherwise, he seems comfortable recasting, presumably to keep things less convoluted for new fans trying to piece together DC's latest timeline shuffle.
Who Else Is In and Out
Robbie isn't the only DCEU survivor with a golden ticket to the new DCU. We already know Viola Davis (Amanda Waller) and John Cena (Peacemaker) are sticking around, and Xolo Maridueña is still Blue Beetle. Oh, and Steve Agee has survived as John Economos — for those keeping score. But no sign of a new Joker yet, which, let's be honest, makes Harley's inclusion just a tad complicated.
The whole business of mixing and matching old and new actors seems a bit daft, if you ask me. You end up with half the continuity baggage still hanging around, but rebranded like it's a fresh start. There's a real sense of 'if this one's back, why not that one?' that the general public is bound to find confusing.
The Next Big DCU Film
Shifting gears to what's officially next for the DCU, we've got Man of Tomorrow gearing up for a 2027 release. This time, Superman and Lex Luthor aren't just sniping at each other — they're being forced to team up, which can only go well, against none other than Brainiac.
Man of Tomorrow arrives in cinemas on 9 July 2027.
David Corenswet is back in the cape as Superman, Nicholas Hoult is donning the bald cap as Lex Luthor, and Lars Eidinger will bring Brainiac to life (that, frankly, is the bit I'm most interested in). Aaron Pierre is popping up as John Stewart, bridging things for the Lanterns show, and the supporting cast includes Rachel Brosnahan (Lois Lane), Skyler Gisondo (Jimmy Olsen), and Sara Sampaio (Eve Teschmacher).
There's also Adria Arjona on the roster. It's rumoured she's playing Maxima, but the fan speculation mill reckons it's actually a fakeout and she's secretly our new Wonder Woman. On top of that, Milly Alcock is returning as Supergirl, which should keep at least some DC fans happy for now.