James Gunn is out at DC — and Zack Snyder fans are already demanding his return
James Gunn and Peter Safran are stepping down as DC Studios co-CEOs after four years, and fans already have a particular comeback in mind.
Right, so a small hurricane just hit DC Studios and, as usual with this lot, the fallout has gone straight off the rails on social media. James Gunn and Peter Safran are stepping down after four years in charge, with the handover officially happening on 1 December 2026. If you thought the online fanbase would just let this unfold quietly, you must be new here.
Jeremy Latcham, who previously served as a producer at Marvel Studios, is taking over DC.
Social media chaos
The departure announcement came via The Hollywood Reporter and, yes, immediately triggered the sort of responses you only see when fans think their favourite cast or director might get a look-in again. Which, of course, means the usual suspects began chanting for Zack Snyder to return—some sincerely, others in the typical tongue-in-cheek, 'here we go again' manner.
It didn’t take long for the hashtag warriors to get going:
- One, clearly unimpressed with DC’s recent financials, said it was 'expected after 10 straight flops' and declared 'Snyder sends his regards.'
- Another seemed just plain exasperated: 'I'm tired of this; just give me Zack Snyder's DC, bro.'
- Someone else warned, only slightly sarcastically, that 'cbm twitter is about to be on a level of toxicity we've never seen before, get ready for Snyder fans.'
- And then a particularly weary user summed up the mood: 'The Snyder cultists won, I'm done.'
For what it’s worth, none of this actually means Snyder is back—just that his supporters are making noise, same as ever. DC Studios has not announced any involvement from him. So the SnyderVerse, as fans have named his run from Man of Steel through Batman v Superman and Zack Snyder's Justice League, is still off the main slate for now.
Gunn and Safran officially hand over control of DC Studios to Marvel veteran Jeremy Latcham on 1 December 2026.
What’s next for DC?
If there’s an actual change here, it’s that Jeremy Latcham—ex-Marvel Studios producer—is taking the reins as president and chief creative officer. Gunn and Safran are not vanishing entirely; they’ll keep working on select projects, namely Man of Tomorrow, The People v. Gorilla Grodd, and The Batman: Part II. But in terms of overall leadership, their run’s up.
There’s a weird bit of almost wholesome trivia in all the noise: Gunn and Snyder aren’t sworn enemies or anything—quite the opposite. Gunn wrote the screenplay for Snyder’s 2004 directorial debut, Dawn of the Dead, and Snyder went out of his way to praise Gunn’s recent Superman film. So for now, the nastier corners of Twitter/X might want to pick a different rivalry.