James Gunn Already Writing Next Film While 'Man of Tomorrow' Edits

For filmmakers of a certain productive temperament, the waiting game of post-production is simply too quiet to endure without creative output. James Gunn, it turns out, is very much that kind of filmmaker — the DC Studios co-chairman has confirmed he is already deep into writing his next feature film, even as the assembly cut of his Superman sequel takes shape in an editing suite somewhere.

'Already In It'

According to TheWrap, Gunn responded to a fan question on Threads this past Sunday with characteristic directness: "Already in it. I had to do something while I was waiting for the assembly!!" The comment is brief, but it speaks volumes about the discipline and restlessness of a writer-director who clearly regards any idle stretch of time as an opportunity squandered. The assembly cut — that rough, unpolished first pass at the full film from raw footage — can take weeks or even months to complete, and Gunn, rather than step back entirely, has channelled that period into the earliest stages of whatever comes next.

Principal photography on the sequel, formally titled Man of Tomorrow, wrapped in August, placing Gunn squarely in the long middle distance of post-production that defines so much of a director's year. Jennifer Holland, a cast member with close proximity to the project, has already described Man of Tomorrow as potentially Gunn's best work to date — praise that raises expectations considerably ahead of its July 9, 2026 release date.

What 'Man of Tomorrow' Brings to the DCU

The sequel reunites David Corenswet with the cape and returns Rachel Brosnahan, Skyler Gisondo, and Edi Gathegi to the ensemble. It also introduces a narrative conceit that superhero cinema has rarely executed with real dramatic weight: an uneasy alliance between Superman and his most iconic adversary, Lex Luthor, portrayed here by Nicholas Hoult. Adria Arjona joins in a role being kept deliberately under wraps, while Aaron Pierre — who recently debuted as John Stewart in HBO Max's Lanterns — also appears. That series has quickly become a significant pillar of Gunn's expanding DCU, signalling that the television arm of his strategy is every bit as carefully constructed as the theatrical slate.

The Stakes Surrounding the Sequel

The commercial and critical trajectory of DC Studios has been uneven since the rebooted universe launched. The original Superman performed solidly, accumulating $618 million globally — a debut that established the tone and ambition of Gunn's vision in ways worth revisiting. But Supergirl, the follow-up entry, significantly underperformed with $126 million worldwide, a result that introduced real uncertainty into the studio's forward planning. Gunn's creative fingerprints on that film's production were felt even in its music choices, though the mixed reception suggests the broader audience has yet to fully commit to the new universe.

Next on the theatrical calendar is Clayface, a more modest, horror-inflected production scheduled for October 23. But it is Man of Tomorrow that carries the heaviest strategic weight. With Warner Bros. Discovery's impending acquisition by Paramount-Skydance in a reported $111 billion deal, the sequel will arrive under new corporate stewardship — and its box-office performance will likely inform how aggressively the incoming ownership chooses to invest in Gunn's long-term DCU architecture.

What Comes Next

The identity of Gunn's next writing project remains unknown, though logic and his stewardship role at DC Studios suggest it will remain within that universe. Whether it is another directorial effort or a script he is developing for another filmmaker is equally unclear. What is clear is that Gunn operates with the kind of sustained creative momentum that defines the most productive writer-directors — a quality that, historically, tends to compound over time. How Lanterns is quietly building toward larger cosmic stakes in Gunn's DCU suggests the connective tissue between projects is already being carefully laid, whether on screen or on the page.