James Gunn Throws Shade at Marvel

James Gunn went there. He's called out Marvel, and not held back.

Posting on Threads, the DC co-CEO responded to comments his upcoming film, Superman: Legacy, has too many characters.

“The whole point was it’s NOT a large film - I mean, not in terms of cast. It’s normal for single protagonist films to have other characters - much more unusual for them not to.”

He went on to share his most hated element of modern superhero films, prevalent in Marvel's recent output. “I call that ‘cameo porn’ and it has been one of the worst elements of recent superhero films. If a character is in a film, they have to have a reason to be there story-wise.”

Most replies to his comments were in agreement, with one Threads poster writing, “Finally someone who treats characters more than just *having character appear on screen for 10 seconds to mark a checkbox*.”

Gunn clarifies that he doesn’t mind actual cameos, “if it’s a glimpse or a moment, an Easter egg.” But what bothers him is when filmmakers shoehorn characters in without any story justification.

While Superman: Legacy seems stuffed with characters, including Superman, Lois Lane, Lex Luthor, Jimmy Olsen, Metamorpho, Mister Terrific, Guy Gardner, Hawkgirl, Eve Teschmacher, and more, according to Gunn, each character will have every reason for being there besides ticking a box.