DC Studios co-chief Peter Safran isn’t just singing James Gunn’s praises; he’s practically giving him a trophy at CineEurope by declaring, “James is, for my money, the greatest superhero filmmaker of our generation.”
Those are fighting words, especially when your competition includes Zack Snyder, Christopher Nolan, the Russo Brothers, Sam Raimi and Matthew Vaughn. Even Jon Watts deserves a shout for pulling off Spider-Man: No Way Home without it turning into a multiverse mess.
But Safran believes it to be true. In the video message sent to CineEurope, since he and Gunn were off starting their global Superman press tour in the Philippines, he doubled down on the director’s genius. “I wouldn’t do any character without James,” he said. “But it was when he called me and said, ‘I have a way in,’ that I really knew we were onto something.”
To be fair, Safran has seen the final cut of Superman (releasing July 11, 2025). The rest of us have only seen flashes of footage, some of which debuted at CinemaCon in April, now expanded with 30 minutes of unseen material at CineEurope. By most accounts, it impressed. Warner Bros. president Jeff Goldstein showcased it as part of their global theatrical rollout, and the buzz coming out of the room wasn’t fake hype. There’s something there.
But calling Gunn the greatest? That’s a stretch even for a guy who turned a tree and a talking raccoon into two of Marvel’s most popular characters. Sure, The Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy is some of the best work to come out of the MCU. The Suicide Squad (2021) was fun and chaotic in the best way. And Peacemaker gave DC its weirdest and most loveable antihero. But “greatest of our generation”?
The truth is, it all hinges on Superman. This isn’t just another reboot. This is Gunn’s first live-action DCU film, the cornerstone of everything to come. And fans aren’t going to be swayed by studio execs gushing in a press clip. They’ll wait for the critic reviews. They’ll wait for audience reactions. And, yes, they’ll wait for box office numbers.
Safran may be sold, but the rest of us are cautiously optimistic, popcorn in hand. But if James Gunn sticks the landing, he may very well earn that “the greatest superhero filmmaker of our time” title.
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