James Gunn Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop Shutting Down DC Rumors

James Gunn on the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2 set

In the social media age, there are two kinds of blockbuster filmmakers. Stifled by confidentiality agreements and the desire to maintain secrets for the big screen experience, some opt to say very little, posting cryptically or in some cases not at all; while others maintain a kind of digital open door policy where all manners of questions and reports are seemingly open to be addressed. James Gunn is most definitely in the latter category, frequently using his channels to comment on stories and dispute rumors.

The latest example of this comes from this past weekend, with the filmmaker shutting down "leaks" about the DC FanDome – the virtual event that will be held later this year. The comic book, movie, and TV celebration has been the target of a great deal of speculation regarding news, updates, and footage from upcoming DC film projects, including James Gunn's The Suicide Squad, and the writer/director recently replied to one such overreach with a total dismissal.

This latest episode of rumor shutdown-ing from Gunn has unfolded on Twitter, though it's not entirely clear how the director came across the rumor in question, as he is not actually tagged in the post on which he comments. Said post features multiple screenshots of the Reddit mobile app from the r/DCEUleaks page and features claims of a "legitimate source" providing information regarding what is being planned reveal-wise for the DC FanDome event. As far as The Suicide Squad goes, the only thing mentioned is that the first trailer will premiere and that the entire cast will be on hand (which seems pretty basic), but the filmmaker still waved the information away as spurious.

Without going into any specifics regarding what's in the post, James Gunn responded simply:

Sorry to hamper anyone's excitement, but this isn't real.

So what will we actually see at DC FanDome? At present, the answer to that question is possessed only by those who are directly involved with the planning of the event, and those individuals aren't spilling the beans just yet. There definitely are expectations for at least some time to be dedicated to big upcoming projects like The Suicide Squad, The Batman, Wonder Woman 1984, Aquaman 2, Black Adam, Shazam! 2, and more, but we probably won't have a clear picture of what is in store until it's actually unfolding on our computer screens.

Announced back in June, the DC FanDome event will take place over the course of 24 hours and it is being touted as a global experience. The festivities will begin on Saturday, August 22, at 10 a.m. PDT, and you can be sure that we here at CinemaBlend will be following along closely and pulling out information for you here on the site regarding all of the most exciting developments. Stay tuned for all of our coverage!

Eric Eisenberg
Assistant Managing Editor

Eric Eisenberg is the Assistant Managing Editor at CinemaBlend. After graduating Boston University and earning a bachelor’s degree in journalism, he took a part-time job as a staff writer for CinemaBlend, and after six months was offered the opportunity to move to Los Angeles and take on a newly created West Coast Editor position. Over a decade later, he's continuing to advance his interests and expertise. In addition to conducting filmmaker interviews and contributing to the news and feature content of the site, Eric also oversees the Movie Reviews section, writes the the weekend box office report (published Sundays), and is the site's resident Stephen King expert. He has two King-related columns.