On Jan. 31, co-CEOs of DC Studios, James Gunn and Peter Zafran, unveiled their future plans for the DC cinematic universe, including a complete reset from the current universe fans know. 

In the past decade, the DC cinematic universe has released numerous movies that have been received as subpar and forgettable, such as Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice and Wonder Woman 1984. However, James Gunn and Peter Zafran hope to separate their original characters from this recent financial and critical disappointment. 

“One of our strategies is that we take our diamond characters — Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman — and we use that to help prop up other characters that people don’t know,” said Gunn according to Deadline.

Gunn and Zafran have publicly announced a variety of projects they plan to release, highlighted by Superman: Legacy, Lanterns and The Brave and the Bold. They hope to keep the “mainstream” universe’s movies all tied into each other as usual; films simply featuring DC characters such as Matt Reeves’ The Batman or Todd Phillips’ The Joker will now be labeled as “DC Elseworld,” as they have no involvement with the mainstream universe.  

The Flash, set to release Jun. 16, 2023, is to be the final film of the current DC cinematic universe. The movie will end by resetting the current universe and introducing Chapter 1: Gods and Monsters, the first installment of the new cinematic universe.