Credit: Inside the MagicDirector James Gunn is riding the high of his recent box office triumph—Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)—with the MCU one last time before he fully begins his new gig at DC Studios. And prior to his exit, Gunn made a clear distinction between his position at DC and Kevin Feige’s role at Marvel Studios—which have often been compared in recent years.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 finally arrived in theaters on May 5 and has been met with overwhelmingly positive reviews. Many have deemed it the best Marvel movie since Avengers: Endgame (2019), thanks to its tear-jerking emotional beats, exciting action sequences, and the effortless charm of its main cast.
So far, the movie has grossed over $300 million at the global box office, making it on track to become one of the top-earning films of 2023. A fitting goodbye to Gunn’s iteration of the Guardians, the director is now moving on to bigger (and hopefully, better) things.
Sadly, Vol. 3 will mark Gunn’s final collaboration with Marvel—at least, for now. The critically-acclaimed director will be stepping into a new role at a different superhero studio, DC, where he’ll serve as co-CEO and Chief Executive Officer alongside Aquaman (2018) producer Peter Safran.
After the news was announced back in late 2022, Gunn was almost instantly hit with a never-ending wave of questions, comments, and criticism, with many longtime DC fans skeptical of his abilities when it comes to overseeing such a prominent studio.
Inevitably, this led fans to draw a connection between Gunn’s DC position and Fiege’s at Marvel, as the pair are actually good friends outside of their bigscreen collaborations.
During his recent WIRED Autocomplete Interview, Gunn addressed fans’ questions alongside his brother and Guardians star, Sean. In it, he explained the differences between his and Feige’s jobs after being asked if he was “the Kevin Feige of DC.”
Gunn explained how his DC Studios co-CEO, Peter Safran, handles the more administrative side of the studio while he’s in charge of the more creative aspects, such as “mapping out the stories” of the new DC Universe:
It’s actually a little different, I mean…number one, DC Studios is a studio, so it’s a little bit different. Peter Safran does a lot of what Kevin Feige does. A lot of what I do is I just work on the creative side of things, so… Mapping out the stories and the creative side of the universe is my job, much more so than some of the more administrative/ executive type of stuff. Kevin has to do both.
Many have assumed that Gunn is now DC’s top dog, just as Kevin Feige is often viewed as the “savior” and “man behind the curtain” at Marvel ever since he stepped into an executive position at the company back in 2007.
While this may be the case in a figurative sense, with Gunn essentially becoming the poster boy for DC, he will actively be engaged in the creative side of DC Studios, whether that be writing and directing new projects or working closely in writer’s rooms—setting him apart from Feige’s more business-centric executive and administrative duties.
After Gunn’s firing and subsequent rehiring from Marvel back in 2018, DC didn’t hesitate to swoop him up to direct 2021’s The Suicide Squad, hinting at some beef between Gunn and Feige. However, that’s not the case, as the two actively communicated during Gunn’s time away from the studio, remaining close throughout the ordeal.
While this may have not put a band-aid on the damage done by Marvel, Gunn has no ill intentions for his former superhero studio now that he’s onboard with DC, and has even openly discussed the possibility of a Marvel/DC crossover event in the near future.
Now that Gunn has been appointed to a similar position at Marvel’s main competitor, it’ll be interesting to see how this new era for DC takes shape over the coming years with his guidance. But based on what we know so far, it undoubtedly looks promising.
What are your thoughts on James Gunn’s recent remarks about not being the “Kevin Feige” of the DC universe? Let us know in the comments below.