James Gunn’s DC Universe

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Every time I watch one of this man’s videos, I feel Inspired to do my own stories, to take a risk. Whether my ideas succeed or fail, I’ll be glad I did them out of passion. I’m inspired by the HiTOP and the Gunn to “Keep Going”

Two recent pieces of news that have got me really hopeful for James Gunn's DCU: 1) He reached out to the directors of Batgirl, knowing they had their film taken away, and offering them another project, putting the creators first and not treating their work as a tax write-off. 2) He said the new lineup starts in 2024, suggesting that they actually have a plan, and a fresh start, not just throwing a bunch of stuff at the wall He just seems like he's being as transparent and interactive with the fan base as possible. No matter what you think of James Gunn, ya gotta respect that

I just want the Matt reeves universe to stay its own thing, while James Gunn builds his own universe with strange heroes and sincere movies

I believe James Gunn is gonna do something special with the DC Universe and I cannot wait to see what he has Instore for us DC Fans.

Damn it, Alex. That whole segment about your childhood was perhaps the best stretch of any video essay I've seen on this platform. Amazing work.

This guy, HiTop Films, he makes a video, I watch it, I cry. Repeat. He reminds me of that hope, he inspires and speaks to the dreams I had as a kid looking up to these titans and heroes, he articulates what I could never put into words and I absolutely love his content for it. Thank you, because of this, I am now doing well, and I hope you are too <3

The fact that ANYONE is against Gunn being in charge of the DCEU is insane. He's proved time and time again that he understands how to add emotion to characters, how he can lead obscure heroes into the mainstream eye. Really excited for the future of DC! (edit: no i don't think this aged badly lol. i'm glad we can get another chance to properly adapt these characters)

When I was younger, first getting into DC, I used to draw Polka-Dot Man redesigns. I seriously doubted that the image of Polka-Dot Man on the big screen I had in my head would actually happen, and James Gunn delivered that dream. What a hero. I couldn’t imagine a better man for the job. When I was a kid, my favourite movie was Scooby Doo 2002, a movie he wrote. When I was older, it became Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2, a movie he wrote and directed. He shares my love of the obscure and the ridiculous but he always grounds it in empathy, human emotion. Recently, he told the story of how he used to dress up as Green Arrow as a kid. I have no doubt that James Gunn understands these characters, loves these characters, and he will make a comprehensive, beautiful DCU for both the most popular of DC characters and the more obscure ones.

Oh dear the timing of this video

I'm cautiously optimistic. The fact that they STILL seem to struggle with the concept of just a SOLO move with no tease, no nothing, just tell a story in 2022 is baffling. My God like Sonic the Hedgehog has it figured out. Here's the formula they need to follow: make a few humble solo movies. Keep doing that. DON'T blow your load on the second movie. Maybe when you're three to four movies in start the teases. THEN do a team up as a payoff. It's that simple. People need to remember that Iron Man having an Avengers Initiative tease was a GAMBLE at one point in time they had no idea if it would work. That's why they just did a few solo movies after that, and that's why they all feel so distinct and different. There are SOME threads connecting the dots, but about as thin as thin ice. Could crumble at any moment back then. Sonic the Hedgehog is also taking the slow build approach. Introducing at most 2 characters at a time per movie so they don't get overcrowded. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 will be pretty ambitious since they are introducing Shadow, but it'll be worth it cause the first two movies have done the hard parts, setup and expand. DC needs to think "what if we were the underdog that Marvel once was." because they are. Because right now, what they're doing, is just nothing more than a sad pathetic attempt to claw at the hype that Marvel was so effortlessly able to generate. I want them to be better than this, absolute mess. You can have the best writer, director, cameraman at the helm. But if the STUDIO interferes too much, you're screwed no matter what. Sonic the Hedgehog is succeeding because they're following the Marvel formula yet still having their own style of writing, editing, etc; take INSPIRATION from the property you're basing your film off of, but make it work FOR film, go slow but steady. Here's hoping the future of the DC Cinematic Universe is better...it can't get any worse than what we've had.

EXACTLY...You perfectly put why I believe James Gunn is going to push DC into a new era of hope and imagination. James not only understands and loves these characters but he's also a filmmaker first and foremost. One who got the opportunity to direct one of the few superhero blockbusters with a defined vision and identity. He fully understands the experience of fighting hard for your creative vision within the system and he's going to give other directors the chance he got.

Jesus man, the hope section of this video had me right in the feels. You never fail to surprise me Alex <3

Been so hyped for this one, I strongly believe James is gonna do a lot of good for DC. He seems so passionate and I love his creative vision! Another banger of a video by the way! I absolutely loved this one, I’m so glad you’ve been uploading more!

Hope is one of the greatest things that people can hold on to. Hope is always lingering and never fully lost.

I cannot fathom the tears that would stream down my face if someone wrote a script like this about how my passion inspires them.

James Gunn's The Suicide Squad is the perfect DC film to me. When it came out it had everything I hoped it would have that I felt was lacking from other comic book films at the time, clear directorial vision, great blending of CG and practical effects, unique characters, a fun and unpredictable plot and an overall feeling of love and appreciation for the source material. It was never ashamed of the goofiness of the characters or premise like some other comic book films still are to this day. Heck, I liked it so much that it got me back into writing, it had me thinking 'if we could get this, what if we got stories about characters as obscure as Killer Moth?' It really gave off this feeling that it could open up new corners of the DC universe to the screen which had previously never been thought possible, but my hopes were dashed when it made no money. Right now though, even though it's still a rocky road given how much baggage there is to DC's recent attempts at a cinematic universe, I'm remaining optimistic. A central difference between Marvel and DC, which I think phase 1 of the MCU perfectly captured and why I feel DC trying to copy their structure didn't work, was because Marvel comics to me always felt like our world then suddenly superheroes and villains start appearing in it, so they needed introductions, origins, and clear layouts for how they could exist in the world. DC obviously also had origins for all their characters, but as its gone on DC to me is fundamentally an otherworldly setting, from the cities to the style, superheroes are a part of everyday culture and life, they've been a presence that long and I feel like that's the approach they should take. If you're doing Green Lantern you can't just start all the Lantern corps from scratch, if you want it to feel like Batman has a massive rogues gallery, don't just spend every film introducing them, just place details to show they exist or he's fought them already (Matt Reeves I think nailed that idea). We know these characters by now, so if you're restarting just do a Justice League film right off the bat, don't bother with origins. What James Gunn did with the Guardians and how they led us through their own corner of the universe which had always been there and we just hadn't seen it, that's how I feel DC should do it. If they're well written and likeable characters who aren't just starting out their superhero careers, they'll feel like they're full of possibility and people will want to see what their corners of the world are like. Flash could've already met the Rogues and have a museum, Green Lantern could've already fought Sinestro or Atrocitus, heck just have Darkseid be a known thing that exists rather than repeating how Marvel built up to Thanos then had him come and go within two films. Some of the most successful franchises like Star Wars, Harry Potter and John Wick all started with good films with engaging stories and characters, that also introduced us to these massive expansive worlds that were clearly and concisely established, so future sequels and spinoffs could just have characters show up and it felt like they'd always been there. Marvel to me at this point is beginning to show cracks by having to very often devote screen time to character's origins, motives, and deaths al in the same film, mainly with villains, which makes the universe seem smaller to me as they're so fleeting, whereas someone like Polka-Dot Man or Savant felt like they'd been around for years before the events of that film. DC could easily succeed if they stuck to what worked for them in things like the Arkham games or Justice League Unlimited by having a world that feels alive and lived in with their own histories and stories before they've even been shown on screen.

Never ever have i thought a HiTop Films video would make me tear up. Then Alex pulls up with the mostly heartbreaking yet heartpleasing talk about him and his dad. Just. Beautiful.

That part of your childhood was so inspiring. Thank you for sharing

Alex, you are a inspiration to me. As an aspiring filmmaker, the whole speech about childhood hit me. Thank you.