James Gunn and Peter Safran are leaving their leadership roles at DC Studios, with former Marvel executive Jeremy Latcham appointed to take over as president and chief creative officer on December 1. The change ends the pair’s four-year run overseeing DC’s screen business but does not end their involvement in its films.
Skydance Motion Picture Group announced the transition on Monday, November 9, according to The Associated Press. Gunn and Safran will return to full-time creative work, while Latcham takes responsibility for DC’s film, television and animation operations.
The announcement was followed by a Hollywood Reporter account describing disagreements over reporting lines and control under DC’s new corporate ownership. Those explanations rely on unnamed sources and should be distinguished from the company’s publicly announced leadership changes.
A new reporting structure for DC
Latcham will report to Dana Goldberg and Josh Greenstein, co-chairs of Skydance Motion Picture Group. His responsibilities include the creative pipeline, production, talent and strategy, Deadline reported. That places DC’s incoming leader within the group’s movie-management structure rather than preserving the direct access to the corporate chief that Gunn and Safran previously held.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Gunn and Safran had reported directly to former Warner Bros. chief David Zaslav. Their contracts provided for a comparable reporting arrangement following a leadership change, the publication reported, citing sources. That arrangement became a point of friction as Goldberg and Greenstein sought to bring motion-picture production under their oversight.
The same report said there were disagreements about the sharing of slate details, plans and footage. It described a November 6 meeting at the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank where Skydance leaders David Ellison and Ynon Kreiz informed Gunn and Safran of the decision. These details form the trade publication’s account of events, not a separately established explanation from the executives involved.
Why the departure surprised Hollywood
The shift came shortly after Gunn and Safran appeared positioned to remain under the new owners. Variety reported that both had been named to Ellison’s business leadership team when Paramount’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery closed in October.
Their departure therefore represents more than a routine handover between film projects. It changes who has authority over a shared collection of characters and productions, with development decisions spread across movies, television and animation. Latcham inherits projects already underway as well as responsibility for deciding what follows them.
The Hollywood Reporter also linked the decision to the new regime’s assessment of DC’s commercial performance. Its sources described disappointment with Supergirl and a view that Superman had not delivered the cultural impact expected, despite being profitable. Those assessments are attributed to the report’s sources; they are not equivalent to a published studio financial statement.
Latcham brings a Marvel background
Latcham’s credits include Iron Man, The Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy and Spider-Man: Homecoming. His appointment brings an executive associated with Marvel’s early interconnected films to the leadership of its long-standing superhero competitor.
He also has a professional connection to Gunn. The Hollywood Reporter described Latcham as an advocate for hiring the filmmaker on Guardians of the Galaxy, the Marvel project that significantly expanded Gunn’s profile. Their shared history gives the transition an unusual dimension: a former creative collaborator will now oversee the studio Gunn helped rebuild.
More recently, Latcham has worked as an independent producer, including on Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves and projects associated with Wonder Project. His new position covers the whole DC screen slate, rather than a single franchise or production.
Gunn says he is returning to filmmaking
In a public statement reported by Variety, James Gunn described the demands of balancing filmmaking with corporate responsibilities. He expressed gratitude for Safran and the people he worked with, while explaining his relief at returning to creative work.
Gunn also said he and Safran were not immediately finished with DC or superheroes. He pointed to Man of Tomorrow, due in 2027, and said he had been engaged to write another DC project. The statement did not identify that project or establish a complete future slate.
What the change means for upcoming films
The executive transition does not, by itself, confirm another reboot or the cancellation of productions developed under Gunn and Safran. AP noted that the existing production pipeline means their influence will remain visible after the handover.
The longer-term direction remains unresolved. Latcham will assume management authority on December 1, while Gunn and Safran retain creative connections to the studio. Until specific project decisions are announced, questions about which plans survive should remain questions, rather than be presented as confirmed cancellations.
