All 14 Actors Set to Appear In New Universe

Over a dozen actors are now officially confirmed to play roles in James Gunn’s DC Universe reboot.

Since the new DC Studios co-CEO first introduced his grand plan for Chapter 1: Gods and Monsters, the questions that have followed that update mostly pertain to which actors will star in this new take on the DC Universe.

And with the former DCEU finishing off later this year after Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom debuts in theaters, Gunn is already working out the cast of characters that will carry the blue brand forward for the next few years.

Every Actor in James Gunn’s DC Reboot

DC Studios co-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran have officially cast 14 actors in various roles and projects for the beginning of the DCU’s Chapter 1: Gods and Monsters slate.

Those 14 stars are listed below:

1.) David Cornswet – Clark Kent/Superman

After months of screen testing and auditions, David Corenswet was confirmed to be the man taking on the role of Clark Kent in the new DCU, bringing the next Superman to the big screen.

His first appearance as this character will be in 2025’s Superman: Legacy, with Gunn himself directing and writing the movie as Corenswet embodies arguably DC’s biggest superhero.

2.) Rachel Brosnahan – Lois Lane

Along with Corenswet, Superman: Legacy will introduce a new Lois Lane played by Rachel Brosnahan, who beat out a couple of other big names for the role as she takes over from the DCEU’s Amy Adams.

Brosnahan is best known for her role as Miriam Maisel in the award-winning The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, with her now taking on a new version of Lois as she works her way through the Daily Planet and her relationship with Clark Kent. 

3.) Viola Davis – Amanda Waller

After appearances in both 2016’s Suicide Squad and 2021’s The Suicide Squad, Viola Davis will be one of a handful of stars from the old era reprising her role, playing Amanda Waller once again in the new DCU.

She has been confirmed to lead the way in her own Max series Waller, and she’ll likely be seen in other movies and streaming series as well across the DCU.

4.) Frank Grillo – Rick Flag Sr.

Moving over from his role as Crossbones in the MCU, Frank Grillo will work with Gunn in the animated Creature Commandos series coming to Max sometime in 2024.

Grillo became the first actor confirmed to jump into Gunn’s DCU, taking on the role of Rick Flag Sr. – the father to Joel Kinnaman’s Rick Flag Jr. who appeared in both of the DCEU’s Suicide Squad movies.

With the entire Creature Commandos group, James Gunn has been clear about his plan for the animated voice actors to play the same roles in live-action, with an unknown member of the team set to appear in Max’s Waller.

5.) Maria Bakalova – Princess Ilana Rostovic

Following her MCU debut as Cosmo the Space Dog in The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, Maria Bakalova will follow Gunn to the DCU in Creature Commandos.

She was announced to be playing a new character named Princess Ilana Rostovic, who seemingly comes as an original creation that will make her debut under Gunn’s watch in the DCU.

6.) Indira Varma – The Bride of Frankenstein

Most recently seen in the Obi-Wan Kenobi series from Star Wars, Indira Varma will move into the DC Universe to embody The Bride of Frankenstein in Creature Commandos.

The Bride will look to find a new outlook on her life after being created for the sole purpose of being Frankenstein’s companion, with Varma voicing this new character in the DC Universe.

7.) Zoë Chao – Nina Mazursky

Zoë Chao will play the role of Nina Mazursky, a SHADE scientist who was the main reason that the first set of Creature Commandos came into existence.

Later, she would include herself in a second iteration of the team through a new round of experiments, which gave her body amphibious qualities.

8.) Alan Tudyk – Doctor Phosphorus

Master voiceover star Alan Tudyk will move into the DCU’s Creature Commandos as Doctor Phosphorus after recent credits in DC’s Harley Quinn (Clayface) and several small roles in Disney’s recent animated movies.

His character, Doctor Phosphorus, is a radioactive supervillain whose body chemistry was fundamentally changed after exposure to a reactor core, which leads to his body burning in flames constantly.

9.) David Harbour – Eric Frankenstein

Playing a dual role in the MCU and DCU will be Stranger Things star David Harbour, who also embodies the Red Guardian in 2021’s Black Widow and will make his comeback in 2024’s Thunderbolts.

His character in Creature Commandos was meant to be a play on Frankenstein himself, with Harbour’s Eric Frankenstein likely becoming one of the team’s scariest members.

10.) Sean Gunn – GI Robot/Weasel

With James Gunn now taking over as the head of DC Studios, it’s no surprise that his brother Sean Gunn will be right there beside him after playing Kraglin and the stand-in for Rocket in the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy and embodying Weasel in The Suicide Squad.

The new DCU will see Sean Gunn reprising his role as Weasel and voicing G.I. Robot in Creature Commandos, pulling double duty on the animated show.

11.) John Cena – Peacemaker

After his introduction in The Suicide Squad, John Cena’s Peacemaker wound up surviving the final battle at Corto Maltese and moving on to his own solo Peacemaker show on the former HBO Max.

While Peacemaker Season 2 is now on hold until sometime after Superman: Legacy finishes production, Gunn is set to bring Cena back as part of the new DCU after his show became such a hit in 2022.

12.) Steve Agee – John Economos

Steve Agee first made his presence felt in The Suicide Squad as the on-set reference for King Shark, and he also played a minor but memorable role as John Economos, part of Amanda Waller’s team.

He would continue to play that role in all eight episodes of Peacemaker, and later, Gunn confirmed that Economos would be back in action alongside Amanda Waller in Max’s Waller while he also comes to animation in Creature Commandos.

13.) Xolo Maridueña – Blue Beetle

Along with the legacy movies from the DCEU, this year will also introduce Xolo Maridueña’s Jaime Reyes to the world in August’s Blue Beetle, which will be one of the first stories to push the new DCU forward.

Gunn noted that Blue Beetle will be “the first DCU character” to arrive under his watch, which leaves plenty of questions about his future in the overarching story.

14.) Jason Momoa – ???

Although Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom will close off this current era of DC storytelling, it won’t be the end for Aquaman actor Jason Momoa, who’s spoken with Gunn about continuing in this new universe.

Rumors have hinted that he could play anybody from Aquaman to the antihero Lobo, although he only teased that he had “great news with Warner Bros” in an update regarding his future from January.

The first DCU project to release will be Creature Commandos, coming to Max in 2024.