After being accused of playing favorites, James Gunn confirms we’ll be seeing one of his best friends very soon

One of the biggest, easiest, and most obvious sticks James Gunn‘s detractors have used to beat his appointment as DC Studios co-CEO over the head with is the belief he’ll load up the franchise with a number of his regular collaborators while simultaneously ushering several pillars of the SnyderVerse towards the exit.

To be fair, it’s a sentiment that’s hardly rooted in fantasy when Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck, Dwayne Johnson, and potentially even more besides are being shuffled out of the picture, while the filmmaker’s recent confirmation that Peacemaker season 2 is definitely happening after Viola Davis’ Waller guarantees we’ll be seeing at least his wife Jennifer Holland and longtime friend Steve Agee again.

Speaking of the latter – who also performed motion capture on the set of The Suicide Squad as King Shark – Gunn took to Twitter to wish the actor a happy 54th birthday, and hinted that we’ll be seeing him sooner rather than later.

If Holland’s Emilia Harcourt can pop up in Black Adam for a quick cameo, then you’d imagine Agee’s John Economos might be in line for a similar guest spot in the upcoming Shazam! Fury of the Gods. Either way, given that Agee has worked with the co-CEO on two DC projects, a Marvel Cinematic Universe blockbuster, and Brightburn to name but three, he’s not exactly a stranger to Gunn’s forays into the superhero genre.

“Stick to what you know” is an age-old adage for a reason, and Gunn takes that to heart whenever he begins casting.