Green Lantern casting in ‘Superman: Legacy’ poses big questions about whether James Gunn’s ‘The Suicide Squad’ is canon

Now that James Gunn has cast his pal Nathon Fillion (Slither) in the role of Guy Gardner in the upcoming Superman: Legacy, fans are wondering what that means for the DC universe that Fillion left behind as a member of 2021’s Suicide Squad.

On Tuesday, Gunn’s DC Studios co-head Peter Safran announced that Fillion will play the third-string Green Lantern in the New DCU. The actor already played T.D.K. (The Detachable Kid) in Gunn’s The Suicide Squad, where his limbs met a tragic end even before the opening credits.

Fans online are wondering if that means Gunn’s Suicide Squad is definitely not part of the new canon:

Safran shared a list of upcoming DCU projects that incoming fans can enjoy without seeing previous films, via his initial statement to Vanity Fair, which includes Superman: Legacy, season 2 of Peacemaker, Creature Commandos, and Blue Beetle. It was noted earlier that the latter film will stand on its own in the previous continuity; however, Xolo Maridueña will be reprising the titular role down the line.

To make matters all the more confusing, however, Fillion’s T.D.K. survived The Suicide Squad, as confirmed by Gunn himself in a 2021 exclusive with Screen Rant. And with the second season of Peacemaker being part of the New DCU, a series that directly connects back to The Suicide Squad, it’s reasonable to assume that The Suicide Squad technically falls under Gunn’s giant umbrella, even though it was filmed before Warner Bros. Discovery decided to do an overhaul of their DC properties.

So, maybe Fillion will play two different characters in the upcoming slate. But that doesn’t necessarily mean he’ll be playing two different guys in the same universe — Suicide Squad and The Peacemaker might end up being Elseworld stories, like Matt Reeves’ Batman movies starring Robert Pattinson or the new Joker film starring Joaquin Phoenix.

Or, perhaps Suicide Squad and Peacemaker are definitely part of the New DCU, but we’ll never see T.D.K. again now that Gunn is giving Fillion a presumably much meatier role in upcoming projects.

Regardless, it’s not that confusing to have Fillion play one major role and one tiny role under the same banner. We highly doubt there will be a T.D.K. Begins movie competing against the rumored Green Latern Corps. at the box office. Bottom line: We all like Fillion, and we’ll take as much of him as we can get.