James Gunn reveals why he stepped down as DC Studios head: ‘Trying, to say the least’

James Gunn is glad to return to filmmaking.

In a candid Instagram post on Monday, the filmmaker said his four years running DC Studios took a toll on his personal life and his creative focus, hours after he and Peter Safran confirmed they were leaving their posts as co-chiefs.

Their exit follows the merger of Warner Bros. Discovery, DC’s parent company, with Paramount, which brought DC under the newly formed Skydance. The same day, Skydance Corp. appointed Jeremy Latcham as president and chief creative officer of DC Studios. Gunn and Safran will now focus full-time on creative work.

'Trying, to say the least'

Gunn credited the job with some proud moments, pointing to Peacemaker and the releases of Superman and Clayface. But he was blunt about the pressures that came with it:

“But what only the closest people to me have known over the past four years is my time at DC Studios has been trying, to say the least. I dislike the at-times corporate nature of the job (thanks to Peter for taking the brunt of that). I’m always a very hard worker, but as a filmmaker I would at least get to take short breaks to unwind, and I’ve stolen even that time from both myself and my loved ones over the past four years (Jenn, I love you and I’m sorry, and you don’t need to feel guilty for being the happiest of all people that I’m no longer doing this job). And the thing my ADHD hyperfocus has had the most difficulty with has been dividing my time between projects I’m incredibly passionate about and the ones I’m not so much, and all the things I have to do as a studio head.”

The director behind Guardians of the Galaxy and The Suicide Squad said he was glad to leave the executive duties behind. “I will miss the people around me, and I will miss being the co-caretaker of these great characters, but I’m also incredibly relieved and excited to get back to pure filmmaking,” he wrote.

A mixed scorecard

The pair arrived with a 10-year plan to rebuild DC’s film and TV universe. Superman became their biggest success, earning more than $618 million worldwide. Its follow-up, Supergirl, did not meet expectations. Their most recent release, Clayface, was well received by critics and has taken in more than $109 million globally.

Not leaving DC behind

Gunn’s departure from the executive suite does not mean he is finished with DC’s heroes. He is directing Man of Tomorrow, the sequel to Superman, and has a new DC script in progress.

“That’s not to say Peter and I are immediately done with DC or superheroes. We have Man of Tomorrow out this summer. And we’ve just been engaged on another DC project which I’m writing, and we’ll see where it goes after that. And, of course, the characters we set up will live on,” he wrote.