Much of the future of upcoming superhero cinema is in the hands of James Gunn and his DCU crew, where the current focus on Peacemaker will soon give way to more widespread anticipation for Milly Alcock’s Supergirl and Superman’s big-screen sequel Man of Tomorrow, not to mention all the obsessive attention going to the filmmaker’s eventual casting for the DCU’s Batman. As such, Gunn is always on the lookout for potential new cast members, and that hunt recently coincided with his innate fandom of Taylor Sheridan’s TV universe.
In particular, Gunn is most partial to Sheridan’s Yellowstone prequel 1923, as headed up by Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren. The western-tinged drama also boasts a co-star in Brandon Sklenar, whom fans have championed as a potentially excellent choice to play Gunn’s Dark Knight. But it turns out that’s not the actor who sparked the director to make a casting suggestion, but rather Sklenar’s on-screen romantic partner.
That’s right, James Gunn was apparently won over more by actress Julia Schlaepfer’s performance in the series (which can be streamed in full via Paramount+ subscription) than anything else, to the point where he apparently put his influence to work. As he put it to THR:
I’m definitely not doing scouting for the Caped Crusader. But I’m always scouting when I’m watching TV shows. In fact, I really like the young woman [Julia Schlaepfer] in 1923. She is just so fantastic that I suggested her for something recently. She’s Brandon’s [Sklenar] significant other in that series.
At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised if Gunn had to hyper-clarify everything he does on a daily basis to contextualize how it relates to Batman’s DCU casting. “I’m going out for milk and bread, but there’s no chance any grocery item pairings are going to be cast as the Caped Crusader.” Seems like a wild exaggeration, but we’re probably not that far off from something similar happening. But what isn’t happening, seemingly, is Sklenar eventually donning the cape and cowl, even though the Guardians of the Galaxy helmer had nothing but positive things to say about the actor’s skills.
I’m watching [1923] because I like Taylor Sheridan’s stuff, especially that one. That’s my favorite of all his shows. So I’m watching it mostly for fun, and I’m definitely not watching it because I need to find a Batman. By the way, I love [Sklenar]. I think he’s great. I really do. I honestly think he’s great.
But until Gunn says anything more concrete about Brandon Sklenar’s future in the DCU, there’s no reason to keep focusing on him. So let’s instead put our attention back on Julia Schlaepfer, as there are at least three major DC roles that I think she’d be excellent for.
Barbara Gordon
Sure, we don’t know much about Gotham City beyond the plain fact that it exists in the DCU, and that Peacemaker‘s Adebayo used to live there, but we can just blindly assume that there’s a higher-up in the Police Dept. who goes by the name of James Gordon. And from there, we can extend those presumptions to include the existence of James’ highly skilled daughter Barbara, whose vigilante personas include Batgirl and Oracle.
Despite James Gunn not even specifying that he’d suggested Schaepfler for a DCU role, I think there’s enough of a chance for her to play Barbara Gordon that I’d stake money on it. (Not like, more than a dollar or anything.) I think it would be an intriguing move to introduce audiences to Barbara before meeting Jim directly, especially if there are plans in mind for what to do with her.
Black Canary (Dinah Lance)
Having previously appeared in live-action through The Flash and Birds of Prey, Dinah Lance is one of the most prominent and well-connected female heroes in DC lore, at least of the all-human variety. So it only makes sense for Black Canary to bring her primal Canary Cry into the DCU at some point. Given her long blonde locks, Julia Schaepfler has a lot of the look down already, though she may need more leather.
Considering the Lances are oft tied directly into Green Arrow stories, there’s technically a chance that James Gunn suggested the actress to join the cast of HBO’s Lanterns opposite Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre. Filming supposedly wrapped in July on the new show, but considering casting announcements were still being unveiled in August, it’s not impossible for Gunn to have actually suggested Schaepfler earlier than he’s letting on.
Zatanna
Okay so maybe this suggestion has more to do with me really, really wanting to see Zatanna have a major live-action presence within the DCU, and not as much to do with Julia Schaepfler previously showing off her impeccable magic skills. Regardless, I still DO think that the 1923 star would pull off this role as well as anything else. She’s proven she has the grace and dexterity to pull off such stage illusions, even if she might need some hair dye along the way.
Had Superman not jumped right into the fray of oddball comic book storytelling, I might not even think that the DCU would embrace magical characters so early, but something tells me James Gunn doesn’t have such reservations.
Whatever happens with Julia Schaepfler, I can only hope that whoever took the suggestion from James Gunn takes advantage and signs her up posthaste. I guess she wouldn’t look too out of place in Peacemaker‘s Earth X dimension, given what we know about it now.