Netflix subscribers will soon be able to revisit several films set in the DC Extended Universe. The streaming service has announced that eight films from the franchise will be available to watch on the service starting on December 1.
The films coming to Netflix are Man of Steel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Suicide Squad, Wonder Woman, Justice League, Birds of Prey, Wonder Woman 1984, and The Suicide Squad.
Man of Steel was the first installment of the DCEU, and was released in 2013. The film was directed by Zack Snyder and introduced Henry Cavill’s version of Superman/Clark Kent. The movie tells Superman’s origin story and shows him going up against the villain General Zod (Michael Shannon).
The next installment in the franchise, 2016’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, introduced Ben Affleck’s version of Batman/Bruce Wayne. Batman v Superman was also directed by Snyder. The film built up to a climatic fight against Affleck’s Dark Knight and Cavill’s Man of Steel, inspired by writer/artist Frank Miller’s iconic 1986 comic book series The Dark Knight Returns. The film also introduced Gal Gadot’s version of Wonder Woman, who later teams up with Batman and Superman to stop Doomsday.
Suicide Squad was the third installment in the DCEU, and was directed by David Ayer. The film follows a group of supervillains who go on a dangerous mission for the government. The team follows the orders of Amanda Waller (Viola Davis), and is led by Rick Flag (Joel Kinnaman). The group of villains includes Deadshot (Will Smith), Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie), and Captain Boomerang (Jai Courtney). The film also featured Jared Leto as the Joker.
The first Wonder Woman film was directed by Patty Jenkins, and was released in 2017. The film tells Wonder Woman’s origin story, and shows her leaving Themyscira with Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) to end World War I. Throughout the film, Wonder Woman/Diana believes that Ares, the god of war, is the true cause of World War I.
The second film, Wonder Woman 1984, was released in 2020. Just like the first movie, it was directed by Jenkins. The film is set in 1984, and follows Wonder Woman trying to stop Max Lord (Pedro Pascal), who has the ability to grant people wishes. The film also stars Kristen Wiig as Diana’s friend Barbara Minerva, who later becomes the villain Cheetah.
The theatrical cut of Justice League was released in 2017. The film follows Batman and Wonder Woman, who assemble a group of heroes to stop the alien villain Steppenwolf (Ciarán Hinds). The team of heroes includes the Flash (Ezra Miller), Aquaman (Jason Momoa), and Cyborg (Ray Fisher).
Birds of Prey was directed by Cathy Yan, and released in 2020. The film follows Harley Quinn after she breaks up with the Joker. She later teams up with the Huntress (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), Black Canary (Jurnee Smollett-Bell) and Renee Montoya (Rosie Perez) to go after the crime lord Black Mask (Ewan McGregor).
The most recent DCEU film that will be part of the lineup is director James Gunn’s 2020 film The Suicide Squad. The film features a mix of characters from the 2016 Suicide Squad movie, including Harley Quinn and Rick Flag, as well as new characters like Bloodsport (Idris Elba) and Peacemaker (John Cena). In the film, the group of supervillains go to South America to get rid of all traces of a giant alien starfish. Cena later reprised his role in the spin-off TV series Peacemaker, which premiered on HBO Max in 2022.
The DCEU is set to end with Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, which will be released on December 22. The franchise will be rebooted with a new DC Universe, under the supervision of Gunn and Peter Safran, the co-CEOs of DC Studios. The first film in the new DCU, Superman: Legacy, will be released in 2025. Gunn will direct the film, which will star David Corenswet as the new Man of Steel.
The DCEU won’t be the only DC Comics adaptions available to stream on Netflix. The streaming service already has the animated series Justice League, Justice League Unlimited, and The Batman available to watch. The live action series Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl, Legends of Tomorrow, and Black Lightning are also available on Netflix.
The eight DCEU movies will be available to stream on Netflix starting on December 1.
