DC Studios co-CEO James Gunn has shut down rumors that Supernatural star Jensen Ackles has been cast as the DCU’s Batman.
Social media feeds caught fire over the weekend when comic book fans learned that The Boys alum had recently followed the DC movie bigwig on Instagram. Ackles, a self-proclaimed Batman fanatic, has long been a fan-favorite pick to play Bruce Wayne in the DCU, but if he is joining the budding cinematic superhero universe, he hasn’t done it quite yet.
Gunn poured cold water on the recently reignited rumors over on his preferred social media platform, Threads, when replying to a post covering the subject earlier today. He said he had no idea Ackles had dropped him a follow and that he was “going to follow him back.” Sadly, that’s about the extent of their interactions over the years.
“Thanks for letting me know,” Gunn said. “I’m going to follow him back. I met him once 20 years ago when he was dating a friend of mine. Nice guy. We haven’t cast him as anything yet.”
While the “yet” in that sentence might give some hope, any dreams that the actor might play Batman have been put to rest, at least for now. Fans have long named Ackles as their pick to play the Caped Crusader in some form for a few reasons, including the fact that he already doesn’t look half bad wearing the Batsuit.
The Dean Winchester actor has famously suited up in full Batman gear before and even made IGN’s list for best celebrity Halloween outfits in 2019. He wears the cowl well, but he’s proven to have the gruff vocals required for the part, too.
@TheBoysOOCC Batman ? https://t.co/vqJixKHoZZ
— Billy Iskandar (@billyiskandar05) October 3, 2026
Ackles is a DC regular who has played Batman in animated projects like Batman: The Long Halloween, Legion of Super-Heroes, Justice League: Warworld, and Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths. He also showed up in Batman: Under the Red Hood as former Robin Jason Todd. In other words, even if Ackles isn’t the DCU’s Batman, he’s certainly laid the groundwork for the jump to live-action crimefighting to make enough sense.
Alas, Gunn’s cinematic universe remains without a Dark Knight to keep Gotham safe. So far, we’ve only received the occasional reference to a DCU Batman as projects like 2025’s Superman and Lanterns plant the seeds for a proper introduction. While audiences will finally dive headfirst into a new Gotham City when Clayface tells the horrific tale of its titular villain later this month, it seems we’ll have to wait until the long-in-development The Brave and the Bold for a proper introduction to Batman.
In the meantime, Robert Pattinson is still set to reprise his role as an Elseworlds Bruce Wayne when The Batman Part 2 premieres next year. Additionally, Gunn and fellow co-CEO Peter Safran will reportedly remain in charge of the DCU for the foreseeable future despite the big changes going on at Warner Bros. and Paramount. Lanterns will put a cap on its explosive first season in just a few hours, with Superman follow-up, Man of Tomorrow, still expected to premiere in Julym 2027.
Photo by Lucia Casone/WireImage.
Michael Cripe is a freelance writer with IGN. He’s best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).
