Summary
- Constantine 2 faces a high standard set by James Gunn's DC Universe comments, but positive updates and talks between Reeves and Gunn provide hope for its production.
- Gunn's Elseworlds label sets a high standard for standalone projects like Constantine 2, requiring them to be "something really special" to justify the investment.
- The high bar set by DC's Elseworlds label makes Constantine 2 even more promising, as it indicates the film will need to be excellent to be made, making it an exciting future prospect for the studio.
Constantine 2 has quite the bar to reach after James Gunn's DC Universe comments. Keanu Reeves first played DC's Hellblazer, John Constantine, in 2005's Constantine. That movie came before the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the DCEU made superhero standalone movies largely old-fashioned. After years with no word on the status of a possible sequel, Constantine 2 updates started coming in 2022. Despite the popularity of Matt Ryan's comic book-accurate Constantine in the Arrowverse and DC's animated movies, and J.J. Abrams initially planning a new Constantine series for Max, Reeves' return as the demonologist in Constantine 2 is in the works.
Constantine director Francis Lawrence will be back for the sequel if it happens, with Titans co-creator Akiva Goldsman penning Constantine 2's script. The movie has received a string of positive updates since it was originally announced, with Reeves confirming talks with Gunn about Constantine 2 and Goldsman revealing that he, Reeves, and Lawrence have already broken the story for the film. That said, with DC going all-in on Gunn's shared DC Universe, the movie could end up falling through the cracks, especially due to what Constantine 2 would need to do to get made.