James Gunn Details Difference Between Working for DC & Marvel

It takes all of 30 seconds into The Suicide Squad to see that it was going to be very different than the Guardians of the Galaxy movies. Director James Gunn has always had a penchant for gore and violence but toned it down to work with Disney. He clearly had a lot bottled up as The Suicide Squad is one of the most violent blockbuster movies you’ll ever see.

It’s no secret that Warner Bros. gave Gunn a ton of creative control over his DC debut. Marvel is much more controlling but Gunn claims that hasn’t been an issue for him. He recently had a chance to detail the one big difference between working for Warner Bros and Disney.

“Kevin Feige is the producer on the Guardians movies. Peter Safran is the producer on this movie,” Gunn told The New York Times. “At Marvel, they serve the role of producer and of studio, really. And at DC, there’s a studio and then there’s a producer, so it’s very different in that respect. And actually, I’ve answered that question before, and now I wish I always answered it like I just said. That’s my regret. (Laughs.) Because that’s really the difference.”

Marvel isn’t opposed to giving a level of creative control to highly sought-after filmmakers like Gunn or Taika Waititi. However, Disney clearly has limits to what they’re willing to present on a film. A movie like The Suicide Squad could not exist in Marvel proper. Gunn obviously is going to give the most political answers but there’s no doubt there are much bigger differences between the two studios than how producers produce the films.