Mister Terrific’s Future In The DCU Is Looking More and More Promising

If one thing is clear following Superman’s promising debut, the people are hankering for more Mister Terrific. The tech-focused super-genius, played in the film by Edi Gathegi, isn’t the only bright spot in James Gunn’s latest, but he is the only character so far without a second outing planned in Gunn’s new DC Universe. Other members of his “Justice Gang,” like Guy Gardner (Nathan Fillion) and Hawkgirl (Isabela Merced), are poised to make swift returns on the small screen. Gunn is still working out the details of his 10-year plan, but he seems to be making room for Mister Terrific somewhere down the line.

Superman kicked off the new DCU with a bang, ushering in a new era of “gods and monsters.” Gunn and his creative partner, Peter Safran, have since teased a few future projects, though not all of them will be set in the main continuity of this new universe. What the saga needs more than anything is a sense of cohesion; repeat appearances from members of the Superman cast will go a long way in establishing it. A show focused exclusively on Mister Terrific feels like a no-brainer — and with Gathegi entering a multi-picture deal with DC Studios, that feels more possible than ever.

In a recent interview with Variety, Gathegi reinforced Gunn and Safran’s script-first strategy for the DCU. “What James is driving home is the idea that they’re never going to rush into production with scripts that aren’t ready,” he explained. “Whatever they do have planned for my characters is irrelevant until the draft comes in and it’s shootable.”

Gathegi doesn’t “count [his] chickens before they hatch,” but he did tease something in the works for Mister Terrific. “I know that I have a multi-project deal, but the specifics of that are unknown to me,” he added. “I want to be involved in this universe in a major way, and whether or not that comes to fruition is just a matter of time and faith and other people’s hard work.”

A Mister Terrific solo project is probably a long way from fruition — Gunn has yet to appoint a writer to pen a script, much less come up with an idea for the character — but Gathegi’s comments are certainly promising. If nothing else, Superman won’t be the last we see of the actor. Gathegi notably won’t return in something as soon as, say, HBO’s Lanterns… but he is set for multiple appearances in the DCU, and one of those could be in his own adventure.