Despite not being one of the impending 2026 movie releases, James Gunn’s upcoming DCU movie Man of Tomorrow may already become one of the most talked about movies of this year, as it’s set to kick off rehearsals and filming in the next month. Fans are eager to see David Corenswet’s Superman teaming up with Nicholas Hoult’s Lex Luthor (especially with the latter in his comic-specific duds) to take on the sequel’s big bad, Brainiac, and we’re also hungry for info about any other new characters joining the DCU.
To that end, a new report from Deadline surfaced that claimed a trio of popular and talented actresses were being tested to potentially take on the role of comic book character Maxima: Fallout star Ella Purnell, Industry’s Marisa Abela, and Andor’s Adria Arjona. But before anyone could really start thinking about those prospects, James Gunn took to Threads to completely debunk the rumored actresses, prefacing it by saying that he’d always previously put faith in the outlet’s reporting as being well-handled. In his words:
But that's not the case here so I'm frankly disappointed. If someone would have run these names by us we would have said it's bullshit. I've been friends with Adria a long time since I cast her in the Belko Experiment. I'm a fan of both Marisa and Ella but I've never met either of them. Crazy.
If there was even an iota of legitimacy behind this trio being lined up as possible Maxima portrayers, Gunn likely wouldn't have responded to the news at all, or his post might have been more measured and playful with the wording. In this instance, however, the director seems genuinely perturbed that these rumors were publicized in such a way.
I can see how it might be easy to believe Adria Arjona would be a Man of Tomorrow candidate, since Gunn himself mentioned their team-up for 2016's The Belko Experiment, which he wrote and produced. Plus, she’s also set to co-star in another comic book adaptation, Prime Video’s upcoming series Criminal. But no dice on Man of Tomorrow, it seems. At least not for the role of Maxima.
This definitely isn’t the first time James Gunn has shot down DCU casting rumors, and it could almost amount to a part time job for him at this point. He’s previously debunked rumors that GotG’s Dave Bautista was playing Brainiac, though I don’t think he spoke out against the reports claiming Lanterns star Aaron Pierre is in the sequel. Which doesn’t make the Pierre tidbit automatically true or anything. But it does seem less far-fetched.
I Wish James Gunn Actually Would Cast One Of These Rumored Actresses Now
James Gunn casts who he wants for his projects, with one caveat for the DCU being that superhero-sized budgets are easier to manage with stars who haven't quite broken through to the A-list just yet, which is part of why the lesser-known Corenswet landed the Man of Steel role. Which is all to say, no one is ever going to tell Gunn who to cast, least of all noisy fans on social media.
But here's the thing. A lot of the false casting rumors for Man of Tomorrow and other DCU projects involve excellent actors who would presumably be great within this fantastical universe, and I've wondered in the past if simply being named in those rumors makes it more likely that Gunn will never cast them in roles. Even if it's not a fully conscious decision, his annoyance for unverified reports could feasibly be a factor.
Since that's something I'll never actually know for sure, I'll simply voice my wish for the Superman director to now put some consideration into working with Adria Arjona, Ella Purnell and Marisa Abela for Man of Tomorrow or another superhero project. Just because they won't be playing Maxima doesn't mean they might not be good for other comic book heroes and villain.
Ella Purnell's Sweet Pea character seems like she could have stepped right out of a James Gunn-written narrative, so she'd be my first choice for one of his next efforts.
Hopefully Gunn will also share some verified casting announcements for Man of Tomorrow in the near future as fans await its eventual release date of July 9, 2027.
