DC Studios is putting Gorilla Grodd on trial in an eight-part true-crime comedy—and the ridiculous premise may reveal the smartest part of James Gunn’s growing DC Universe.
DC Studios apparently looked at superhero fatigue, looked at a psychic gorilla with world-conquering ambitions, and said: “What if we made Serial, but considerably hairier?”
That is the wonderfully strange setup behind The People v. Gorilla Grodd, a new HBO Max comedy that places Jimmy Olsen behind the investigation instead of behind another disposable Daily Planet camera. On paper, it sounds like James Gunn testing how much nonsense Warner Bros. will approve. In practice, it could be exactly the kind of genre swing the DCU needs.
What DC Studios Actually Confirmed
Confirmed: HBO Max has given the project an eight-episode, straight-to-series order. Each installment will run approximately half an hour.
Skyler Gisondo will return as Jimmy Olsen, while Jimmy Tatro will play Gorilla Grodd. The story follows a superintelligent ape convicted of murdering his father, the King of Gorilla City. Jimmy reopens the case through an in-universe Daily Planet documentary and investigates whether one of Metropolis’ most notorious defendants was wrongfully convicted.
Tony Yacenda and Dan Perrault—the creative team behind American Vandal—will write, executive produce and serve as showrunners, with Yacenda directing all eight episodes. Beck Bennett, Mikaela Hoover and Wendell Pierce are also returning as Steve Lombard, Cat Grant and Perry White.
Not confirmed: DC Studios has not announced a premiere date. There is also no official confirmation that the Flash will appear, that this will launch additional seasons, or that every theory currently being launched across social media survived contact with an actual source.
Why Nerds Should Care
The interesting part is not simply that Gorilla Grodd is entering the DCU. It is how DC is choosing to introduce him.
A conventional studio would save a villain this recognizable for a giant superhero showdown, attach a sky beam, and begin selling action figures before the first punch landed. DC is instead treating Grodd like the subject of a prestige true-crime documentary produced inside its own fictional world.
That makes the universe feel larger without requiring another cameo parade. Metropolis can have journalists, criminal trials, documentary crews and public scandals—not just heroes waiting for the next crossover alarm to go off.
The PWN Verdict: Genre Is the Shared Universe
DC’s smartest possible strategy is not making every project resemble Superman. It is letting every corner of the universe behave like its own genre.
Lanterns can play with grounded detective drama. A Gorilla Grodd series can spoof true crime. Another project can lean into horror, political thriller or full cosmic insanity. The connective tissue should be believable characters and a consistent world—not identical color grading and twelve minutes of homework explaining the next movie.
That idea lines up with our earlier breakdown of why the weird side of James Gunn’s DC Universe matters. Gunn’s greatest trick has rarely been making obscure characters less strange. It has been making their strangeness emotionally legible.
It also builds on the genre conversation surrounding our reaction to Lanterns and its grounded DCU gamble. DC does not need one house style. It needs each project to fully commit to the story it claims to be telling.
Weird Is Not Automatically Good
Now for the evidence against the defendant: an unusual pitch is not the same thing as a good show.
If the mockumentary format becomes one extended wink at the audience, the joke will wear out quickly. The project has to treat its ridiculous case seriously enough that viewers care whether Grodd is guilty. American Vandal worked because the comedy hid surprisingly sharp character work and an actual mystery underneath the absurdity.
That is the standard here. Do not merely give us Gorilla Grodd in a suit. Give us questionable evidence, unreliable witnesses, Daily Planet politics and a verdict worth arguing about after the credits.
Nerd Court Is Now in Session
Is The People v. Gorilla Grodd brilliant world-building, proof that DC understands superhero fatigue—or James Gunn finally getting too cute with the company credit card?
Present your evidence. The court will accept “this is ridiculous” as an opening statement, but you are going to need a stronger closing argument.
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