10 Most Powerful DC Characters Already Confirmed For The DCU, Ranked

The DCU is gearing up to explore the vast world of DC Comics, with dozens of characters already confirmed to be joining the lineup. The DCEU made a good effort to introduce some of the biggest and best characters from the DC Comics to the big screen, but after several films struggled to earn a profit, and the critical response continued to decline, Warner Bros. decided to start fresh. DC Studios was born, with James Gunn and Peter Safran brought in to whip the new DCU into shape, and they started by building out a slate of upcoming projects, with a cast of powerful figures from the comics.

Before any movies or TV shows actually debut, the DCU has already built an impressive roster of intriguing characters who will carry the DCU on their shoulders. And in order to do this with relative success, these figures need to be strong enough, and engaging enough to lead the DCU into a brighter future than what came before. While not every character that was announced has been cast, these are the most powerful characters confirmed to be arriving in the DCU.

10 Guy Gardner – Green Lantern

The Volatile Green Lantern

Guy Gardner is a member of the Green Lantern Corps, and with the power of his ring, he is one of the powerful guardians who watches over and protects the universe from evil. While it’s fair to say that most of the Lanterns are powerful, Gardner is certainly the least powerful out of the three confirmed members who will appear in the DCU.

Nathan Fillion will be portraying the character, where he will first debut in the 2025 Superman movie, before appearing in the DCU TV show, Lanterns. While he is considerably less powerful than John Stewart or the legendary Hal Jordan, Gardner is not someone who should be underestimated and counted out. As a result, he earns a spot as one of the most powerful heroes announced for the DCU.

9 Alexander James Sartorius – Doctor Phosphorous

A Glowing Menace

Doctor Phosphorous is a very different kind of character, who will debut in the DCU animated series, Creature Commandos. They are voiced by Alan Tudyk, who formerly starred in a popular sci-fi series, Firefly, alongside Nathan Fillion. Doctor Phosphorous is a villain, traditionally found in Batman stories, and an extremely dangerous one at that.

Doctor Phosphorous was transformed into a monstrous creature whose skin constantly burns with a bright glowing flame and a constant emission of radiation. These powers make him incredibly dangerous, but in previous comic book appearances, he has limited control over his abilities, which makes him more unpredictable and scary. As he is joining the Creature Commandos as an anti-hero, it’s likely that his origin story could be updated in the DCU, and his story given space to develop beyond his roots as a simple evil supervillain.

8 Swamp Thing

The Rotting Avenger

Swamp Thing has a similar background to Doctor Phosphorous, being a man who is caught in a terrible accident and transformed into a monstrous being who struggles to fit in with ordinary humans. The character has had several iterations, with some being heroic, some being anti-heroes, and others being villains, but they all share a connection to plant life, and a monstrous appearance that separates them from the rest of human kind.

Swamp Thing has been announced as a part of the DCU’s Chapter One, aptly named “Gods and Monsters.” At present, no release date has been scheduled, and no actors are attached to the role, but Swamp Thing has had a long and colorful history in DC Comics that makes him an excellent addition to the DCU. And with his combined intellect and powers, he stands out as one of the more powerful heroes announced so far.

7 John Stewart – Green Lantern

The Tactical Green Lantern

Next up, John Stewart joins the DCU as yet another iteration of Green Lantern.Aaron Pierre has been cast in the role of John Stewart’s Green Lantern for the DCU, and he will appear in the Lanterns TV series alongside the other legendary Green Lanterns. Next to Hal Jordan, John Stewart is one of the best known Green Lanterns, and for very good reason.

Stewart was a former military man, who also had a background in architecture. These unique skills served him well when he was recruited to be the next backup Lantern to take Hal Jordan’s place should anything happen to him. However, when he was given the opportunity to become a Lantern, he excelled and showcased his extraordinary strategic abilities and imagination. Stewart is headstrong, but he is a hero through and through, and a great addition for the DCU.

6 Hawkgirl

The Feathered Warrior

Hawkgirl is another superhero whose history in DC Comics stretches back as far as 1940. Since then, the story and origin of this hero has been adapted and altered many times, with one of the most popular versions in recent history being Kendra Saunders. Kendra is a reincarnated being who hails back to Ancient Egypt, when herself and her partner were cursed to constantly be reborn and stuck in a cycle of trying to find her beloved partner.

In the DCU, Isabela Merced has been cast in this iconic role, and she is set to appear in 2025s Superman movie. Hawkgirl boasts incredible powers of enhanced strength, flight, and thousands of years of experience as a warrior and tactician that gives her an edge over most opponents she comes face to face with. While she is not commonly tied to the most legendary heroes, the Justice League, Hawkgirl is often a member of the next most prominent superhero team, the Justice Society.

5 Hal Jordan – Green Lantern

The Classic Green Lantern

Next up, the definitive Green Lantern and a legend among the Lantern Corps, Hal Jordan, is also set to join the DCU lineup. Kyle Chandler has been cast to play an older version of this legendary hero, and due to his age, it appears that he may be past his glory days as the hero, and preparing to hand over the title to a younger, fresher candidate, namely John Stewart. Hal Jordan stands out as one of the most powerful heroes to ever join the corps, and this legacy will likely play into the Lanterns series.

While Stewart is a fine young man, with a huge amount of potential to build his own legacy among the Lantern Corps, Jordan is famous for his indomitable will, his boundless creativity, and his heroism. Jordan is a living legend, and his skills in combat, with his powerful imagination and his iron will allow him to do things that no other Lantern has ever accomplished, which makes him one of the most powerful beings set to appear in the DCU. Hal Jordan may be approaching retirement age, but that doesn’t make him any less of a legend.

4 Lex Luthor

The Criminal Mastermind

Lex Luthor is no hero, but his power and influence should not be ignored. The ultimate rival to Superman, this mortal man has ambitions and genius enough that he often gives the world’s greatest hero the biggest challenges to overcome. Lex is greedy, power hungry, and paranoid about the presence of a super man, to the point that he chooses to funnel his energy into trying to destroy this alien of Krypton, and take over the position as Earth’s greatest protector for himself. The issue is, Lex is deeply flawed and incredibly selfish.

This talented young actor has delivered several incredible performances in his career so far, and his potential to deliver menace and malice to this role is certainly exciting. He will appear as the primary antagonist in Superman in 2025, although this outing is very likely to be just the beginning of an ongoing rivalry that could define the DCU going forward. While he may be a mortal man, Lex’s ambition and intellect makes him one of the most powerful characters in the DC Universe.

3 Supergirl

The Girl of Steel

Despite his incredible power, Lex Luthor does have a fatal flaw; his hatred for Kryptonians. And while the Kryptonians may have a natural advantage as they find their bodies monumentally enhanced by the energy of Earth’s yellow sun, combined with Lex’s blind hatred, it’s rare that these heroic beings ever fall victim to his dasterdly plans for long. Besides Clark Kent, there is another powerful Kryptonian who made the trek to Earth, Kara Zor-El. Despite technically being an older cousin to Superman, Kara was sent by her parents to Earth to watch over her infant cousin, but her ship went off course.

This resulted in Clark landing on Earth, and growing into adulthood, before Kara ever arrived. With the advantage of age, experience, and the close training from his father through Kryptonian crystal technology, Clark exceeds his now younger cousin’s abilities and becomes a hero to Earth, but Kara remains a powerful force to be reckoned with. In the DCU, Milly Alcock is set to play the powerful Woman of Tomorrow, and she will star in her own DCU film in 2026.

2 Batman

The Dark Knight

Meanwhile, another human hero manages to just edge out Kara in terms of power. Bruce Wayne witnessed the brutal murder of his parents when he was just a boy, which led him to channel his rage and frustration with the deep corruption in Gotham, into training and refining his body to beyond peak human condition. Thanks to the vast fortune left by his parents, Bruce embarked on a journey that led him to master many different types of combat, and refine his tactical skills, as he prepared to transform himself into the hero that Gotham may not have wanted, but the one it deserved, Batman.

Batman is a genius with superhuman determination and focus. While he is technically human, he uses all of his resources and skills to become one of the greatest heroes the Earth has ever seen. In fact, Bruce has a lot in common with Superman’s greatest rival, in terms of his incredible intelligence, vast wealth, and ambitious goals, but Batman channels these elements with his extraordinary focus to achieve greater things than even Lex Luthor could ever hope to accomplish. Batman has yet to be cast for the DCU, but he is set to appear in The Brave and the Bold.

1 Superman

The Man of Steel

Finally, at the top of the list, Superman stands out as Earth’s single greatest hero, and he isn’t even a local. Hailing from Krypton, a planet which was catastrophically destroyed, Kal-El was sent to Earth by his parents to ensure he had a future, and he could grow up to be a true hero. Kal-El was found and raised by loving human parents, Martha and Johnathan Kent, who named the boy Clark, and helped to guide him to be a noble, hopeful, and morally good man.

Clark took this wisdom from his Earth parents, and combined it with his incredible powers and knowledge bestowed by his alien heritage, to become the world’s greatest hero, Superman. As Superman, he is the living embodiment of truth, justice, and the American way, and he does all he can to protect and serve the people of Earth. In the DCU, David Corenswet plays the larger-than-life hero, with his premiere appearance set to be in 2025s Superman.

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