New Constantine movie casts a spell at DC Studios

As the modest box office performance of Clayface continues, DC Studios is venturing into superhero-adjacent horror once again, according to a source close to the studio. Francis Galluppi, the director of Evil Dead Wrath, has been recruited to pen a new film centered around John Constantine, the British warlock known for his love of pints. DC Studios has remained tight-lipped about the development, with no comment issued.

Constantine's inclusion marks a fresh departure for the fledgling DC Studios, which is still searching for its next major hit following James Gunn's 2025 Superman. While a venture into the Vertigo universe appears wise in contrast to DC's extensive roster of superheroes, it is crucial to note that Constantine has recently shared the stage with DC heroes in titles such as Justice League Dark, after debuting in The Saga of the Swamp Thing #37 in 1985 and hosting his own horror series, Hellblazer, for over 300 issues.

Since making his debut on NBC's short-lived Constantine in 2004, the character (played by Matt Ryan) also appeared on the CW's superhero ensemble series, DC's Legends Of Tomorrow. Despite Galluppi's impressive track record, the studio seems to be aiming for a more raw and gritty approach, reminiscent of Francis Lawrence's 2005 Constantine, which featured Keanu Reeves as an American exorcist navigating the seedy underbelly of Los Angeles.

Galluppi's upcoming project, Evil Dead Wrath, is scheduled for a release on April 7, 2028, though Evil Dead legend and Spider-Man director Sam Raimi has openly endorsed the upcoming filmmaker after his debut feature in 2024, The Last Stop In Yuma County. Raimi praised Galluppi's uncommon control in an official Wrath announcement in 2026.

The fate of Reeves' Constantine 2 remains uncertain, as Warner Bros. first announced the actor's return in 2022, and the project survived the rise of Gunn and co-CEO Peter Safran's DC Studios later that year. Reeves has even publicly discussed ongoing talks with DC Studios about the film as late as February 2025. "We've been trying to make this film for over a decade," Reeves stated at the time.

"We just recently put a story together and pitched it to DC Studios, and they said, 'Okay.' So, we're going to try and write a script." However, co-star Peter Stormare expressed his dissatisfaction with the evolving script in an interview with The Direct in May 2025.