Before working for Marvel, James Gunn wrote and starred in Rob Lowe’s forgotten superhero film

James Gunn is the big boss and chief creative mind behind the new DCU, a planned interconnected superhero cinematic universe based on characters from DC Comics. The first film in the series, Gunn’s charming “Superman,” was released in July 2025 to much fanfare, and it will soon be joined by “Supergirl,” scheduled for release in June 2026. Gunn’s TV shows “Creature Commandos” and “Peacemaker” (with some Season 2 revivals) are also part of this new universe. Previously, Gunn directed the highly publicized and highly praised “Guardians of the Galaxy” films for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as well as “The Suicide Squad” for the now-defunct DC Extended Universe, making Gunn one of the most prolific superhero filmmakers of his generation.

It’s a strange position for Gunn to find himself in, given that — before “Guardians” — he only made superhero movies that completely deconstructed and even made fun of superheroes. In 2010, Gunn wrote and directed “Super,” a film about a depressed man who invents a superhero persona to cope with a divorce. However, he does not commit acts of justice, but rather hits people’s heads with a wrench. It’s a dark and incredibly sad image that equates superhero dominance with mental illness.

A decade earlier, in 2000, Gunn had written Craig Mazin’s low-budget independent film “The Specials,” a superhero satire that also doesn’t seem to hold the profession in high regard. “The Specials” is not an action film but a talking comedy film about what the titular superhero team does on their day off. In this case, they are lazing around, drinking cocktails and thinking about better business opportunities. In the world of “The Specials,” superheroes fight crime solely to make money, usually from sponsors and advertisers. Heroes prefer to have their own figures rather than fight each other. This cynical view of superheroes was pervasive throughout the ’90s (see also “The Tick”, “Fight Man”, “Mystery Men”, “Freakazoid!”, etc.), and Gunn simply fueled the bitter fires with his script for “The Specials”.

The Specials are the seventh most popular superhero team in the world, which means they can’t get the corporate sponsorship they crave. They are only called into action for low priority disasters and crimes, making them all resentful of their position. It doesn’t help that the team is infected with internal conflicts and scandals. The team is close to a deal on low-rent figurines, but it’s not entirely lucrative. Team leader The Strobe (Thomas Haden Church) recently caught his wife, Mrs. Incredible (Paget Brewster), having an affair with The Weevil (Rob Lowe), a teammate. The Weevil, tired of the paltry profits he can make with the Specials, secretly considers leaving the team and joining a wealthier crew.

The entire middle portion of the film sees The Specials after their ostensible breakup over the cheating scandal. Characters may have extraordinary powers or exotic alien origins, but they’d rather shoot and drink than fight crime. Other members of the team include a being of pure energy named Amok (Jamie Kennedy), the green-skinned Alien Orphan (Sean Gunn), the demon-summoning Deadly Girl (Judy Greer), the skin-altering Power Chick (Kelly Coffield), and the team’s newest member, Nightbird (Jordan Ladd), who can lay eggs. One of the team members, Eight, actually has eight people.

“The Specials” is whimsical and extremely fun, spoofing the ridiculousness of superheroes by giving them dark powers. Even if characters possess superpowers that would be effective in stopping crimes or stopping alien invasions, the character possessing them is usually petty and/or incompetent in some way. It’s hard to tell if the filmmakers were gently teasing superheroes or if they really hated them. Recall that superhero movies (Batman notwithstanding) generally weren’t a big deal in the late 1990s.

The film also refers to the ego that undoubtedly drives all masked vigilantes. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, most superheroes (in comics and in movies) operated with secret identities, donning masks to fight crime anonymously. The idea was that the heroes were driven by a desire for justice, the masks ensuring that they were not there for glory or financial compensation. The masks also protected villains from stalking heroes during their off-duty hours. It wasn’t until the Marvel Cinematic Universe that masks were ditched and heroes were allowed to become famous. This shift undoubtedly occurred as a generation of kids grew up selling their faces online, hoping to achieve internet fame above all other concerns.

As previously written in the pages of /Film, “The Specials” was a disaster behind the scenes. Paget Brewster has openly stated on several occasions that “The Specials” was a shoddy film that lacked the gritty, gritty tone she was hoping for. Gunn and Jamie Kennedy also didn’t get along, leading to a confrontation at a restaurant where Kennedy threw a chair at Gunn (Gunn said they have since worked out their differences). Kennedy was furious about the blue makeup he had to wear because it didn’t come off easily and interfered with his role in David O. Russell’s “Three Kings.” Rob Lowe, the film’s biggest star, chose not to do any publicity for the film, as he landed a gig on “The West Wing” shortly after filming wrapped. This led to more bitterness on the part of the crew.

Everyone walked away from “The Specials,” unhappy with the production, disappointed with the results and angry at various co-stars. The film only grossed $13,000 at the box office. This eventually became more widely visible when Gunn became a Hollywood actor. After this experience, it’s surprising that James Gunn wants to make more superhero films.