It's a lot harder to keep track of the various DC characters than it is for Marvel. The reason for this is due to how many different versions there are of the likes of Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman, due to DC creating a multiverse of DC worlds (before blowing it up) and adapting these characters to numerous different forms of media. The number of different incarnations of each DC character, coupled with all of the creators who have been allowed to write their stories, has meant that there are many unresolved mysteries and plot holes that have never been addressed. The DC fans have stepped up to the plate and created their own fan theories to help patch up the holes in the DC Universe. There have been a few occasions when the creative minds at DC and Warner Bros. have reached out to the fans and confirmed some of these theories.
It's possible that some story elements were always true but a lack of space and time meant that they couldn't be covered in a proper way, while there are some aspects of a character that could only be talked about in an "off the record" fashion for years, such as when referring to their orientation. We are here today to see which fan theories about the DC superheroes & supervillains turned out to be correct all along - from the truth about Wonder Woman's romantic life, to the original fate of Batman in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.
Here are the 20 Weirdest DC Fan Theories That Were Actually Confirmed!
Wonder Woman's Orientation
Wonder Woman hails from the island of Themyscira, which is populated only by women, save for the few men among the Greek gods who dare to tread there. When Wonder Woman travels to the world outside of her home, she takes on the role of a superhero and has little time for love in her life. The few romantic partners Wonder Woman has taken have all been men, such as Bruce Wayne, Clark Kent, and Steve Trevor.
The fact that Wonder Woman's homeland is populated by women has led some fans to wonder whether she had taken any female partners in the past. Greg Rucka confirmed in an interview with Comicosity that Wonder Woman has had female partners while on Themyscira, even though this detail has only been hinted at in the Wonder Woman comics.
Batman Was Going To Go Instead Of Superman In Batman V Superman
The DCEU has been one long story of executive meddling and screw-ups, which has resulted in some of the most iconic characters in fiction being beaten at the box office by the likes of Thor: Ragnarok. Zack Snyder tried his best to put his vision of the DCEU on the screen, but a mixture of personal tragedies and professional difficulties prevented this from happening.
One of the possible choices for Zack Snyder's vision of the DCEU was Batman perishing at the end of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice instead of Superman, as it would have been more of a twist for Batman to sacrifice himself, rather than just setting up the Doomsday/resurrection storyline for the big screen. Zack Synder confirmed this theory on Vero when a fan sent him a picture of Superman cradling Batman's body in his arms.
Ozymandias Was The Child Of Some Bad People
The Watchmen comic book series never suggested that there was anything off about Ozymandias' accent. Adrian Veidt was born in America (from German parents) and he spent his youth traveling around the world, before returning to America and taking on the mantle of Ozymandias. The movie version of Ozymandias had a subtle shift in his accent throughout the film - whenever Ozymandias was in public, he spoke in an American accent, but when he was in private, his accent sounded German.
The nature of Ozymandias' plan and his German heritage led fans to believe that there was a connection between him and some bad people from Germany who caused World War II. Matthew Goode confirmed this theory in an interview, where he stated that Ozymandias' parents were indeed among those bad people from Germany, which is how they acquired their fortune and why he gave it up when he became an adult.
Superman Was Saved By Aquaman In Man Of Steel
There is a scene in Man of Steel where Clark Kent uses his powers to save a group of workers on a collapsing oil rig. He manages to hold up a massive burning tower, which gives the rescue helicopter enough time to fly away from the oil rig. Clark Kent saves the workers, but he is injured in the process and is left floating in the water. This scene leads to a flashback to Clark's youth, which is followed by him emerging on the shore.
The reveal of Aquaman's presence in the DC Extended Universe led some fans to believe that he was responsible for saving Clark Kent's life in Man of Steel. Jason Momoa has confirmed this theory, stating that it was always Zack Snyder's intent for Aquaman to have saved the injured Clark Kent, establishing that the two had crossed paths in the past.
Dick Grayson Is The Robin In The DC Extended Universe (Not Jason Todd)
The second person to take on the mantle of Robin was a kid named Jason Todd, whose most notable contribution to the Batman mythos was being involved in a storyline where the public got to vote on whether he lived or not. Jason Todd was so disliked that the public voted for him to meet his fate at the hands of the Joker.
When a torn and vandalized Robin suit appeared in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, most fans assumed that it belonged to the Jason Todd version of the character, but there were others who thought that it was going to be a subversion of expectations and that it was Dick Grayson who perished in this universe. Zack Snyder confirmed the latter theory on Vero, where he stated that the identity of Robin was "Richard", which is Dick Grayson's first name.
Sameer Is A Member Of The Blackhawk Squadron
The fact that the Wonder Woman movie was set during World War II led many fans to believe that heroes and villains from that time period in the comics would show up in cameo roles. One of Wonder Woman's allies is a spy named Sameer, who wanted to become an actor but faced opposition due to his race, which led to him using his skills for espionage.
The fans speculated that Sameer might be involved with the Blackhawk Squadron, who were a group of pilots and soldiers who fought during World War II and who still have a presence in the DC universe to this day. Saïd Taghmaoui, the actor who played Sameer, confirmed this theory with a post on Instagram showing Sameer next to the original Blackhawk, suggesting that he may even be the founder of the group in the DCEU universe.
Superman Refusing The Black Suit Was A Reference To Man Of Steel
When Superman originally returned to life in the DC comics universe, he wore a black version of his classic costume. Superman is brought back to life in Justice League, which led many fans to believe that he would don the black suit for a brief period of time, but it never showed up in the theatrical cut of the film. Superman's black suit appeared in a deleted scene, where he rejects it in favor of his classic blue & red suit.
The fans speculated that the reason why Superman rejected the black suit was due to a conversation in Man of Steel, where his father told him that he would one day have to make a choice about whether he would stand proud in front of the human race or not. A fan reached out to Zack Snyder about this theory online and Snyder confirmed that the two scenes were indeed connected.
Captain Atom Was Meant To Be The Original Villain Of Armageddon 2001
The presence of the Internet means that it's almost impossible to keep any secrets involving print media, as so many people are involved in the production of a book or comic that a leak of information is almost inevitable. The DC Comics of '91 wasn't as used to dealing with spoilers as they would become in later years, which may be why they responded so harshly to the leak of the villain of the Armageddon 2001 event.
The villain of Armageddon 2001 was a mysterious being known as Monarch, who was strongly hinted to be Captain Atom but was revealed to be Hawk from Hawk & Dove. The fans had speculated for years that Captain Atom was meant to be the villain all along and this has since been proven by statements from those involved with the Armageddon 2001 event. The fact that Captain Atom was going to be Monarch had leaked out to the fans, causing a last minute change to the story.
Alfred Wasn't Dreaming At The End Of The Dark Knight Rises
The Dark Knight Rises ended with a definitive conclusion to the story of Christian Bale's Batman. He was last seen flying a nuclear weapon away from Gotham and it was believed that he sacrificed his life to save the city. At the end of the movie, Alfred sees Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle in a cafe in France, which meant that Batman survived the explosion and lived out the rest of his life in peace.
There are some fans who believe that the final scene was actually taking place in Alfred's imagination, as he mentions a personal fantasy earlier in the movie, where he imagines seeing a happy Bruce Wayne in a cafe in France. There are other fans who believe that Batman actually survived the explosion (despite how little sense that makes) and that Alfred was actually seeing him. Christian Bale has since confirmed that Bruce Wayne did indeed survive the crash and that the final scene should be taken at face value.
Andrea Donoso Was A Synthoid
The Zeta Project is one of the most obscure entries in the DC Animated Universe, which is partly due to the fact that it was set in the future timeline of Batman Beyond and only lasted for two seasons. The story of The Zeta Project takes a lot from Blade Runner, as it involves androids (known as synthoids) who can pass for human beings and are used for espionage missions.
The synthoids were created by a man named Eli Selig, whose personal assistant was a woman named Andrea Donoso. If The Zeta Project had continued on for more seasons, then the fan theory that Andrea Donoso was the most advanced deep cover synthoid was going to be revealed. The creators of the show had also planned for the regenerating hand seen in the "The Hologram Man" to belong to her.
Terry McGinnis' Brother Was Also The Son Of Bruce Wayne
There was an episode of Justice League Unlimited called "Epilogue" which resolved several of the unfinished storylines from Batman Beyond. "Epilogue" revealed that Terry McGinnis was actually the son of Bruce Wayne. Terry discovered that Amanda Waller used technology created by Cadmus to rewrite the reproductive DNA of Terry's father so that he would produce a child of Bruce Wayne.
It was never stated in "Epilogue" whether Cadmus' DNA technology was a one-shot deal, as Terry also had a younger brother named Matt. The fans speculated that Terry's brother was also made using Bruce Wayne's DNA, due to the similarities between the two. Bruce Timm later confirmed that Matt McGinnis was also the son of Bruce Wayne.
Beast Boy's Mother's Orientation
Marie Logan was the mother of Beast Boy in Young Justice. It was revealed in the Young Justice comic book series that Marie perished at the hands of Queen Bee, who used her pheromone powers to convince Marie to drive off a cliff. It was previously established that Queen Bee's powers could only work on those who found her attractive, which the creators had established could extend to both men and women. This statement led many to believe that Marie Logan was into both guys and girls, as she would need to have been attracted to Queen Bee in order to fall under her spell.
The creators of Young Justice confirmed this theory at a panel, where they complained that they weren't allowed to show Queen Bee and Marie Logan together and had to replace it with a more subtle image (seen above.)
Magog's Design Was A Reference To How Much The Creators Of Kingdom Come Disliked Cable
The Kingdom Come series showed a future of the DC Universe where Superman had retired following an incident where the Joker wiped out everyone at the Daily Planet and was disposed of by a new hero called Magog. Superman tried to bring Magog to justice, but the public supported him, causing Superman to retire. The fans noticed that Magog's design was similar to that of Cable from the X-Men, as they both had a shining yellow eye, a robotic looking arm, and lots of belts & pouches. It was felt that Magog's role in the story as a violent new hero was meant to reflect the darker tone of '90s comic books, of which Cable was a major player.
The creators of Kingdom Come have confirmed this theory, stating that Magog's design was a mixture of Cable and Shatterstar from X-Force and that he was intended to reflect the popular characters of the '90s.
The "Knightmare" Sequence Was Hinting At Injustice
There is a scene in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice where Batman has a nightmare (dubbed the "Knightmare" by fans) of a future where Superman has gone bad, with Batman leading an insurgency against him. The Knightmare scene included Parademons working for Superman, which suggested that it was linked to the overarching storyline involving Darkseid, with the possibility that Superman willingly joined Darkseid after the demise of Lois Lane.
The fans had speculated that this sequence was a reference to the Injustice series and had nothing to do with Darkseid outside of the Parademons. In Injustice, the Joker tricks Superman into taking out Lois Lane and goes on to destroy Metropolis, causing Superman to become a heavy-handed ruler, with Batman leading the remains of the Justice League against him. A fan asked Zack Snyder about this theory on Vero and Snyder confirmed it, with the statement that the Joker was somehow behind the events of the "Knightmare."
Ted Kord Was Going To Appear In Arrow (But Was Replaced By Ray Palmer)
The popular DC television universe has acted as a proving ground for the screen adaptation viability of lots of minor DC heroes and villains, as they can appear without the financial risk of releasing a major motion picture based on an uncertain property. A lot of Arrow fans speculated that Ted Kord, also known as the Blue Beetle, was going to appear on the show. This was due to numerous references to Ted Kord and his company in the first two seasons of the show.
It turns out that Ted Kord was indeed planned to appear in the third season of Arrow, but the people at DC vetoed the idea as they had other plans for the character. The people at DC suggested Ray Palmer (aka The Atom) as a replacement, which led to Brandon Routh being cast in the role.
Lex Luthor Was Referring To "The Son" And Not "The Sun"
In Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Lex Luthor creates Doomsday from the body of General Zod. In order to do this, he combines his own DNA with that of Zod's body and uses Kryptonian technology to finish the job. When Luthor lays over the body of Zod, he says that he "flew too close to the sun" in what seems to be a reference to the myth of Icarus.
There were some fans who felt that Luthor wasn't talking about the "sun" but rather the "son", as in, the last son of Krypton, which is a name often given to Superman. A fan reached out to Zack Snyder on Vero about the theory and Snyder confirmed it, as he intended for Luthor's line to have a double meaning.
The Chief In Wonder Woman Is A Demigod
The presence of the Greek gods in the world of DC comics has also meant that other creatures from mythology may also exist, which is helped by the fact that these beings are usually public domain and can be used by anyone in a creative endeavor. One of Wonder Woman's allies in Wonder Woman also has a divine past, as Chief happens to be a demigod.
Chief talks to Wonder Woman in his native language and introduces himself as Napi, which is the name of a trickster deity of the Native American religion. Eugene Brave Rock has confirmed that Chief was telling the truth and that he is actually Napi, meaning that he also has divine powers like Wonder Woman.
Something Else Survived The Trip From Krypton To Earth (And It's Not Supergirl)
Superman may be the last son of Krypton, but there are plenty of other Kryptonians who survived the destruction of their homeworld, including the likes of Supergirl and Krypto the Superdog. In Man of Steel, Superman finds a scout ship from Krypton that contains several empty cryo pods, one of which is open when he gets there.
The fans had speculated that the open pod could belong to Supergirl, who may have chosen to hide her powers from the world. There is also speculation that the pod could have contained Brainiac, who is also a native of Krypton and would make for an epic villain in a Man of Steel sequel. Zack Snyder has confirmed that the pod has nothing to do with Supergirl and that it contained "something more", suggesting that it was Brainiac within the pod.
Bruce Wayne Knew That Terry Was His Son But Hid It
Batman is supposed to be the greatest detective in the world, which means that it doesn't take long for him to uncover crimes and mysteries that he investigates. When Bruce Wayne finds out that Terry McGinnis is his son in "Epilogue", he doesn't seem surprised, which is meant to trick the audience into thinking that he was somehow involved in Terry's creation. It's later revealed that it was Amanda Waller who was responsible for Terry being Bruce's son.
The fans had speculated that Bruce had discovered the truth about Terry being his son years earlier and had chosen not to tell him. Dwayne McDuffie confirmed this theory on his website, where he revealed that Bruce wanted Terry to become his own man and didn't want to reveal the truth to him.
Nightwing Was Going To Perish In Infinite Crisis
Infinite Crisis was a second attempt by DC to clean up the numerous continuity problems that had arisen over the years, which resulted in numerous storylines being retconned and characters being destroyed to make way for new ones. It felt as if Nightwing's storyline was being wrapped up in Infinite Crisis, as the city of Bludhaven (his base of operations) was destroyed. At the end of Infinite Crisis, it's Superboy who succumbs to his wounds after fighting Superboy-Prime, while Nightwing survives.
The final issue includes a scene where Batman draws a gun on Alexander Luthor in response to the demise of Superboy, which many felt was out of character and would have been more appropriate if it had been Nightwing who perished instead. The editors and writers who worked on Infinite Crisis have confirmed that Dan DiDio wanted Nightwing to perish, but he was vetoed by the other people working on the series.
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Did we miss any popular fan theories that have been confirmed? Let us know in the comments!