Peacemaker season 2 confirms that DCU characters do read Marvel Comics

Peacemaker season 2 turns a quick gag into clear evidence that Marvel Comics exists as pop culture inside the DCU. In episode 6, Ignorance Is Chris, Vigilante meets his own variant and both strike the famous double-point pose before name-checking the bit. Vigilante remarked:

“We Spider-Man meme’d.”

The hour is written and directed by James Gunn and stars John Cena, Danielle Brooks, Jennifer Holland and Freddie Stroma, with Frank Grillo and Nicholas Hoult driving a second thread that links Peacemaker to the films. Gunn identifies the alternate world as Earth-X and positions Hoult’s Lex Luthor to matter for Man of Tomorrow. As per the EW.com report dated September 26, 2025, Gunn said:

“I call it Earth-X.”

And added that:

“Everything’s connected.”

The cliffhanger arrives when Adebayo is chased by a mob on Earth-X. Keith shouted,

“One got out! A Black!”

Marvel Comics exists as pop culture inside the DCU: Where Peacemaker season 2 proves it on screen

Peacemaker season 2 embeds the Marvel Comics reference inside the episode’s A and B tracks. The A track follows Chris on Earth-X with Harcourt, Adebayo, and Economos realizing the supposedly perfect suburb is wrong once Harcourt notes there are no people of color, then the altered flag appears, and Chris is jolted. The B track runs in the DCU, where Rick Flag Sr. heads to Belle Reve for help locating Peacemaker’s portal device, which tees up Hoult’s Lex Luthor.

Midway through Ignorance Is Chris, the hour delivers the headline moment. Vigilante confronts his alternate. They mirror the double-point pose and land the explicit line. Vigilante remarked,

“We Spider-Man meme’d.”

That line functions as text inside the story, placing Spider-Man and, therefore, Marvel Comics as recognized media in the DCU. The episode closes on Earth-X when Keith spots Adebayo, and the chase begins. Keith shouts,

“One got out! A Black!”

The scene sequencing makes the meme callout part of the same chapter that confirms Earth-X and advances Lex’s role, which is why the reference reads as canon texture rather than a throwaway gag. Peacemaker season 2 uses the line for clarity, not meta noise, and ties it to plot progress across both tracks.

What James Gunn says about the episode’s canon moves and the film bridge

Peacemaker season 2 is also a creator-commentary episode. In an interview tied to the broadcast, Gunn confirms the alt-world is what he calls Earth-X and explains that the inspiration is the book The Man in the High Castle, not the comics. As per the EW.com report dated September 26, 2025, Gunn said,

"People don't name their planets other than Earth, so to them it's Earth, just like to us and the DCU it's Earth,...I don't think people think of their planets as having numbers, but yeah, I call it Earth-X."

He described drawing from Philip K. Dick’s novel. He also set expectations for connectivity, saying the story is centered on Christopher Smith’s journey while also feeding the larger DCU. As per the EW.com report dated September 26, 2025, Gunn stated:

“Everything’s connected.”

And singled out the relationship between Rick Flag and Lex Luthor as important for Man of Tomorrow. The Lex scene itself is grounded in plot business. Episode recap details Flag Sr. bargaining for help, Lex offering a scanner to track the interdimensional device, and a transfer to Van Kull being put on the table if the plan works. That is how Peacemaker season 2 turns a cameo into groundwork for the films. Gunn noted he shot the Lex material during Superman, which further underlines how these pieces are coordinated inside the DCU.

Stay tuned for more updates.

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