Goodwin's Universe: Chapter One

Goodwin's Universe: Chapter One
DC Studios logo modeled after the "DC Bullet" design introduced in 1977
Based on	Characters from DC Characters from Marvel
Produced by	Freddie Goodwin Mob Productions
Starring	See below
Production company	SOI Studios
Distributed by	Warner Bros. Pictures Warner Bros. Discovery Global Streaming (Max series) Home Box Office, Inc. (HBO series)
Release date	2025
Country	United States
Language	English

Chapter One is the upcoming first slate of content for the Goodwin's Universe (GWU), which is scheduled to begin in January 2025. It is a media franchise and shared universe with shortfilms. The GWU was created by Freddie Goodwin with the help of the production company Mob Productions and the producer company SOI Studios. Chapter One is set to have eleven installments, with one releasing each month except for December 2025. Chapter One will begin with Clash of Minds, which is scheduled to be released in January 2025, as the beginning of the GWU. The feature films in this chapter are produced both by Marvel Studios and DC Studios alongside Mob Productions, SOI Studios, and Warner Bros. Pictures.

The films of the chapter are Clash of Minds, starring Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark and Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, Web of Shadows, Gods Among Mortals, Shadows of Gotham, Broken Alliances, and Goodwinverse: Assembled.

Background

Early work (2019)

In 2019, a script for a film based on Superman had been given to Mob Productions to go through and develop. However, the script was rejected due to poor writing. SOI Studios joined as producers and said they will ensure the quality is as good as can be.

Development

Writer/director Freddie Goodwin announced in March 2022 that they were building their own universe with films and "even shorter films called 'Fragments', which will reveal more about the lore of the GWU". Goodwin announced that he has worked with a dozen other people on making each installment. By June 2022, Robert Downey Jr. revealed he had been approached by Goodwin about starring in multiple films in his universe, which he agreed to do so as long as he portrays a "cool" character. By August of that year, Goodwin began work on a shortfilm based on two characters. He decided to choose a character from both DC Comics (Luthor) and Marvel Comics (Stark). Before starting work on the film, Goodwin was joined by Alex Brow, who joined him in writing the screenplay. Brow described the film as a "great way to kick things off", and stated Chapter One will be one of the "biggest things in the film industry". Filming began in March 2024 and concluded in May of that year. Reshoots occured throughout the remainder of 2024 with everything being finished by November 2024. With production finished for Clash of Minds, Goodwin announced that they have thought of everything and hoped that people would be excited for the first film. Concurrently, Brow had already begun writing a new film based on Spider-Man, called Web of Shadows and was announced to be set in the same universe as Clash of Minds.

Brow had discussed on multiple occasions that he had worked on making sure Web of Shadows didn't "ruin the experience" for those who didn't see Clash of Minds; but stated he is commited to make sure Web of Shadows makes it clear that the events of Clash of Minds isn't ignored. By March 2023, Goodwin announced that he has plans to introduce the characters The Flash, Superman, and Captain America into the GWU. Goodwin stated he had looked through all the storylines the team had already planned for the GWU and said these characters are a must in order to have it be a "success". Discussing the potential of the storyline falling apart and becoming a "mess", Goodwin stated he has multiple backup plans to ensure the GWU is a quality he wishes it to be and never less of that said quality.

Films

Film	U.S. release date	Director	Screenwriter(s)	Producer(s)	Status
Clash of Minds	January 17, 2025	Freddie Goodwin	Freddie Goodwin & Alex Brow	Freddie Goodwin & Mob Productions	Post-production
Web of Shadows	February 15, 2025	Alex Brow			Filming
Gods Among Mortals	March 13, 2025	Natalie Kingsley
Shadows of Gotham	April 24, 2025	Rebecca Wells
Broken Alliances	May 19, 2025	Quentin Hart			Pre-production
Goodwinverse: Assembled	November 2025	Freddie Goodwin	Alex Brow, Freddie Goodwin, Rebecca Wells, and Natalie Kingsley

Clash of Minds (2025)

Main article: Clash of Minds (2025 film)

Lex Luthor and Tony Stark are both invited to a secretive tech summit hosted by a mysterious benefactor. The two egos clash in a battle of intellect, culminating in a high-tech duel after discovering that the summit was a trap orchestrated by Victor Von Doom to pit them against each other.

In October 2022, Goodwin began work on a shortfilm based on two characters. He decided to choose a character from both DC Comics (Luthor) and Marvel Comics (Stark). Before starting work on the film, Goodwin was joined by Alex Brow, who joined him in writing the screenplay. Brow described the film as a "great way to kick things off", and stated Chapter One will be one of the "biggest things in the film industry". Filming began in March 2024 and concluded in May of that year. Reshoots occured throughout the remainder of 2024 with everything being finished by November 2024. The film stars Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark and Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor, respectively. It was announced that Superman would appear in the film in a cameo.

Clash of Minds will be released in the United States on January 17, 2025, as the first film of Chapter One of the GWU.

Web of Shadows (2025)

Main article: Web of Shadows

While investigating a string of robberies in Blüdhaven, Nightwing encounters Spider-Man chasing the same criminal. Initially mistaken as rivals, the two team up to stop a deadly alliance between Black Cat and Catwoman.

Web of Shadows will be released in the United States on February 15, 2025, as the second film of Chapter One of the GWU.

Gods Among Mortals (2025)

Main article: Gods Among Mortals

When a portal between Asgard and Themyscira opens unexpectedly, Thor and Wonder Woman face off due to misunderstandings. However, they must join forces to prevent Ares and Loki from unleashing chaos in both realms.

Gods Among Mortals will be released in the United States on March 13, 2025, as the third film of Chapter One of the GWU.

Shadows of Gotham (2025)

Batman and Daredevil independently investigate a series of brutal murders in Gotham. Their paths cross when they realize the killings are orchestrated by Wilson Fisk working alongside Carmine Falcone. Together, they fight through the criminal underworld to bring both kingpins down.

Shadows of Gotham will be released in the United States on April 24, 2025, as the fourth film of Chapter One of the GWU.

Broken Alliances (2025)

Superman and Captain America are transported to a dystopian alternate Earth where heroes are enslaved by an oppressive regime led by Red Skull and General Zod. The two form an inspiring alliance to liberate the heroes and restore hope to this shattered world.

Broken Alliances will be released in the United States on May 19, 2025, as the fifth film of Chapter One of the GWU.

Fragments

Upcoming

Year	Video	Notes
2006	Pink Army	Alan Becker's first published animation to Newgrounds.
	Animator vs. Animation
2007	Animator vs. Animation 2	Won a "People's Choice" Webby Award
2011	Animator vs. Animation 3
2014	Animator vs. Animation 4
2015	Animation vs. Minecraft (original)
2017	Animation vs. YouTube
	Animation vs. Minecraft Shorts Season 1 (ep. 1–14)
2018	Animator vs. Animation Season 2 (ep. 5–8)	Started out as a miniseries called Animator vs. Animation Shorts before being compiled into one entry in 2020.
	The Virus - Animator vs. Animation V
	The Chosen One's Return - Animator vs. Animation 6
	Animation vs. League of Legends
2019	The Flashback - Animator vs. Animation 7
	Animation vs. Pokémon
	Blue's New Superpower	Is a fundraiser for the organization Team Trees
	Animation vs. Super Mario Bros
2020	Animation vs. Minecraft Shorts Season 2 (ep. 15–19)
	Animation vs. Minecraft Shorts Season 3 (ep. 20–30)
	The Showdown - Animator vs. Animation 8
2021	Animation vs. Arcade Games
	Animation vs. Trash	A fundraiser for the organization Team Seas.
2022	Actual Shorts	The only animations on Alan's channel that are posted as YouTube Shorts, as opposed to full-length videos.
2023	Animator vs. Animation Season 3
	Animation vs. Minecraft Shorts Season 4
	Wanted - Animation vs. Animation 9
	Animation vs. Math
	Animation vs. Physics
	The Box - Animator vs. Animation 10
2024	Animation vs. Geometry
	Influencer Arc	The only series where a stick figure has its own YouTube channel.
	Victim - Animator vs. Animation 11

Timeline

Upon the announcement of the DCU, James Gunn said that a "rough memory" of events depicted in The Suicide Squad and the first season of Peacemaker would remain in the DCU. He later clarified that The Suicide Squad would not be retroactively incorporated into the DCU and that certain events from that film would only carry over into the DCU's continuity if they were mentioned in DCU media. An example of this is Creature Commandos acknowledging "Project Starfish", the Task Force X mission on Corto Maltese that resulted in the death of Rick Flag Sr.'s son Rick Flag Jr. at the hands of Peacemaker, and the appearance of Weasel, another former member of Task Force X during that mission. Gunn explained that most of the events from Peacemaker season one are cannon to the DCU, except for the cameo appearance of the Justice League in its season finale, because that team had yet to be formed in the new continuity. For Chapter One: Gods and Monsters, Superman takes place after the events of Creature Commandos, while the second season of Peacemaker is set after both of those.

Recurring cast and characters

See also: List of Goodwin's Universe characters