DC Extended Universe

"I want all the other directors of the other films to be able to stretch their legs and do what they want, but at the same time there is a big interconnected universe."

- Zack Snyder in a 2015 interview

The DC Films shared universe franchise, popularly referred to as the DC Extended Universe (DCEU), the DC Cinematic Universe (DCCU), and also as the Snyderverse, is a collection of interconnected films and other media based on characters that appear in publications by DC Comics. The universe largely spans films, though many tie-in media have been produced, such as comics, novels, guidebooks, short films, and video games.

Etymology history
The name "DC Extended Universe," while widely accepted as the name of the film franchise that started with Man of Steel in 2013, has had a strange and often inconsistent history in how it is used by fans, the media, and the filmmakers behind actual DCEU content.

When it was announced that Man of Steel would be the start of a new cinematic universe for DC Entertainment, this new universe was popularly referred to by fans and the media as the "DC Cinematic Universe," keeping with the naming convention of the already established. On July 1, 2015, the term "DC Extended Universe™" was jokingly coined by  writer Keith Staskiewicz in an article detailing EW's first look at Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. This term and the abbreviation "DCEU" quickly spread among the media and fans, thinking of it as the official name of the franchise. Later that July, Zack Snyder himself would refer to the franchise as the DC Extended Universe when commenting about future plans for an interconnected universe with different filmmakers helming projects. In September 2017, officials at Warner Bros. and DC confirmed to writer Abraham Reisman that the term was not used internally and was not considered official. In 2016, the franchise was called the "Justice League universe" by Geoff Johns and Kevin Smith in the TV special DC Films Presents: The Dawn of the Justice League.

During the DC Films panel at San Diego Comic-Con 2018, a video banner displayed the words "Welcome to the Worlds of DC" after showcasing some of the studio's upcoming films. As a result of this, some media outlets and fans interpreted this as DC officially naming their shared universe "Worlds of DC," however this would not hold true.

In March 2020 during a panel at, DC Comics publisher Jim Lee officially referred to the franchise as the DC Extended Universe, and the name was seemingly set in stone when a "DC Extended Universe" category was included with the launch of HBO Max. However, HBO Max has since pulled the name from their platform for unknown reasons.

Around the release of Zack Snyder's Justice League, fans and cast and crew widely began referring to Zack Snyder's main Justice League story within the DC Extended Universe as the "Snyderverse," and demanded for more stories in this anthology with the hashtag #RestoreTheSnyderVerse on social media.

Short films

 * Etta's Mission (2017)
 * Black Adam precursor (2020)

Comics

 * Man of Steel Prequel (2013)
 * Warner Bros. Pictures Presents Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
 * Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice – Batman
 * Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice – Lois Lane
 * Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice – Senator Finch
 * Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice – Superman
 * Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice – Lex Luthor
 * General Mills Presents Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
 * "Playground Heroes"
 * "Field Trip"
 * "Picture Proof"
 * "Lights Out"
 * Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice - Upstairs/Downstairs (2016)
 * Suicide Blonde (2016)
 * Mercedes-Benz Presents: Justice League (2017)
 * Joyride
 * Guiding Lights
 * Fast Food
 * Shifting Gears
 * Pit Stop
 * Winner Drives
 * Superhero Hooky (2019)
 * Wonder Woman 1984 #1 (2020)

Novels

 * Man of Steel: The Early Years: Junior Novel (2013)
 * Man of Steel: The Official Movie Novelization (2013)
 * Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice - Cross Fire (2016)
 * Suicide Squad: The Official Movie Novelization (2016)
 * Wonder Woman: The Junior Novel (2017)
 * Wonder Woman: The Official Movie Novelization (2017)
 * Aquaman: The Junior Novel (2018)
 * Aquaman: Undertow (2018)
 * Shazam!: The Junior Novel (2019)
 * Wonder Woman 1984: The Junior Novel (2020)

Companion books

 * Man of Steel: Friends and Foes (2013)
 * Man of Steel: Reusable Sticker Book (2013)
 * Man of Steel: Superman Saves Smallville (2013)
 * Man of Steel: Superman's Superpowers (2013)
 * Man of Steel: The Fate of Krypton (2013)
 * Guide to the Caped Crusader/Guide to the Man of Steel (2016)
 * Time Out Shortlist Gotham and Metropolis (2016)
 * Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice: Tech Manual (2016)
 * Wonder Woman: I Am an Amazon Warrior (2017)
 * Wonder Woman: Meet the Heroes (2017)
 * Justice League: The Official Collector's Edition (2017)
 * Aquaman: Arthur's Guide to Atlantis (2018)
 * Shazam!: A Shazam Showdown (2019)
 * Shazam!: Becoming Shazam (2019)
 * Shazam!: Freddy's Guide to Super Hero-ing (2019)
 * Wonder Woman 1984: Destined for Greatness (2020)
 * Wonder Woman 1984: Meet Wonder Woman (2020)
 * Wonder Woman 1984: Truth, Love & Wonder (2020)
 * Wonder Woman 1984: Colouring Adventures (2020)
 * Wonder Woman 1984: Ultimate Colouring Book (2020)
 * Wonder Woman 1984: Super Sticker Book (2020)

Art books

 * Man of Steel: Inside the Legendary World of Superman (2013)
 * Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice: The Art of the Film (2016)
 * Suicide Squad: Behind the Scenes with the Worst Heroes Ever (2016)
 * Wonder Woman: The Art and Making of the Film (2017)
 * Justice League: The Art of the Film (2017)
 * The Art and Making of Aquaman (2018)

Soundtracks

 * Man of Steel (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2013)
 * Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2016)
 * Suicide Squad: The Album (2016)
 * Suicide Squad (Original Motion Picture Score) (2016)
 * Wonder Woman (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2017)
 * Justice League (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2017)
 * Aquaman (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2018)
 * Shazam! (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2019)
 * Birds of Prey: The Album (2020)
 * Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn (Original Motion Picture Score) (2020)
 * Wonder Woman 1984 (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2020)
 * Wonder Woman 1984 (Sketches from the Soundtrack) (2021)
 * Zack Snyder's Justice League (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (2021)

Video games

 * Man of Steel (2013)
 * Become the Man of Steel (2013)
 * Man of Steel: Hero's Flight (2013)
 * Man of Steel Experience (2013)
 * Batman v Superman: Who Will Win (2016)
 * Suicide Squad: Special Ops (2016)
 * Wonder Woman: Rise of the Warrior (2017)
 * Justice League VR: The Complete Experience (2017)

Newspapers

 * METROPOLIS UNDER CONSTANT ATTACK! (2013)
 * BATMAN OR SUPERMAN? (2016)
 * CORPORATE LOBBYING SCANDAL (2016)
 * A CITY OF NEIGHBORHOODS
 * ARCTIC ADVENTURE MYSTERY MAN

Theme park attractions

 * Suicide Squad: Six Flags Fright Fest Experience (2016, 2017)

Trivia

 * While the DC Extended Universe films are not impacted by The CW's Arrowverse, Ezra Miller's version of Barry Allen did make a brief appearance during the fourth part of the Crisis on Infinite Earths crossover event.
 * Originally, Green Lantern was to serve as the start of the DC Extended Universe. However, due to the film's poor box office and its negative critical reception, these plans were scrapped.