“Ever since I had to team up with Matter-Eater Lad, my sense of what’s normal is a little f—ed up,” Christopher Smith (John Cena) casually remarks in Peacemaker season 1. In explaining the Bismollian’s ability to eat virtually any form of matter, Smith recalls seeing Matter-Eater Lad “eat an entire Wendy’s restaurant” because they “took too long with his fries.” While Smith has a habit of telling outlandish stories about his fellow superheroes — including false claims about Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and Green Arrow — it seems that Matter-Eater Lad is, in fact, canon with the rejiggered DC Universe.
“In the comics, Matter-Eater Lad is a member of the Legion of Super-Heroes, which means he’s from the future,” showrunner and series creator James Gunn explained on episode 4 of Peacemaker: The Official Podcast, in which the DC Studios co-chief breaks down what is (and isn’t) canon in the new DCU. “He doesn’t exist in present day.”
“And so somehow he’s either traveled back in time to the present day to hang out with Peacemaker and eat a Wendy’s, or he’s a different character who exists in present time,” Gunn continued. “But I’m willing to say I’ll accept a Matter-Eater Lad. I think we can live with that.”
Because the first season of Peacemaker mentioned everyone from Batman’s “coterie of supervillains” like the Riddler, the Mad Hatter, and the Joker, to more obscure characters like Doll Man, Kite-Man, and Bat-Mite, Gunn and podcast co-hosts Jennifer Holland and Steve Agee (who play Emilia Harcourt and John Economos, respectively), have clarified whether or not such characters exist yet in the canon that includes Creature Commandos, Superman, and Peacemaker.
“We’ve decided that Doll Man’s canon, we’ve decided that Bat-Mite’s probably not canon, we know the Justice League isn’t canon,” Gunn explained to Adrian Chase/Vigilante actor Freddie Stroma, a first-time guest on the podcast.
In the comics, Matter-Eater Lad is Tenzil Kem, hailing from the planet Bismoll in the 30th Century. Created by Superman co-creator Jerry Siegel and Legion of Super-Heroes artist John Forte in 1962’s Adventure Comics #303, the newest Legionnaire was inducted into a team that included the likes of Cosmic Boy, Saturn Girl, Sun Boy, Lightning Lad, Bouncing Boy, Chameleon Boy, and Brainiac 5, who could conceivably exist in the far-off future of the DCU.
Superboy (a pre-teen Clark Kent) previously teamed with the time travelers from the 30th Century, although Gunn’s Superman movie makes it clear that the DCU Superman (David Corenswet) didn’t announce himself to the world until three years before the events of the film — some 300 years after the first metahumans became known to humanity.
Peacemaker season 2 — which stars returning cast members John Cena, Danielle Brooks, Jennifer Holland, Freddie Stroma, Steve Agee, and Robert Patrick, with series newcomers Frank Grillo, David Denman, Sol Rodriguez, and Tim Meadows — premieres August 21 on HBO Max.
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