Superhero movies have conditioned audiences to expect cameo appearances in every single title that comes out. At their best, cameos and guest appearances from other heroes and villains serve to expand the superhero universe and show it to be a place full of different heroes that come and go in and out of each other’s stories.
And yet, they can also feel forced, shoehorned in just for the sake of having a cameo or as a reminder of the next product coming down the line. Then we have *Peacemaker*. Like *Gen V*, this DC series finds the right balance of telling its own standalone story while being a great transition show between new chapters of the main series (between *Superman* movies in the case of *Peacemaker*).
When we have big, gratuitous cameos—like the Justice League (later the Justice Gang)—it fits because it was treated as a big joke. Otherwise, whenever the show has shown or name-dropped other DC heroes and villains, it has helped make the world of *Peacemaker* feel larger, the story more connected and consequential to the future of the DC Universe. Just look at how clearly the season sets up *Superman: Man of Tomorrow*.
Indeed, *Peacemaker* Season 2 holds a unique place in the DC Universe so far. It is a continuation of the themes of the first season that works as a standalone story separated from the rest of the franchise, all while being a crucial story with big repercussions for the future of the DC Universe.
All this is to say, it shouldn’t be surprising that James Gunn snuck in some unexpected cameos in the *Peacemaker* Season 2 finale. No, it wasn’t Superman or Batman, but rather James Gunn himself and the members of Nelson.
In the Season 2 finale, we see the 11th Street Kids assemble once again, gain new allies, and decide to fully leave A.R.G.U.S. behind to start their own intelligence agency, named Checkmate—an organization with a significant history in DC lore. To celebrate, Christopher Smith (John Cena) and Harcourt (Jennifer Holland) go see a rock concert on a “rock cruise,” where none other than Foxy Shazam is playing a familiar tune.
That tune, of course, is “Oh, Lord,” the song used for the opening theme of *Peacemaker* Season 2. As Chris and Harcourt sing their hearts out, eagle-eyed fans have noticed James Gunn himself hidden in the background, simply enjoying the music like one of the background actors. Not just that, but also present are Steve Agee, who plays Economos, and even Matthew and Gunnar Nelson of the band Nelson.
“The whole crew came out there,” Gunn said during the official *Peacemaker* podcast. “A lot of our PAs and everybody went out there, and we all just were dancing around.”
So there you have it. The smallest and most meta cameo in *Peacemaker* is simply James Gunn geeking out about music and inviting the crew to join him for a cool concert. This recontextualizes the entire season and paints it in a new light. It makes clear that Gunn is using *Peacemaker* as an avenue to geek out about music, share it with the world, and now, get to see concerts for his favorite bands during work hours.
Foxy Shazam’s “Oh Lord” doesn’t just play diegetically during the live concert scene; it actually starts playing earlier. Specifically, the song begins when Chris asks Harcourt to tell him if the moment they shared on the boat the night they saw Nelson play meant something. When she confirms it did, Chris goes inside the motel room he’d been hiding in and starts dancing in celebration—absolutely giddy with a happiness we haven’t seen from him since he thought the Nazi universe was the “best dimension ever.”
The scene cuts between the Foxy Shazam concert (featuring Chris, Harcourt, Gunn, and the crew) and moments of the 11th Street Kids founding Checkmate, gaining new allies, and finally finding their happy place.
This echoes back to one of the best scenes in Season One, when Chris, Harcourt, and Vigilante (Freddie Stroma) head into battle to kill the “cow” that will allow for an alien invasion of Earth, just as that season’s opening theme song, “Do Ya Wanna Taste It” by Wig Wam, starts playing.
This is a long and proud tradition in anime, wherein the opening theme song starts playing during a climactic moment to add nostalgia to the hype of the scene. One of the best examples is *One Piece*, which—after 1,015 episodes—plays the show’s very first opening theme song during a pivotal fight between Luffy and Kaido, 22 years after it was replaced.
Likewise, *Pokémon* maximizes nostalgia when the 1999 classic “Gotta Catch ’Em All!” plays during the climax of Ash’s fight against Leon—right on time for him to become a Pokémon Master after 25 long years.
*Peacemaker* Season 2 embraces this tradition, using music to enrich its storytelling and deepen the emotional connection between characters and viewers, all while slyly inserting meta moments that celebrate the show’s creative team and their passions.
https://www.slashfilm.com/1999046/james-gunn-dc-cameo-peacemaker-season-2-finale/
