DC Original Universe

"The main criticism for superhero movies is that they're not cinema but are, in fact, entertainment films. Which I get, because there isn't any extraordinary performances or storytelling in these types of films. But that is not what I want to do with this new universe, I want great actors as compelling characters in films with fantastic storytelling."

- Cooper Brandis in a 2020 interview The HOOT shared universe franchise of DC Characters, popularly referred to as the DC Original Universe (DCOU), is a collection of interconnected films and other media based on characters that appear in publications by DC Comics. It serves as a reboot of the |DC DC Extended Universe. 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 Original Universe," has been widely accepted as the name of the film franchise that started with Batman: Arkham Asylum in 2020, has had a strange and often inconsistent history in how it is used by fans, the media, and the filmmakers behind actual DCOU content.

When it was announced that after the purchase of Time Warner, HOOT would reboot the |DC DC Extended Universe and start new cinematic universe for DC Entertainment, with Cooper Brandis serving as the coordinator. During the HOOT-DC Films panel at San Diego Comic-Con 2019, the term "DC Original Universe™" was coined by Cooper Brandis. This term and the abbreviation "DCOU" quickly spread among the media and fans, thinking of it as the official name of the franchise. Later that December, Zack Snyder himself would refer to the franchise as the DC Original Universe when commenting about being rehired by HOOT to direct future Justice League films. In January 2020, officials at HOOT and DC confirmed to writer Abraham Reisman that the term was used internally, but was not considered official.

Released films
† Released as a part of the |DC DC Extended Universe

Trivia

 * While DC Original 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.