James Gunn has finally clarified the structure of his developing DC Universe. Gunn (and Peter Safran) clarified that various "out-of-universe" films such as The Batman and Joker are going to be labeled under the DC Elseworlds label.
Gunn and Safran were appointed the chairs of DC Films, and their current trajectory suggests that the duo want to simplify DC's existing structure. As part of the announcement of DC's slate of films, however, Gunn revealed that stories like Joker, which don't line up with the DCU's continuity, would continue to be released. Gunn's approach is said to be story-driven, so if there's a story worth telling that doesn't fully fit within canon, it will simply be told under DC Elseworlds.
ScreenRant was present for a Q&A about chapter 1 of the DCU (titled "Gods and Monsters"), and reported on a question fielded by Safran. Safran stated that if a movie is out-of-continuity, "we're gonna make that clear." While the DCU is a multiverse, Gunn and Safran intend to focus on one main continuity.
That doesn't mean that the DCU is always going to be set in one main continuity. Matt Reeves' Batman trilogy is definitively out of the slate, and the director appears to be diligently working on a follow-up to the first film. Still, fans probably won't be seeing Robert Pattinson's Batman interacting with the main DCU outside of multiversal events (which are likely far off, if they happen at all).
DC's wider multiverse is full of some iconic stories. The Elseworlds label also exists in the comics - it's an easy way to disregard canon so that any writer can play with the characters and not worry about how the implications of any story might tie into the wider universe. Importing it into the films could be a smart move - and a way to differentiate the studio from Marvel.
While Marvel is currently in its Multiverse Saga, so far all of its films have been set within the same universe. There have been some departures from this, most notably in Marvel's What if...?, but for the most part, each film is part of a grander story. This has become something of a detriment to Marvel, however: many complain that the studio's current slate is full of projects that only serve to set up future adventures rather than standing on their own. DC could avoid that by taking advantage of its new label.
Source: ScreenRant
