HBO Max orders 'The People v. Gorilla Grodd' Superman spinoff
HBO Max has officially ordered The People v. Gorilla Grodd, an eight-episode Superman spinoff starring Skyler Gisondo as Jimmy Olsen and Jimmy Tatro as Gorilla Grodd. The half-hour true-crime mockumentary from DC Studios and American Vandal creators Tony Yacenda and Dan Perrault expands James Gunn's DCU with a bizarre Metropolis murder trial.
Warner Bros. Television and DC Studios confirmed the straight-to-series pickup on August 21, 2026, giving a formal greenlight to a project that had been in casting limbo for months. The title itself has already circulated online as a meme, but now it is a real HBO Max comedy heading into production.
Key Takeaways
- HBO Max ordered eight half-hour episodes of The People v. Gorilla Grodd, a true-crime mockumentary spun off from the 2025 Superman film.
- Skyler Gisondo reprises Jimmy Olsen; Jimmy Tatro plays the psychic ape accused of killing Gorilla City's king.
- American Vandal creators Tony Yacenda and Dan Perrault showrun the series, with Yacenda directing every episode.
- Several Superman cast members return, including Wendell Pierce as Perry White and Beck Bennett as Steve Lombard.
- The pickup arrives as HBO Max expands its DC slate alongside Lanterns and Stuart Fails To Save the Universe.
What Is 'The People v. Gorilla Grodd' About?
According to the official logline, a superintelligent ape is convicted of murdering his father, the King of Gorilla City. In an eight-part "true" crime docuseries, Daily Planet photographer Jimmy Olsen reopens the case to investigate whether Gorilla Grodd was wrongly convicted in one of Metropolis' most famous murder trials.
Grodd, a DC villain created in 1959 by John Broome and Carmine Infantino, gained psychic powers after an encounter with an alien spaceship. Season 1 centers on his trial, framed as a Daily Planet original documentary made for the people of Metropolis.
Yacenda and Perrault said they wanted the show to feel "less like an entry into the DCU and more like an artifact from it." For fans of offbeat pop culture, the premise sits comfortably alongside other bizarre news and Florida Man-style stories that blur comedy and crime.
Who Stars in the HBO Max Series?
Gisondo returns as Jimmy Olsen after debuting in James Gunn's 2025 Superman movie. Tatro, known for American Vandal and comedy films, plays Grodd in what HBO programming chief Amy Gravitt called a "captivating and hilarious portrayal."
Three Superman actors reprise their roles: Beck Bennett as Steve Lombard, Mikaela Hoover as Cat Grant, and Wendell Pierce as Perry White. New additions include Mary Holland, Eduardo Franco, Arian Moayed, Dan Perrault, Andrew Leeds, and Tim Baltz.
Perrault joins the cast while also serving as co-showrunner alongside Yacenda. Notably, both Tatro and Franco appeared in American Vandal's first season, reuniting the mockumentary veterans behind the Peabody-winning Netflix satire.
Why Does This Series Matter for HBO Max?
The order makes The People v. Gorilla Grodd the streamer's second scripted comedy with superhero ties, joining Stuart Fails To Save the Universe. It also follows the launch of Lanterns, another DC Studios drama that reportedly opened strongly on HBO Max.
James Gunn and Peter Safran, who executive produce, said the Daily Planet cast chemistry after Superman convinced them this world was worth exploring. The pickup comes amid a broader DC development reset; Variety reported that an Amanda Waller series and a Wonder Woman prequel set on Themyscira are no longer moving forward.
Deadline first reported the formal series order and full cast on August 21, 2026. Production timing has not been announced, but casting was completed ahead of the order after months of what Deadline described as a "blinking greenlight."