For decades, Hollywood has cast its two flagship superheroes by opposite rules. Christopher Reeve was a little-known stage and soap actor when he first put on the cape, and Brandon Routh, Henry Cavill and David Corenswet all arrived without marquee billing. The cowl has gone the other way: Michael Keaton, George Clooney, Christian Bale, Ben Affleck and Robert Pattinson were famous names before they ever played Bruce Wayne. James Gunn now says the DC Universe will break that habit.

In an advance clip from “The Suicide Squad: Is It Canon? The Official Podcast,” the DC Studios co-chief said the search for his Batman is close and dismissed fan theories that the part has already been filled. As Variety first reported, Gunn framed the role as a chance to reset the casting logic. “One of the things that excites me about casting Batman is being able to pick a Batman who’s actually the best actor for that role,” he said. “Superman’s have always been chosen based on who the best actor for that role is. And for some reason, Batman’s are always chosen as movie stars.”

He also offered the first concrete clue about who fits. Asked by Steve Agee, who plays John Economos in Gunn’s DC projects, whether age mattered, since “they’re going to be doing this 10 years from now,” Gunn answered “definitely.” “Roughly, Batman and Superman are around the same age,” he said. “They’re future best pals, contemporaries.” Corenswet is 33, which points to a Bruce Wayne in his mid-30s.

This Batman is separate from the one in Matt Reeves’ saga, where Pattinson is back on the set of The Batman: Part II. When Gunn and Peter Safran unveiled their first DCU chapter, the slate included Superman, Supergirl, Lanterns and Clayface alongside a Batman film titled The Brave and the Bold, built around Bruce Wayne and his son Damian as Robin, with Andy Muschietti attached to direct.

Gunn added one caveat that matches his track record: he would not rule out an actor he once gave “a day role” in The Suicide Squad. He has form here. Nathan Fillion played the short-lived T.D.K. in that film and later returned as Green Lantern Guy Gardner in Superman.

Corenswet leads the next chapter in Man of Tomorrow, set for release on July 9 next year. The full podcast episode is due out Friday.

Whoever gets the cowl is signing up for a decade beside Corenswet’s Superman, and Gunn intends to choose him by the same measure he used for the man in the cape.