Dan DiDio. Image courtesy of DC.

Dan DiDio is no longer at DC Comics, IGN can confirm. DiDio was Co-Publisher of DC Comics alongside Chief Creative Officer Jim Lee. He departs the company after 18 years. Lee will continue solo as Publisher. ComicBook.com initially reported that DiDio was “removed” from his position but that detail has since been edited out (as spotted by Newsarama ).IGN spoke to a source with knowledge of the situation who said that DiDio has always been known for being a traditionalist whose primary focus was taking care of the direct comics market, but now the company is moving its focus more towards brands and franchises. A restructuring within the company is a possibility but nothing has been decided as of yet. In January 2019, DC laid off three percent of its workforce in a company restructure.DiDio’s legacy is a long one, but his most prolific project was The New 52, a line-wide relaunch in 2012, of which he was a key figurehead. While initially considered a success that saw DC eclipse long-time competitor Marvel in sales, that response soon faded. Fans were left displeased with the removal of many key elements they felt were important to the DC Universe. Four years later, another relaunch under DiDio called DC Rebirth restored many of those missing elements.Before his departure, DiDio had been teasing another line-wide initiative that looked to recontextualize the history of the DC Universe into different “generations,” but given his sudden exit, it’s unclear whether DC will move ahead with that project. Generation Zero: Gods Among Us is currently solicited as one of DC’s Free Comic Book Day offerings on May 2.DiDio started work at DC in 2002 as VP of Editorial, received a promotion to VP/Executive Editor in 2004, and then became Co-Publisher in 2010. DiDio also wrote comics on occasion, including The Phantom Stranger, Sideways, and the currently-running 12-part series Metal Men.

Joshua is Senior Features Editor at IGN. If Pokemon, Green Lantern, or Game of Thrones are frequently used words in your vocabulary, you’ll want to follow him on Twitter @JoshuaYehl and IGN