Warner Bros. and DC Films have faced some major major setbacks with their DC Extended Universe. None have been greater than the failure of the so-called Snyderverse, aka Zack Snyder’s bid to run the entire DC Film universe for Warner Bros. It got messy quick, the backlash to “Batman V. Superman” and then tragedy—Snyder leaving “Justice League” a few months into editing after one of his daughter’s committed suicide.
You know the story from there: WB hired Joss Whedon (“Marvel’s The Avengers”) to take over the film with marching orders of more levity and a lighter touch and that film bombed even worse than ‘Batman V. Superman.’ In the wake of that disaster, Ben Affleck eventually walked away from the Batman role Henry Cavill did the same, turning away from Superman (but there’s at least a chance he may come back). To say the fallout was huge is an understatement.
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Still, Snyder’s cult fandom raged on for three years until they finally got what they wanted from Warner Bros.: Zack Snyder’s version of “Justice League” as originally intended and envisioned, and the trailer for the currently-titled, “Zack Snyder’s Justice League” is here (though apparently some legal issues could eventually mess with the title).
The Snyder cut itself was a major subject of the DC FanDome panel, with Snyder interacting with a few of the fans who campaigned on behalf of his cut of the film. In one section, Snyder even flipped the script and became the interviewer, sharing a screen with several Snydercut fans and peppering them with questions about the development process. The idea was to reinforce the idea that this process was, as Snyder said, “really for love,” and Warner Bros. really went all-in on that narrative.
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What differences can we expect via “Zack Snyder’s Justice League”? Like in the original cut, Superman has “died,” Bruce Wayne is recruiting meta-humans to build a Justice League team to protect that earth now that Superman is “gone” and the heroes eventually revive Superman and save the world from the catastrophic threat of Steppenwolf and his army of Parademons. Some of the main differences will likely be the appearance of Steppenwolf, totally redone in VFX, the inclusion of Darkseid, the supervillain pulling the strings behind Steppenwolf (not unlike Thanos behind Loki “The Avengers”) and a greater role for Cyborg.
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The first trailer includes several nods to storylines that were cut from the original film, including a showcase for Kiersey Clemons‘s Iris West, the love interest of Ezra Miller‘s flash. It also promises increased screentime for characters like Cyborg – a fact that Snyder talked about during the panel – whose backstory was somewhat truncated in the final film. For those worried that the small screen version of “Justice League” would feel underdeveloped, this trailer should go a long way towards reassuring fans that the HBO Max release, whatever its final form, will be as polished as any other Warner Bros. release.
During the panel, Snyder explained that his cut of the film would take place over four one-hour installments and that his team was also working on an extended cinematic cut meant to be consumed in a single viewing. The director also noted that the film would be available internationally, though the details on that for non-HBO Max customers were still a work in progress. As of now, “Zack Snyder’s Justice League” is being eyed for a May 2021 release on HBO Max and Snyder is said to be spending over $30 million on reshoots that will likely include some new filming with Affleck and Cavill, the former of whom was recently announced to be returning (alongside Michael Keaton) for “The Flash” multiverse film).
Time will tell what impact “Zack Snyder’s Justice League” might have on the surrounding films and television properties – “The Flash” news, in particular, proves that the process of sewing together these various properties is very much still a work in progress. Regardless, the first teaser trailer feels very Snyder: it features Leonard Cohen‘s “Hallelujah” prominently—the same song Synder used in “Watchmen” to a climactic sex scene—and includes all the slow-motion you might expect. After all, Snyder likes to go big or go home.
Feast your eyes on the entire thing and behold a taste of what Zack Snyder planned for “Justice League” all along coming TBD May 2020.