Earlier this month, Zack Snyder's Justice League producer Deborah Snyder provided insight into her and Zack Snyder's decision to keep their names on the 2017 theatrical release of Justice League completed by Joss Whedon. Now that the much anticipated Snyder Cut is streaming on HBO MAX, Snyder elaborated on his decision to keep his name on the theatrical version despite a massive departure from his original vision.
"Did I fight it? You know, I don't know if I even thought about it, really," Snyder said in an interview with MTV News. "At the time, I'd thought about it like...did I think about like 'should I take my name off this movie?' I mean, in retrospect, maybe that would've been a thing I could've done. But, like, you know, my friends, we're all idiots, and my -- everyone worked so hard, I just felt like, you know, I never stopped. So maybe if I'd seen it, I might have wanted to take my name out of it, but I don't. I never did, so I couldn't. It was hard to care that much."
Following the panned reception of the theatrical cut of Justice League in 2017 and a passionate four-year campaign by fans to get Snyder's original vision realized, Warner Bros. invested $70 million for Snyder to complete his version of the film for streaming on HBO MAX on March 18.
When asked about the future of the SnyderVerse by MTV News following the successful release of Zack Snyder's Justice League, Snyder said, "Warner Bros., they've said and Walter said, you know, that this is a kind of a closed-loop, and that it is what it is, and I respect that. You know, they consider the theatrical version of Justice League canon, but that's their prerogative case they, you know, they're the keys to the castle. So, it is what it is. I'm happy that I was able to do this and couldn't be happier cause love the fans and love that they get a little -- a little bit more of this trilogy."
Prior to the release of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, two Justice League films directed by Snyder were part of Warner Bros.'s initial plans to continue building the DC Extended Universe (DCEU), starting with Snyder's Man of Steel in 2013. With Snyder's Justice League, Warner Bros. was looking to compete with Marvel's The Avengers, which made $1 billion at the box office in 2012 on a $220 million budget.
It wasn't until critical reception and box office performance for Batman v Superman failed to meet Warner Bros.' expectations that the studio changed its plans for the franchise while Justice League was still in production. Further changes were made to the film after Snyder stepped down from the project following his daughter's death in March 2017. The film's completion was overseen by director Joss Whedon, who had also directed the highly successful 2012 Avengers film.
Zack Snyder's Justice League stars Ben Affleck as Batman, Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, Henry Cavill as Superman, Amy Adams as Lois Lane, Jason Momoa as Aquaman, Ezra Miller as The Flash, Ray Fisher as Cyborg, Jeremy Irons as Alfred Pennyworth, Diane Lane as Martha Kent, Ray Porter as Darkseid, Ciarán Hinds as Steppenwolf, Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor and J.K. Simmons as Commissioner Gordon. The film arrives on HBO Max March 18.
Source: YouTube