The Justice League Snyder Cut

The Justice League

On March 18, the Justice League's 'Snyder Cut' opens (on HBO, at no additional cost), and, face it, you're embarrassed to ask what the Snyder Cut is. Let's see if we help you know what all this mess is about.

On March 18, Zack Snyder premieres his version of the Justice League, the original cut of the director who conceived the film, known as the Justice League Snyder Cut, and we have to talk seriously you and me because I think you don't know what the Snyder Cut is at this point in the movie, pun intended. Don't worry, I'll explain it to you quickly. The Zack Snyder Justice League that you have seen in the movies or on any of the streaming platforms where the movie was available (right now it is no longer available) is not Zack Snyder's Justice League. It's more like the Justice League from Warner Bros on the original idea for Zack Snyder or Joss Whedon's (infamous) Justice League, who made so many changes to the original script and shot so many new scenes that it ended up being quite a different movie that took less than 20 % of the original footage and made changes to Snyder's already perfect action scenes, changing not only the tone of the story but also the pace. 

Warner Bros, by the way, was not convinced by the 'Whedon cut' either. In May 2017, when the film had already been shot and edited, Snyder left the project after a family member suffered a personal tragedy...

 

Despite the tragedy, he returned to work, but was under so much pressure to change history that he decided he did not deserve to fight this battle. Warner Bros had not liked the initial cut that had been sent to them, so they took advantage of Snyder's departure to have director Joss Whedon take care of correcting what they had not liked.

The problems had started earlier. Zack Snyder wanted a dark version (that connected with Snyder's previous films in the DC Universe: Man of Steel and Batman vs. Superman and that he talked about the loss for every one of his characters) and Warner Bros. a brighter one, with jokes, reminiscent of the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies (basically what the Snyder movie was not). 

Whedon, who had previously been hired to 'lighten' the script (he had come from directing the first two Avengers installments), not directing, was supposed to add to the film the perfect combination of action and humor that the studio was looking for. . Whedon wrote new scenes, changed the storyline, and about 50% of the film was re-shot (at an estimated cost of $ 25 million extra). Before Snyder's departure, Warner Bros also brought in comic book writer Geoff Johns, who was responsible for the Shazam! Adaptations afterward .and Aquaman.

So the Snyder cut, that Snyder Cut, references the director's original cut before CGI post-production started. That original four-hour black-and-white version, without CGI, or music, included a substantially different plot and a long list of scenes cut with characters that were much more weight, such as Cyborg or Aquaman. New Green Lanterns were also appearing. Oh, and Batman had a great Star Wars moment: remember when Finn wants to blow himself up with his ship and Rose saves him at the last second? Put Batman where it says Finn and Wonder Woman and Aquaman where it says Rose and, boom, take the scene from The Last Jedi.

Justice League

The film was released on November 17, 2017, and received the blow of the critics and the disappointment of the spectators. The film grossed $ 657.9 million worldwide. It was indeed below Batman & Superman: Dawn of Justice, which did not please the critics and the public either, but it raised 872.7 million dollars, neither the 821.8 million that Wonder Woman entered nor the 1,148 million dollars by Aquaman. The problem is that, according to DC sources, the movie cost 650 million dollars, something that Warner Bros. has never confirmed or denied. If we consider that Aquaman cost 200 million dollars ...

So since they did not like the final version, everyone thought that the original version had to be better and began to claim it on social networks, even creating a crowdfunding campaign that initially raised $ 20,000 to invest in marketing actions that resulted in that the public could see in the cinema or DVD the original cut of Snyder. Knowing that 180,000 people signed the viral petition on Change.orgFor the original montage to be made public, you can get an idea of ​​how many fans are interested. It is true that the movement has gained momentum after the last San Diego Comic-Con and has managed to raise an additional $ 110,000 that has been allocated to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) (which has to do with the family tragedy of Snyder).

To all this, we must add that the extended original montage is something that has worked for Snyder, at least with criticism. Relaunching extended versions of his films has done the tapes well. It happened with Watchmen and it happened with Batman vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice. So the fans (that universe of 180,000 people who are not even willing to put up a dollar each) have been wondering: why not also with the Justice League? Be careful, the question has always been made whether or not it makes obvious sense that the studio invests money in an original montage without post-production for a film that raised less than expected in its day. That it does have it via HBO Max because if not, it would not end up seeing the light.

The idea of ​​making the extended version public has received the support of the film's actors, film directors, television producers, comic book writers, since the very premiere, a support that was rekindled on the second anniversary of the premiere of the film. Two years that wouldn't have mattered anymore if it weren't for the $ 1 billion Marvel box office smash hits Aquaman and Joker, plus the equally respectable success of Shazam! , when everyone was already for dead the film adaptations of DC characters in the movies.

Why didn't they want us to see the Zack Snyder cut?

Is Warner Bros interested in releasing the cut? Assuming the original film is so different from the final cut and so worthwhile, Zack Snyder is compensated. But whether it compensates Warner Bros is by no means clear. First, because there is not so much fan base that I would go to the cinema to see it. But it is also that if he did not like it at the beginning and put problems and when he had the opportunity he turned the film around, why would he now retract and admit that he threw 25 million dollars in the trash (that is to say, but you already understand me)? That is not to mention the investment that would have to be made in post-production and then the copyright management by having two different versions of the film on the table.

That for one thing. On the other, the movement that wanted Snyder's cut to see the light was reminiscent of the same movement that cried out for a home remake of The Last Jedi. Members of the movement have been described by the US media as "toxic." Because articles that expressed the unnecessary news of Snyder's original montage have been trolled on social networks.

But the harassment went beyond the press. In September 2018, former DC Entertainment president Diane Nelson deleted her Twitter account as a result of online harassment of some members linked to the #ReleaseTheSnyderCut movement. This certainly didn't help.