SPOILERS: BATMAN v SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE - 10 Rumors Which Ended Up Being Bullsh*t
We've faced what's felt like a never ending barrage of Batman v Superman rumours over the past couple of years, but which were true and which were false? Here's a look at ten huge ones which didn't pan out.
The past few years have been dominated with rumours about two movies: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Captain America: Civil War. It's the former we're interested in for the time being of course, and with many of you heading to see the movie at your local theater this evening, I thought now would be a good time to look back at the various rumours and reports about this highly anticiated release which didn't end up panning out. In fact, we now know that they were 100% pure bullsh*t!
In fairness to the sites that broke these, things change behind the scenes and false information gets distributed all the time, so the intention here isn't to shame anyone for getting their facts wrong (even if some always felt blatantly false). Instead, it's to highlight just how much we've seen reported about Batman v Superman ended up being incorrect, and you may be surprised by the amount of rumours from the past few years which were wrong and in some cases right, albeit in unexpected ways...
10. Bizarro
Back in January, it was reported that Batman v Superman would utilise a THIRD villain in the final act, with Bizarro being introduced as a threat who would then go on to make his presence felt in Justice League. Well, while the Man of Steel looks a little like that fan-favourite bad guy after being blasted by a nuclear bomb (he quickly heals though), Bizarro most definitely isn't in this movie.
In fact, he's not even hinted at, and there's nothing in the closing moments of Batman v Superman which would lead anyone to believe that Snyder has any intentions of using him somewhere down the line. Perhaps this rumour was inspired by Superman's appearance after that explosion?
9. A Watchmen Style Justice League Montage
Batman v Superman kicks off with a very understaded opening credits sequence which looks great and offers up a surprisingly fresh take on the murders of Thomas and Martha Wayne. What it doesn't do is finish with a montage, "reminiscent of what Zack Snyder did with the opening credits on Watchmen."
While specifics were never revealed, that was supposed to offer up a look at the Justice League in action, but considering the fact that the movie ends with the team not yet assembled, it's hard to believe that this was ever considered (and it was certainly never shot). For that reason, I wouldn't expect to see it on that "Ultimate Cut" coming to Blu-ray a little later this year...
8. Two Fights Between Batman And Superman
For the longest time, it's been said that Batman v Superman would feature two fights between the titular heroes. Nope. While we do get an initial confrontation between them, the entirety of that has already been seen in the clips and TV spots which have been released, and their only real fight comes when the Dark Knight dons his armour on a rooftop in Gotham City.
You may have seen that dismissed by some critics as eight minutes which aren't worth waiting for, but trust me when I say it's a spectacular battle and one of the best fight scenes put in a comic book movie. Regardless, the movie may feature two confrontations, but not the two fights we were promised early on.
7. Aquaman Is Lex Luthor's Captive
We've heard a lot of conflicting reports about Aquaman and The Flash's role in Batman v Superman over the past few years, and while the latter did indeed race through a convenience store to stop a robbery, the King of Atlantis most certainly wasn't being held captive by Lex Luthor.
It was said at one point that we would see him in a containment chamber and that his hand would slap against the glass with the hero's trident later showing up in the possession of Amanda Waller in Suicide Squad. That actually would have been fun, and I honestly wouldn't be suprised if this was the plan before Warner Bros. decided the whole thing might be a tad hard to follow for some.
6. A "Death In The Family" Flashback
When Ben Affleck popped up to Toronto to spend a few days on the set of Suicide Squad, the rumour mill started going into overdrive about him shooting a little something for Batman v Superman involving Jared Leto's Joker.
Nothing concrete was ever really reported, but it was said that we'd see a flashback to the day the Clown Prince of Crime murdered Robin (with Snyder's son playing the character) and possibly even the moment the villain gunned down Barbara Gordon. Other than Bruce Wayne mentioning the fact that Gotham isn't too keen on freaks dressed as clowns, The Joker doesn't get so much as a mention in Batman v Superman, never mind an physical appearance!
5. Wonder Woman Kills Doomsday
The report that Wonder Woman cuts off Doomsday hand (only for a sword to grow in its place) was accurate, but another in regards to her role in the final act most definitely was not. That stated that Diana is the one who deals the final blow to the monster, chopping off his head and bringing the battle to a close.
In reality, nothing of the sort takes place, though Wonder Woman and her lasso of truth do play a pivotal part in stopping the monster's rampage. This one hailed from a pretty unreliable source and didn't get a lot of coverage, but managed to receive enough to ensure that the way the battle really ends surprisingly didn't manage to find its way online at any point since 2014.
4. Themyscira Has An Embassy In Metropolis
You may recall a very long time ago there being reports of the Justice League being almost like the United Nations in the sense that the team would represent different races from around the world.
That sounded pretty silly and didn't factor into Batman v Superman in any way, but it was later claimed that Wonder Woman's people are well known to the rest of the world in the DC Films Universe, something evident from there being an embassy for Themyscira in Metropolis. Well, there isn't one, and Diana has in reality been in hiding for decades. However, reports of Lex having a photo of her from hundreds of years ago were spot on, though no one mentioned Bruce's knowledge of that.
3. More Batman, Less Superman
As the tide began to turn and fans came around to the idea of Ben Affleck playing Batman, it took no time at all for a report to crop up claiming that Warner Bros. bigwigs had demanded that the movie feature much more of the Caped Crusader and a fair bit less of the Man of Steel.
Well, while Batman v Superman certainly offers up plenty of Batman, there's nothing which points to him getting preferential treatment in terms of screentime. While I certainly didn't have a stopwatch on me, their screentime seems pretty equal and is actually weighted more in Superman's favour, especially with his supporting cast and villains playing such a prominent role in how the story plays out.
2. Jim Gordon Gets A Mention
We've known that rumours about Jim Gordon being dead in this world were incorrect ever since J.K. Simmons joined the cast of Justice League, but it was also claimed some time ago that he gets some sort of mention. Sadly, there's not so much as a single nod in his direction (other than Clark mentioning that the police appear to be helping Batman in his endeavours), but the Commissioner isn't the only one to get snubbed.
There's no conversation with Alfred about Jason's fate and no one talks about Dick Grayson/Nightwing. I've also seen claims that Lucius Fox was killed in the building destroyed by Superman and General Zod, but there's no mention of him in this movie either.
1. Superman Threatens To Break Someone's Neck
I remember this being a fun one here on CBM! Now, you don't need me to remind you how controversial Superman's decision to break General Zod's neck was in Man of Steel, but the reveal that Batman v Superman would directly address that brought the argument back up all over again.
Apparently, the scene featured the hero confronting the movie's big bad (presumably Lex Luthor), and telling him: "I won't snap your neck, I'm going to take you to prison." This came from what was said to be a draft of the script handed in a month before shooting started, so it could very well have been true, but for whatever reason, it was clearly cut or was just complete bullsh*t.
Have we missed any other rumours from the past couple of years which didn't come true? Which of these do you wish were actually in the movie? As always, let us know your thoughts in the usual place.