Note: This article contains spoilers for Black Adam.
DC's film universe is entering a new era. With the release of films like Shazam!, Birds of Prey, and, most recently, Black Adam, the DCEU seems to be in a different creative place than it was when it kicked off with Man of Steel, helmed by Zack Snyder. Though the director's vision for the DC Universe ended with Zack Snyder's Justice League, some fans on social media have consistently clamored for his return to the franchise.
Such desire has resulted in multiple instances of the #RestoreTheSnyderVerse movement trending on Twitter. Now, another hashtag has trended following the release of Black Adam: #BringBackZackSnyder. Dwayne Johnson's superhero film brough back Henry Cavill's Superman for a post-credits scene cameo.
The actor's much-anticipated comeback seems to have encouraged multiple users to ask for Zack Snyder to once again steer Warner Bros.' superhero franchise:
As has been the case with hashtags related to Zack Snyder's DC films throughout the past two years, this latest movement will probably not lead to a change in the DCEU. Though the amount of support stemming from fans seems to be plentiful, a trending hashtag is likely no longer enough to dictate the future of a movie franchise—especially when it comes to Warner Bros.
Zack Snyder's Justice League was made following a persistent #ReleaseTheSnyderCut movement. However, both the movie's viewership numbers and performance for HBO Max's subscriber base were reported to have been somewhat underwhelming. Then, an August 2022 report from Variety stated that executives at Warner Bros. regretted the decision to have greenlit Snyder's Justice League. According to the trade:
"Rather than quiet the unceasing online campaigning to #ReleaseTheSnyderCut, the four-hour HBO Max feature only further entrenched the vocal and extremely online 'Snyderverse' fanbase in opposition to the leadership at the studio in general and at DC in particular."
It's somewhat understandable that Henry Cavill's appearance in Black Adam would theoretically give some the idea that Warner Bros. is at least considering bringing back Snyder's DC vision. However, Superman's role in the film seems to have been more specifically about the character as played by Cavill, and is thus likely not signaling Snyder's DCEU return.
Superman's role in the DCEU is now seemingly closely tied to Black Adam's. During an interview with CinemaBlend, Dwayne Johnson confirmed there was a plan was to make a Black Adam/Superman movie down the line. Taking that into consideration, Cavill's Superman appears to be part of the creative direction that DC's shared film universe has been going in for the past few years.