We never expected Warner Bros. to #ReleaseTheSnyderCut, but Zack Snyder's Justice League made its debut on HBO Max way back in March 2021.
It received positive reviews (which were considerably better than those for Joss Whedon's 2017 effort) but some newly shot sequel teases thrown in by the filmmaker resulted in the birth of a new #RestoreTheSnyderverse hashtag. Since then, it's become clear that won't happen, particularly with a DCU reboot on the horizon from DC Studios.
Still, we're sure you're also familiar with the #SellTheSnyderverseToNetflix campaign, a strong indication these fan-led campaigns are still gaining some online traction.
Zack Snyder has now chimed in, responding to a fan on Vero to confirm that the Snyderverse is officially over. This appears to close the door on any sort of follow-up to his cut of Justice League, whether it's an Elseworlds movie, TV series, or even comic book.
That feels like a missed trick in some ways, particularly as any sort of continuation would no doubt be popular. However, it would also distract from what Warner Bros. and DC Studios are trying to do with the DCU, leading to a resurgence in those social media campaigns (which we're guessing will eventually fade away...over time).
Discussing James Gunn's plans to overhaul the DCEU, Snyder recently said, "I called him and said I wish all the best for him. I told him I wanted it to work."
"We cared deeply about what we were doing," the filmmaker added of the time he spent battling Warner Bros. over his vision for Justice League. "We weren’t trying to make an Avengers movie. We weren’t. We didn’t know how, quite frankly. They brought someone in that did. I’ve never seen the [Whedon version], but it wasn’t the answer."
Snyder has also shared his belief that the superhero genre "has not evolved" and admits "I don’t have the excitement for it that I used to have." He's done with comic book movies for now but admits that, if DC Studios' co-CEO James Gunn calls, he'd be open to helming a comic-accurate take on The Dark Knight Returns...providing it's "a true representation of the graphic novel."
The director will likely concentrate on Rebel Moon for the foreseeable future, a shared world he intends to expand across streaming, video games, and more.
How do you feel about the Snyderverse reaching its end?