These days, every big budget comic book movie is met with speculation about the amount of “studio interference” involved in production, but with Justice League, this speculation is augmented by the question of where director Zack Snyder’s work ends, and where the additional material and reshoots of Joss Whedon begins.
This is because Snyder had to depart the project after filming had ended, and Whedon – who had already been working on the script – was drafted in to handle post-production and reshoots. Producer Charles Roven subsequently conceded that the theatrical release consisted of about 15-20% Joss Whedon footage, but we suspect that might be underselling it a bit.
Fans are already petitioning Warner Bros. for a Director’s Cut – that online petition has so far garnered more than 140,000 signatures – while Aquaman himself, Jason Momoa, believes there is enough leftover footage to make a second movie. Perhaps we’ll see Zack Snyder’s version on home video, then? It’s possible, but according to a new report, it may not be worth the cost for the studio.
Mario F. Robles, who writes for IGN and a few other outlets, took to Twitter the other day to provide an update on the fabled Director’s Cut. If he’s to be believed, what exists is simply just an assembly cut that doesn’t have a finished score or VFX. Furthermore, Robles claims that it would cost Warner Bros. millions to polish it up so it’s ready for mass consumption, and given that he mentions that the studio doesn’t trust Zack’s vision anymore, they’re unlikely to invest the money to complete his version of the film.
Snyder himself has yet to make a public statement about the final cut of the pic, but there’s a very good reason for that – he hasn’t even seen the movie. While speaking with a fan on social media, the director revealed how little he’s had to do with the film since he passed the baton over to Whedon for the reshoots and hinted at much regret that he didn’t get to complete his work on the project.
“I will be honest, I have not seen the film since I stepped away. You know I love these characters. I wish only I could only finish it for you and the others who love MOS, BvS.”
Look, we’re not going to pretend that Zack Snyder’s cut is a great lost classic of cinema. After all, he had complete control of Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice and look how that turned out. But still, you’ve gotta respect him for at least having an aesthetic and vision, something sorely lacking in the focus-grouped-to-death cut of the film that WB and Whedon Frankensteined together.
At the moment, it looks as if Justice League will either be an outright flop or merely a disappointment. What it won’t be deemed is a success, that much is certain. Whether Warner Bros. will try to turn a bit more profit by releasing an extended version of some kind remains to be seen, but even if they do, it unfortunately doesn’t appear like it’ll be in the form of Snyder’s original, untouched cut.
