With larger than life heroes like Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman and more, Justice League is already going to be pretty busy as it is. Throw in numerous supporting characters as well, and you’ve got to wonder if Zack Snyder is going to be able to juggle everything in a satisfying manner. That remains to be seen, but one person he won’t have to worry about is Daily Planet Editor-in-chief Perry White, as it’s now been confirmed that Laurence Fishburne will not be in the film.
Speaking with the LA Times to promote his new effort John Wick: Chapter 2 – which is really quite good, in case you’re wondering – the actor revealed that while Snyder originally had a role for him, scheduling conflicts ultimately got in the way.
“They asked me to come for a day, but I couldn’t work it out, schedule-wise,” Fishburne said. “And really, what do you need the newspaperman in Justice League for? You want to see the Flash. You want to see Aquaman. You want to see Wonder Woman. You want to see the Lantern.”
Further in the interview, Fishburne addressed the criticisms levelled against Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice. Unsurprisingly, he said he doesn’t understand why so many people took issue with it, stating that he loves “what Zack Snyder does.”
“Jesse Eisenberg, this little nebbishy guy, as Lex Luthor? For me, that’s a genius move,” Fishburne said. “And the whole thing with Martha Kent and Martha Wayne? I don’t know, man, I must be sentimental but that’s some heartwarming [stuff] to me. So I don’t get it.”
We can’t say we agree with his comments on BvS, but what he says regarding why he won’t be in Justice League makes sense. Sure, it would have been nice to see the actor show up, but there probably isn’t much room for him and we can’t imagine him having that large of a role or being important to the overall plot. As such, it’s probably for the best that they didn’t squeeze him in.
Will Perry return in future DC Extended Universe films? Perhaps, but it likely wouldn’t be for a while given that it’s hard to see him showing up in something like The Batman or Aquaman or any of the other efforts that are crowding up the studio’s slate for the near future. Maybe they’ll save him for Man of Steel 2, if that ever gets off the ground? Who knows? For right now, all we can say with certainty is that the character will not be making an appearance in Justice League.
