Over two years have passed since Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice debuted in theaters, and the DCEU landscape has evolved quite a bit. Plot threads planted in that film were explored in Justice League, while others were largely jettisoned in the franchise's creative shift. One major Batman v Superman scene that ultimately didn't play a huge role in future DC films was the Knightmare sequence, and it turns out that Zack Snyder had plans to use that scene as a springboard to take on the Injustice storyline. Taking to his Vero account, Snyder responded to fan comments and wrote:
This seemingly confirms what many fans have long assumed about the Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Knightmare sequence. The dream-like scene in which Batman leads a resistance against a rogue Superman (who has turned evil in the wake of the death of Lois Lane) feels incredibly reminiscent of the 2013 video game Injustice: Gods Among Us, and that's no accident. Per his remarks on Vero, Snyder has confirmed that he wanted to eventually bring the Justice League together to explore a dystopian reality in which Superman turns evil and goes after Bruce.
Check out the opening cutscene from Injustice: Gods Among Us, below, to see how that particular alternate reality story begins.
Obviously there are some differences to note. Injustice: Gods Among Us opens because Joker caused Superman to murder Lois Lane. By contrast, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice seemed to imply that Batman holds some degree of responsibility for Lois' death. Beyond that, Darkseid and the Ant-Life Equation play notable roles in the Dawn of Justice scene, while Injustice is a mostly Earth-bound storyline. That said, the parallels between Injustice and Knightmare are easy to see, and Zack Snyder had a plan to adapt Injustice to the big screen.
Of course, there's still plenty of room for DC to explore concepts like this in future films. For example, we already know that DC is in the process of developing a Flashpoint movie with Spider-Man: Homecoming screenwriters John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein set to direct. The storyline similarly involves interdimensional travel and messed up timelines, so we could still see a version of his particular narrative play out at some point. It will just have to evolve somewhat.
Only time will tell if the DCEU will ever return to the plot threads planted by Zack Snyder in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice to explore the Injustice storyline. For now, make sure to catch the next DC solo movie later this year when James Wan's Aquaman debuts on December 21.
