Quite possibly the most hotly demanded alternate cut of a film to ever be speculated, comic movie fans were hopeful that Justice League’s “Snyder Cut” would find itself announced as the culmination of a massive social media campaign. With the film now two years out from its 2017 release date, director Zack Snyder and his lineup of DC heroes all pitched in to get the subject trending throughout social media. And yet, after those efforts, there are apparently no plans to release that cut anytime soon.
After all of the photos released by cast members like Jason Momoa and Gal Gadot, and even a tweet from Ben Affleck himself to #ReleaseTheSnyderCut, some parties close to the Warner Bros camp have informed the press that it’s just not happening. Or, at the very least, we shouldn’t expect an announcement that we’ll be getting The Snyder Cut of Justice League anywhere near the film’s anniversary, which was celebrated by fans yesterday.
THR obtained the scoop, as they were covering the fervent fanbase’s recent social media push, and its support from the majority of the film’s main cast. And sure enough, the hypothetical scenario that we might see Justice League’s full cut of Zack Snyder’s vision announced to be headed to HBO Max was addressed, and eventually debunked.
With Justice League’s troubled production history, and the unfortunate departure of director Snyder after a family tragedy, the finished film was taken over by Joss Whedon in the original helmer’s absence. Shepherding the film through reshoots and the finishing touches, the movie audiences got in the end has always been seen as more Whedon’s vision of the DC/Warner Bros team up film than Zack Snyder’s.
The major impetus behind asking the studio to release the supposed “Snyder Cut” is that fans want to see that alternate version of Justice League, which was apparently the unfettered vision that Snyder himself has shared multiple images from on the social media platform Vero. Couple those teases with folks like composer Junkie XL and filmmaker/fanboy Kevin Smith persistently insisting that this alternate version is finished, and you’ve got a recipe for a fan movement that will probably never rest until they get what they want.
What’s interesting in this whole scenario is that despite stating a Justice League announcement is not imminent, it isn’t totally off the table. It makes total sense that, should HBO Max be the future home of this fabled treasure of DCEU fandom, they would hold onto that announcement until a date much closer to the spring 2020 launch of Warner Bros’ digital platform. So fans might be able to gain some hopeful energy from this latest development yet.
If there is going to be a digital streaming release of Justice League’s Snyder Cut, you can bet that it’ll be made closer to the moment people can pre-order their subscriptions to said platform. That way, people can take advantage of getting in on the ground floor, with only a short wait separating them from their treasured motion picture.
For now though, you can still watch Justice League’s theatrical cut on digital HD, 4K UHD, Blu-ray, and DVD. And if you’re looking for comic book excitement in a theater near you, check out the 2019 and 2020 release schedules to see what’s headed our way faster than a speeding bullet.
