The DC Extended Universe has had a wild life in theaters, full of peaks and valleys. The shared universe was started by Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel, and expanded with two more blockbusters by the 300 filmmaker. 2017 saw the release of Justice League, although it was greatly altered thanks to reshoots by Joss Whedon. Still, Snyder celebrated the movie’s anniversary with a sweet tribute to his daughter.
When Justice League was in the midst of principal photography, Zack Snyder had to leave the set due to a family tragedy related to his daughter. She passed away, and fans raised a great deal of money for suicide prevention while campaign for WB to #ReleaseTheSnyderCut. With the movie’s theatrical cut (which Snyder admits he never watched) celebrating its five-year anniversary, he Tweeted out some love for the fans, while honoring his late daughter. Check it out below:
Not only by your massive fundraising effort for mental health, but by having had a hand in creating something that will live forever. And for that, I am eternally grateful. #AFSP #ZSJLNovember 18, 2022
How sweet is that? After the snafu of Justice League’s release, it’s clear that Zack Snyder really feels some appreciation for the fans who campaigned online for years over his cut. While money was raised for suicide prevention, it was also a movement that Warner Bros. eventually succumbed to. And just like that, the four-hour experience that was Zack Snyder’s Justice League was born.
Zack Snyder’s recent tweet shows just how much his version of Justice League means to him. While the Snyder Cut felt like a pipe dream for years, it actually came to fruition. He was given a huge budget to complete the editing and visual effects of the project, while also filming two quick scenes via reshoots. And the project was super successful upon its release on HBO Max, inspiring yet another fan movement in the process: #RestoreTheSnyderVerse. And the emotions tied to the movie are especially strong given the filmmaker’s family tragedy.
Originally, Zack Snyder had planned a five-movie plotline for the DCEU, which included two sequels to Justice League. Obviously that never happened, but the release of the Snyder Cut and the new Knightmare sequence has fans hoping that Warner Bros. will change its tune and give the filmmaker two more movies. Joe Manganiello was one of the actors who participated in reshoots as Deathstroke, a character that has yet to finally get the spotlight in the shared universe. The Magic Mike actor responded to Snyder’s tweet, saying:
Thank you for everything Zack. To many more fun adventures…
But when, Joe? When? Manganiello debuted as Deathstroke in the credits scene of Justice League’s theatrical cut, setting up the sequel that never was. He was also going to appear in Ben Affleck’s Batman movie, which similarly got scrapped. It remains to be seen if he’ll ever get the chance to finally occupy this villain, but clearly he wants to work with Zack Snyder again.
While Zack Snyder hasn’t been in contact with Warner Bros. since the release of the Snyder Cut, he cut an exciting new deal making content for Netflix. He’s got a new franchise in Army of the Dead, which might be an opportunity to collaborate with Joe Manganiello. At least until he’s finally able to produce those Justice League sequels.
Zack Snyder’s next big project is Rebel Moon, which has a killer cast. But the movie doesn’t have a release date yet. In the meantime, check out the 2022 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience. But after Shazam 2’s delay there are no more DC movies hitting theaters this year.
