Not even a week after the long sought after release of Zack Snyder’s Justice League, some fans are already asking Warner Bros. to fully realize Snyder’s vision, a.k.a. the Snyderverse. The general reaction to Zack Snyder’s film has been positive, both with fans and critics. It addresses many flaws in the rushed and fractured storytelling of the previous 2017 version of the film, under replacement director, Joss Whedon. Almost immediately after that incarnation hit theatres, fans were left wondering what Snyder’s vision looked like.
Now, a portion of the fanbase has created the hashtag #RestoreTheSnyderVerse, which has gained momentum on places like Twitter. Social media is where the original movement began to bring Zack Snyder’s Justice League to fans with things like the #ReleaseTheSnyderCut. The success has proved incentive to try again and it shows the power of many voices speaking up about what they want to be entertained by and to spend money on.
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Additionally, there is even a Change.org petition gaining ground. Even though many similar petitions are used for more mainstream issues, it shows the audience members’ willingness to take time and effort to sign-up and speak-out to company shareholders about making the product fans want to see. The size and financial impact of that vocal minority/majority is up to Warner Bros. to measure.
Due to the success of fans bringing Zack Snyder’s Justice League to life, Warner Media Studios CEO Ann Sarnoff had this to add:
We’re always going to listen to our fans, but we are in service of the broadest fanbase and we owe them an integrated, holistic strategy… For certain fans that want singular voices, they may be disappointed, but we would ask them to be patient and see what we’ve got in store because perhaps the newer voices in the mix will have just as compelling stories to tell.
Snyder himself has revealed the original vision of his ‘Snyderverse’ involved five films, with Zack Snyder’s Justice League being the middle movie. But there are no plans to make more, at this point, let alone bring back all of the titular stars necessary to do so. As mentioned, Warner Bros. is already looking to go in new directions. But Sarnoff is keenly aware of how the studio arrived here in the first place and that fans’ support of Snyder’s style of filmmaking is not something to casually toss aside.
In the grand scheme of movie production, the cost vs. risk factor, while measured in many millions, perhaps wasn’t as big a gamble in this case. At the very least, it can be hard to ignore the free publicity that came with three and a half years of #ReleaseTheSynderCut, especially as it grew beyond the core consumer base of fans and into the mainstream. As a bonus, deciding to make the cut a reality helped to promote the streaming service HBO Max and make a splash similar to The Mandalorian on Disney+. With all those factors, the gamble can look a little less risky, which might inform plans going forward.
The fact that fans were willing to support and stream a four-hour, R-rated, dark-themed, epic saga – that was essentially a retelling of the same movie they had already watched – is amazing. It also speaks directly to the talents of Zack Snyder and his artistic sensibilities. 2017’s version of Justice League proved that special effects and hero nostalgia can’t overcome weak and muddled storytelling. Fans have shown they have enough patience to invest into a long epic if it truly pays off.
Zack Snyder’s Justice League stars Ben Affleck as Batman, Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, Henry Cavill as Superman, Amy Adams as Lois Lane, Jason Momoa as Aquaman, Ezra Miller as The Flash, Ray Fisher as Cyborg, Jeremy Irons as Alfred Pennyworth, Diane Lane as Martha Kent, Ray Porter as Darkseid, Ciarán Hinds as Steppenwolf, Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor and J.K. Simmons as Commissioner Gordon. The film is currently available on HBO Max.
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