If we have to pick one consistent thing about DCEU, then it is Zack Snyder’s loyalty to the cinematic universe’s fans or should we say his fans. Right from the time Snyder exited Justice League in May last year, there had been numerous rumors about WB having fired him, and there were reports that talked about how the studio executives wanted to send him packing after Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.
All that led to a lot of controversies and outrage among fans who are fond of his work and the vision he had created for DCEU.
Let’s just go back in time for a while and pay attention to the time before the rumors related to his sacking started doing the rounds. Let’s look at the time when he and his wife took a break in the aftermath of his daughter’s heart-breaking suicide. That’s the time when Joss Whedon was roped in to complete the film’s post-production work. It implied that he had filled in for Snyder and to take the project to the finishing line as per Snyder’s vision.
That obviously didn’t happen. It was soon revealed that Whedon was undertaking reshoots to add his own touch which was visible in the eventual movie. It wasn’t long before everyone realized that it was no longer Snyder’s version of the movie as a lot of scenes shot by him were deleted on the editing table.
We don’t think that we have ever seen fans channeling their hatred on someone (including even Snyder who is now revered by even his critics) to the extent that DCEU fans have displayed for Whedon.
After discovering all his internal conflicts and controversies, Snyder has been openly revealing his sentiments; whether it be his liking the Vero post from Fiona Zheng to taking a shot at the mess associated with removing Henry Cavill’s mustache during the Whedon reshoots. Slowly it started becoming clearer that his exit was less friendly than conveyed earlier (although it was not as much of a clash as reported either).
The evidence came in the form of Snyder’s latest series of Vero posts.
The first two are a shot of a finger cut (most likely Snyder’s own), and a picture showing Cavill as Superman on the set. Fans derived the meaning that the message indicated that he was working on the Snyder cut of the movie. This series of posts was further extended as the images that followed depicted Jason Momoa, Ezra Miller, and Kiersey Clemons.
Through the posts, Snyder clarifies how much he relished working with each of the cast members, and it is understandable that the much fancied “Snyder Cut” might be in the works. We are welcoming such a thing even though it still looks a bit unlikely. Warner Bros. will be required to spend many more millions into Justice League to complete the VFX of that cut, and since the film has already done badly, it is not likely that they would wish to spend more money on it.
Eventually, the best that we can hope for is to see Snyder remain a part of the DCEU in some role for the times to come.