Well, holy shit. The #ReleaseTheSnyderCut crowd is never gonna shut up now. It’s actually happening. All of the petitions, all of the billboards taking up space at Comic-Con, all of the teasing by Zack Snyder…it’s paid off. The Snyder Cut of Justice League is coming to HBO Max.
We told you Snyder was holding a watch party for Man of Steel today, and he dropped the news himself. Yes, his cut of Justice League is real and it’s happening on the streaming service HBO Max…
“The truth is…I’m not really in control of it,” teased Snyder. “I’ve said it exists and I’ve been clear about what I did with it. It’s not really up to me. If it was up to me, I would have already left it on a thumbdrive in a bathroom somewhere.”
Of course, we knew that all along. Snyder could drop as much concept art of Green Lantern and Darkseid as he wanted, but it was always up to Warner Bros. whether his film saw the light of days. And now it will, in some fashion…
“It’ll probably be in 2021 because we have a little bit of work to do, but we’re doing it. Get ready,” he said.
Even Henry Cavill, who joined the watch party and has been sorta quiet on the whole Snyder Cut thing, chimed in with a well-timed joke…
“I would love to see a version of ‘Justice League’ without the mustache.”
So now guys like me can shut the fuck up with all of our doubt this day would ever come. Although it’s still sorta unclear how Justice League is going to be presented. Unlike the version by Joss Whedon that we saw in theaters, Snyder’s cut is largely unfinished, especially the VFX. I guess that’s what he means by “work to do”, although nobody expects WB to pile on millions of dollars to correct that.
What’s different about Snyder’s vision? It was considerably longer, for one thing, was originally designed to be a two-parter, featured the Thanos-like villain Darkseid, plus Green Lantern, and more time with Cyborg and the Flash. And that’s just a start. Just follow Snyder’s social media for more because he can’t stop posting new shit he was gonna do.
This is going to be fascinating to find out how these discussions began and what ultimately convinced WB to see this through. But for those who perhaps have some lingering doubt that Snyder is being honest, check out the full press release below:
LOS ANGELES – May 20, 2020 – After global passionate fan calls to action and the #ReleaseTheSnyderCut movement, HBO Max and Warner Bros. Pictures announced today that it will exclusively world premiere Zack Snyder’s director’s cut of the Warner Bros. Pictures/DC feature film Justice League in 2021. Snyder surprised fans with the news this morning during a live online commentary of his film Man of Steel with Henry Cavill.
ReleaseTheSnyderCut first became a passionate rallying social media cry among fans in 2017 and has not let up. From countless press articles and hundreds of thousands of social media mentions, it became a powerful global movement among cinephiles and comic book fans.
“I want to thank HBO Max and Warner Brothers for this brave gesture of supporting artists and allowing their true visions to be realized. Also a special thank you to all of those involved in the SnyderCut movement for making this a reality,” said Snyder.
“Since I got here 14 months ago, the chant to #ReleaseTheSnyderCut has been a daily drumbeat in our offices and inboxes. Well, the fans have asked, and we are thrilled to finally deliver. At the end of the day, it really is all about them and we are beyond excited to be able to release Zack’s ultimate vision for this film in 2021. This could never have happened if it weren’t for the hard work and combined efforts of the teams at HBO Max and Warner Bros. Pictures,” said Robert Greenblatt, Chairman, Warner Media Entertainment and Direct-To-Consumer.
“When Zack and Debbie shared the extraordinary vision of where Zack wanted to take Justice League, my team and our counterparts at Warner Bros. took it as a mission to solve the many issues that stood in the way,” said Kevin Reilly, Chief Content Officer at HBO Max, President, TNT, TBS and truTV. “Thanks to the partnership at Warner Bros. and the relentless pursuit of the entire WarnerMax team we are able to deliver this incredibly exciting moment for Zack, the fans and HBO Max.”
“Thanks to the efforts of a lot people, we’re excited to bring fans this highly anticipated version of Justice League,” said Toby Emmerich, Chairman, Warner Bros. Pictures Group. “This feels like the right time to share Zack’s story, and HBO Max is the perfect platform for it. We’re glad the creative planets aligned, allowing us to #ReleaseTheSnyderCut.”
In Justice League, fueled by his restored faith in humanity and inspired by Superman’s selfless act, Bruce Wayne enlists the help of his newfound ally, Diana Prince, to face an even greater enemy. Together, Batman and Wonder Woman work quickly to find and recruit a team of metahumans to stand against this newly awakened threat. But despite the formation of this unprecedented league of heroes—Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Cyborg and The Flash—it may already be too late to save the planet from an assault of catastrophic proportions.
The Justice League screenplay is by Chris Terrio, story by Chris Terrio & Zack Snyder, based on characters from DC, Superman created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. The film’s producers are Charles Roven, Deborah Snyder, with executive producers Christopher Nolan, Emma Thomas, Jim Rowe, Ben Affleck, Wesley Coller, Curtis Kanemoto, and Chris Terrio.
