Zack Snyder fans have crowdfunded and raised enough money to rent out billboards and create advertisements to promote #ReleaseTheSnyderCut. The cut, of course, refers to Snyder’s original version of 2017’s “Justice League”, which was re-altered by replacement director Joss Whedon, after Snyder needed to leave the film due to a family tragedy. The resulting version from Whedon, had Snyder’s cut drastically overhauled to a lighter, more MCU-esque stylistic tone.
The billboards seem to be all over San Diego today, which is where Comic-Con will be taking place.
A history of the Snyder cut:
Director Joss Whedon‘s extensive reshoots on “Justice League” no doubt clashed with Zack Snyder‘s original cut. Among the changes, Jesse Eisenberg‘s return as Lex Luthor was reportedly axed, and Gal Gadot‘s Wonder Woman is said to have received more scenes and screentime. It’s not just the characters, the overall mood was rumored to have garnered a lighter makeover with Whedon deviating away from Snyder’s darker palettes for a more colorful tone. “Justice League,” in short, was a battle of two visions and you could see that while watching the film. Sure, there’s Zack Snyder’s use of ultra slow-mo, the dark interiors and exteriors he so loves to use, and his penchant for the camera zooming in and out of action sequences, but Whedon would sometimes show up to the party by pulling back on some of Snyder’s darker contours for a more meta approach.
Meanwhile, fans had rallied behind an online petition demanding Zack Snyder’s original director’s cut. The film’s cinematographer has also added his voice to the mix, hoping to see Snyder’s fully realized film, with even the director’s son, Jett Snyder, speaking up, pointing out the flaws he saw in the finished product and the unfairness of Warner Bros. “meddling” with his dad’s vision.
Posting on Vero, Jett wrote:
“On a more serious note, I did enjoy the movie, although it is clearly not what it could have been due to the meddling of Warner Brothers and the forced comedy. The runtime was my biggest gripe with the movie, with events that should take a long time over in a flash;$ but still definitely a fun movie to watch, and would recommend it.”
As much as Whedon’s meta humor works in most of his films, it seemed out of place in “Justice League,” in which, before leaving production, Snyder set a tone of grim darkness. Jett Snyder isn’t wrong in saying the full vision wasn’t seen on-screen; Snyder’s film was reportedly much longer than its theatrical 121 minute running time.
As the call for a Snyder cut grows louder each day, I would think it will eventually see the light of day, it’s the only fair thing to do — especially for the droves of DCEU loyalists out there, which, I would say, number in the millions.