Zack Snyder’s tenure in tee DCU has been divisive and controversial as he presented DC characters with a certain edge that was not accepted by fans. His presentation of idealistic characters like Superman and Batman being put in dire circumstances provoking them to kill other beings was not something that audiences were not ready to see.
Nevertheless, there have been Snyder loyalists who have defended his edgier take on characters and breaking previously established norms of the DC characters. Right from Man of Steel, Snyder took chances with the Superman lore with a controversial approach to Jonathan Kent’s death scene. Snyder defended this as an important step in Clark Kent’s evolution into being Superman.
Jonathan Kent’s Sacrifice in Man of Steel Was Important According to Zack Snyder
Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel took a very humanistic approach to Superman played by Henry Cavill. Snyder’s approach to the character was like an alien slowly learning the ways of human civilization and acclimatizing to his life on Earth as Clark Kent. This meant hiding his powers, an aspect that Kevin Costner‘s Jonathan Kent frequently tells Clark.
This pivotal narrative arc led to Jonathan’s demise in the film. When Clark volunteers to save him from a tornado, Jonathan prevents him and Clark has to watch him die. While some found problems with this take, Snyder defended his death, explaining how it added to Clark Kent’s learning to know the responsibility of possessing superhuman powers and his inexperience with it at the time.
In an interview with GQ, Snyder compared Superman’s arc in Man of Steel with an immigrant’s story. He explains Jonathan Kent’s death as a way to protect who Superman really was and the fact that the world was not ready for someone as powerful as him. He sacrificed himself to not let the cat out of the bag just yet, as the world was not ready to deal with someone like Clark in his true form, while he himself had not realized his potential. Snyder said,
“He says ‘I let my father die to protect the idea that my father was trying to protect. The idea that like, I wasn’t ready to be like outed to the world because I wasn’t Superman. I’m just, I am like a teenager, that I kind of like, I could have made a mess of it. I have the power to do it, But like, have I ever used my powers in that way? Did I know exactly how to do it? No'”
Jonathan knew that the world would see Clark Kent/ Superman as a threat if they came to know his true identity. Thus, his heartbreaking sacrifice was necessary for Clark to know about the cynical way of the world. Although he initially dealt with the guilt of Jonathan’s death pretty harshly, he came to understand the motivations behind it.
Tom Cruise Wanted to Play Rorschach in Zack Snyder’s Watchmen
Before starting the DCU, Zack Snyder dabbled into the subversive part of the DC lore with his live-action version of Watchmen in 2009. It was a big undertaking as the characters were not as popular with audiences as other popular DC characters like Superman and Batman. While Matthew Goode played Ozymandias in the film, Snyder initially wanted Tom Cruise for the role.
The director dropped the bombshell news in an appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast where he revealed that Cruise was instead interested in playing Rorschach. Jackie Earle Haley ultimately played the part in the film, but Snyder says that if Haley rejected the role, he would have definitely cast Cruise. Snyder said,
“I wanted Cruise for Ozymandias; he wanted to play Rorschach. I mean, obviously, he could have done, but we had Jackie already. But I certainly would’ve considered Tom, in retrospect, if I hadn’t had Jackie.”
While he is mostly known for his action roles, Cruise has not shied away from playing intense and out-of-the-box characters in his career. It would have been interesting to see the actor commit to an outrageous character like Rorschach. Despite, lukewarm reactions upon release, Watchmen has become a cult film in recent years.
Fans can watch Watchmen and Man of Steel on Max.
