While fans may feel disappointed about Zack Snyder not being able to complete his vision of the DCEU, he is taking the situation positively. Snyder parted ways with the Warner Bros.-controlled universe, where James Gunn and Peter Safran took over control at DC. Despite his love for working with established DC characters, the Man of Steel director felt that DCEU imposed too many limitations on his creative freedom.
Snyder helmed three films in the universe and even got to release a Snyder cut of Justice League, five years after the release of the movie. However, he revealed that working on Netflix projects like Rebel Moon was more liberating for him as he could build entire worlds and set the rules.
Zack Snyder Explains Why Making Rebel Moon Is More Liberating Than DCEU
Zack Snyder‘s Superman and Batman movies did not impress everyone. In fact, Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice was one of the lowest-rated DCEU movies on Rotten Tomatoes. However, hardcore Snyder fans really loved the dark, gritty approach that the Watchmen director took for these films. This love was also reflected in the box-office performances of Snyder’s films.
Snyder was also very much involved in making these comic book movies, however, he faced several limitations in adapting the already-established worlds and characters. Snyder revealed to the Hindustan Times during the promotion of Rebel Moon that DCEU and other comic book adaptations were fun, but he couldn’t do his thing and had to “stay on task” most of the time. Snyder shared with the Hindustan Times:
“To be honest, I love working with Batman and Superman, but they’re very particular. There are a lot of limitations on what you can and cannot do. You can’t do your own thing. If you’re adapting some famous work, sometimes it’s better to stay on task. And I’m happy to do that, whether it’s Watchmen (2009) or 300 (2007).”
However, Snyder shared that he liked making original movies like Rebel Moon more since he could take the characters on unexpected journeys and create their world. He found it liberating that he could set the rules in such film universes. The Sucker Punch director shared:
“But if you’re doing something original, you really have the opportunity to take characters on journeys that might be crazier than what anyone expected. In that way, it’s liberating for me to get to create the world and set the rules.”
From Warner Bros., who kept on pestering him to change his Justice League script in 2017, Zack Snyder moved on to Netflix, which was more accepting of the director’s creative wishes. Their first collaboration was on the zombie-apocalypse-heist film, Army of the Dead, before they joined forces for Rebel Moon.
Zack Snyder Defines His Relationship With Netflix As Trusting
Zack Snyder also shared with the Indian news outlet that his relationship with Netflix was fun and beneficial. Snyder revealed that the platform had been incredibly supportive and trusting of his creative choices. It appears both of them are willing to make compromises with each other.
When Netflix wanted the director to remove an NSFW scene from Army of the Dead, Snyder budged. Similarly, when Snyder demanded a two-part Rebel Moon movie, with separate PG-13 and R-rated versions of each, the streaming giant was also okay with it. Snyder shared about their mutually beneficial relationship:
“My relationship with Netflix has been really amazing. We trust each other so they’ve been incredibly supportive. I really appreciate that. I don’t know if it’s studios vs streamers, but in this case, it’s been mutually beneficial and fun.”
However, Zack Snyder is yet to score big with his Netflix movies. While the movies brought in audiences to stream them, they were of subpar quality according to critics. Rebel Moon: Part One — A Child of Fire received an abysmal Rotten Tomatoes score of 22% from 172 critical reviews. Fans really hope that Snyder delivers on the second part of the film, titled Scargiver, which is set to be released on April 19, 2024.
