The Snyder Cut is yet to hit HBO Max, but the hype train, the early reactions, and critical reviews make it seem that the film will get a grand reception. People have been waiting for this one ever since the Josstice League hit theatres back in 2017. Zack Snyder has taken a big swing and it looks like he’s not going to miss. Many ardent fans are hoping that Zack Snyder’s Justice League will restore the Snyderverse. But sadly, Snyder has confirmed that this is his final DC film. Warner Bros. still doesn’t want anything to do with his vision.
Warner Bros. has already invested in their upcoming DC films for the next three years. It’s safe to say that all of those films will deviate from the Snyderverse. Ezra Miller’s The Flash is a multiverse Flashpoint movie that involves Michael Keaton’s Batman alongside Ben Affleck’s Batman and Sasha Calle’s Supergirl. James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad is a soft reboot upon David Ayer’s Suicide Squad. Aquaman and Shazam! barely connected with the Josstice League, let alone Zack Snyder’s Justice League. So, the upcoming movies like Aquaman 2, Black Adam, and Shazam! Fury of the Gods might follow a similar trajectory. Warner Bros. cannot just drop the development on all these projects and restore the Snyderverse.
Snyder was recently asked by the New York Times about his DC legacy. The visionary director admitted that WB is “100 percent moving away. They consider the theatrical cut of ‘Justice League’ as canon.” Well, the reception of Zack Snyder’s Justice League is yet to officially come. The critics have answered as the Rotten Tomatoes score is constantly improving. But the thing that will matter the most is viewership numbers. This film has to pull in a lot of subscribers and people have to watch the heck out of it in order for a sequel to happen. And even if it does happen, then Snyder’s vision might only come true through HBO Max. That’s where the biggest problem lies.
It’s not that fans won’t enjoy seeing Justice League 2 as an HBO Max original. People are going to be extremely happy if it gets greenlit in any way. But, the problem with HBO Max is the budget. None of the streamers have spent more than $200 million on the production of a film or a series. And Snyder’s Justice League 2 will demand a budget that’s much bigger than 200. So, Snyder might either have to compromise with the quality, or we won’t get a Justice League 2 period.
Zack Snyder’s Justice League reportedly has a massive cliffhanger at the end. So, people will naturally want to see more if they like the film a lot. But the question is, will a giant conglomerate cave ahead of fan demand? If they do, then we should expect projects like Ben Affleck’s The Batman and Man of Steel 2 to be back on track as well. But for now, these projects are just fanboy pipe dreams. Let’s hope that we as fans could repeat what we did for the Snyder Cut.
