DC Is Officially Releasing the ‘Snyder-Cut’ of Justice League, on HBO MAX | Article Reupload

It’s official. The long demanded and often thought to be ‘mythical’ version of the DC’s critically & commercially panned Justice League movie – known as the ‘Snyder-cut’ – will be released in 2021, on HBO Max. It’s hard not to believe that it wasn’t all just willed into existence after nearly 3 years of fan campaigns and outcries, but here we are with the Snyder cut upon us. You damn nerds actually got away with this one. God help us all.

via GIPHY

The original release of Justice League was not well received by the majority of fans and critics, which saw director Joss Whedon (of Avengers fame) stepping in to finish the post-production process after Zack Snyder had to step away due to tragic family circumstances.

Fans noted that Whedon’s version seemed to inject more moments of levity that did not really match Snyder’s original darker vision – the kind found in the polarising Batman V Superman movie, which Zack Snyder also directed. Fans believed that Snyder’s mostly finished, original cut of Justice League was still out there (something which Snyder himself would confirm years later), and so the #ReleaseTheSnyderCut campaign was born.

This is of course fantastic news for fans and for Zack Snyder himself, who delivered a heartfelt message to all involved with bringing the Snyder-cut to light:

“I want to thank HBO Max and Warner Brothers for this brave gesture of supporting artists and allowing their true visions to be realised. Also a special thank you to all of those involved in the Snyder-Cut movement for making this a reality”.

It also represents a big win for the American streaming service ‘HBO Max’ which will exclusively debut Zack Snyder’s Justice League. It is currently unknown as to what platforms if any, will handle the international release of the movie.

That being said there is still work left to do with the production of the ‘Snyder-cut’. A report via THR suggests that it will cost anywhere from $20 million to $30 million to re-edit, re-score and finish parts of the visual effects. All of which is undoubtedly no simple feat, but it goes to show just how much may have been changed from Snyder’s original vision.

Another aspect of production being considered is how the movie will be released. Zack Snyder’s extended cut of Batman V Superman clocked in just over 3 hours and it’s been reported that the Snyder-cut of Justice League runs over 4 hours. One approach apparently being considered, besides releasing it as a 4-hour feature, is to release it in 6 episodic parts.

Either way, you cut it, the fact that this version is being released at all is a wonderful treat for the fans that fought hard in Zack Snyder’s corner. Whether Zack Snyder’s Justice League will be a critical success or not remains to be seen, and as far as fans are concerned that likely isn’t even the point anymore.

Regardless, here lies an opportunity for DC to breathe fresh new life into a DCEU that has just started to shake off the woes of earlier films, thanks to more successful movie ventures such as Wonder Woman and Shazam.