Justice is finally coming.
After his original vision got butchered by now-toxic pop-filmmaker Joss Whedon, director Zack Snyder will finally see his version of Justice League come true — and so will HBO Max subscribers when it premieres exclusively on the streamer in one month.
The four-hour saga is Snyder’s unaltered, unadulterated take in every respect, including the square-framed 1:66:1 aspect ratio. It will also be presented as one epic-length film, not a 4-part miniseries as was once rumored.
Snyder had completed about three-quarters of the film’s production back in 2016-17 when he had to leave due to the tragic death of his son. Whedon was then hired, but not simply to complete the film; he was also tasked to oversee extensive rewrites and reshoots.
In this latest trailer, it’s easy to see how dramatically things will diverge from Whedon’s 2017 theatrical release, not the least of which is the appearance of Darkseid, the main villain from Snyder’s original story that Whedon eventually cut in its entirety.
Snyder’s Cut also leans heavily into his penchant for dark, dire angst, as opposed to Whedon’s patented, rapid-fire snark (which, to be fair, was ordered up by WB/DC brass in the wake of Deadpool‘s surprise success).
This tease is capped by perhaps the most welcome change of all: a less manic, more sinister, non-tattooed Jared Leto Joker. As someone who actually enjoyed the much-maligned Batman V Superman, I’m intrigued.
Rated R for violence and some language, Zack Snyder’s Justice League debuts on HBO Max March 18, 2021.
