Zack Snyder Swears He Would've Set Fire to the 'Justice League' He Filmed Before He Let Joss Whedon Use it to Finish the Movie

Just by way of background, that confused, muddled, abomination of a movie that DC released in 2017 under the name of "Justice League" was done by two different directors. First on the project was Zack Snyder, who was charged with creating an entire DC Cinematic Universe to take on the unstoppable behemoth that was the Marvel CU. Unquestionably, Snyder had some real misfires on the road to creating "Justice League." "Man of Steel" was a joyless slog that made being Superman seem about as much fun as being a claims adjuster from Sandusky, Ohio. And "Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice," remains an unpolished turd that I sometimes hate-watch on basic cable just to give myself an unhealthy nerd rage. Yet that somehow still managed to redeem itself merely by having Gal Gadot show up as Wonder Woman. 

Nevertheless, there was some hope for "Justice League." Perhaps just in that way it can take you a couple of holes to get your swing down and start hitting the fairways and the greens. Unfortunately, midway through production, Snyder had a terrible personal tragedy in his family and had to leave the project. Brought into replace him was Joss Whedon, who had not only done some great TV like "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Firefly," but had brought together all the elements that Marvel had set up over a slew of movies into the spectacular success that was "The Avengers" and, to a lesser extent, "Avengers: Age of Ultron." 

As you'd figure, Whedon's contribution to Snyders "JL" was to lighten the tone, punch up the script and load it with the wisecracks, which is his signature style. When you see the movie, it's not hard to gauge which scene was written and directed by which guy, which helps contribute to the tonal and narrative mess of the whole thing. 

Well finally as HBO has given Snyder a bunch of money to re-edit and reshoot enough scenes to release the long rumored #SnyderCut, he joined an online panel that would've been live at San Diego ComicCon, if this wasn't the worst of all possible timelines. And he held back nothing when it came to shitting all over the man who replaced him.

“There would be no chance on earth that I would use a shot that was made prior, uh ... after I left the movie. I’d destroy the movie, I would set it on fire before I would use a single frame that I did not photograph. That is a fucking hard fact.

“I literally would blow that fucking thing up if I thought for a second. Anything you see in this movie which reminds you of the other theatrical release, which again famously I have not, I literally have never seen, would be because that was a thing I had done, and he borrowed for whatever that Frankenstein monster that you guys saw in the theater.”

Ouch. That is going to leave a mark. I just wish the Lex Luthor he let Jesse Eisenberg twitch and giggle through like a community theater actor trying to method act a criminally insane villain was half as nasty and vicious as he was here. And I say this as a fan of Joss Whedon. I just appreciate any artistic person who is super protective of his own creation and doesn't want anyone screwing with his vision. Snyder went on to say that he had zero input into hiring Wheedon and that it was done by a committee. So it is real between the two. And it is personal. 

As someone who's been waiting for something out of the DCU that is worthwhile other than "Wonder Woman" and to a lesser extent "Shazam!" and I guess "Joker," I love Snyder throwing down the gauntlet and putting the pressure on himself to finally salvage this thing. And you have to appreciate him dropping this teaser of Supe in the iiconic black suit. 

Now go out and back up these fighting words directed at my nerd hero Joss.