Clay Enos/HBO Max(LOS ANGELES) — Sorry, Zack Snyder fans: it looks like there won’t be a extended DC Comic movie universe based on his hit, extended cut of Justice League — no matter how much you hashtag it.
You can’t blame ’em for trying. #ReleaseTheSnyderCut grew to be a viral movement so strong it eventually persuaded Warner Bros. to invest millions to allow Snyder to reassemble and eventually release the film on HBO Max, following the disappointment of the Joss Whedon’s re-shot version.
The success of #ReleaseTheSnyderCut led to the currently-trending #RestoreTheSnyderVerse — with fans hoping the universe Snyder resurrected would thematically continue, a la the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
However, WarnerMedia Studios CEO Ann Sarnoff tells Variety it’s not meant to be.
While Sarnoff tells the trade she was “happy” that HBO Max gave Snyder the opportunity to “complete his vision,” of his DC heroes trilogy — including Man of Steel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and Zack Snyder’s Justice League — his vision is, apparently, officially complete.
And as for the success of another viral fan campaign? Looks like a one-off. “On balance, you of course want to listen to your fans, but we do want to stay true to our vision and our mission for DC and build that out,” the exec explains.
That strategy seems to be another attempt to imitate the success of Marvel Studios, in the wake of its hit MCU small-screen crossovers WandaVision and Falcon And The Winter Solider.
“My mantra coming in was to make [the DC universe] bigger and broader…with more connective tissue across the various media and platforms,” Sarnoff says. “I’m talking movies, HBO Max, television and our games division.”
Marvel Studios is owned by Disney, the parent company of ABC Audio.
By Stephen Iervolino
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