Zack Snyder’s Justice League has finally released, and it has left some mysteries unexplained. There were some radical differences from 2017’s Justice League. Snyder’s Cut was much darker. It also introduced new characters like Darkseid, Desaad, Joker, Ryan Choi, etc. Apart from that, Snyder revamped the existing characters and gave them a new touch. Snyder’s Cut ends on a cliffhanger. This gave hope to the fans that there will be a sequel. But Warner Bros. Chairman Ann Sarnoff has explicitly made it clear that Warner Bros. has no plans of following up with Snyder’s plans of a sequel.
Zack Snyder had a blueprint for where he’d take the story. His original plan for the Justice League 2 and 3 stories has recently found its way online through a collection of whiteboards. It detailed the basic narrative flow of Snyder’s intended five-movie arc. When this was discovered by the fans, it was ultimately made clear that Snyder had big plans of continuing his vision. This could have really helped the DC Extended Universe to continue and include a bunch of new characters. Some of the elements of his arc were outdated due to the 2017 Justice League. But Snyder made it clear that these elements could still be used as an overall depiction and dictation of the story.
Just like everyone else, Batman (Ben Afflick) also had a major role to play in Snyder’s five-movie arc. We saw a much more deviant and evil look of Batman in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. He had a more violent mindset and the movie focused on his paranoia at what Superman might become. His arc in the Snyder Cut saw him become much more hero-like, and a leader against the impending threat. The theatrical cut put Batman in a position where he was burdened by his guilt. His regret over his actions in BvS was pretty clear. But in Snyder’s Cut, his judgment was not clouded by his regret, even though the guilt was there.
Batman was guided by the promise he made over Superman’s grave, which was, “I won’t fail him in death.” Hence, Batman returns to the strategic self, but much more aware now. He was adamant about the decision to bring back Superman via the Mother Box. While the entire Justice League was spectacle about it, Batman remains unflinching, and eventually, all the members started believing, and Clark Kent was back.
Batman and Superman’s relationship is now more focused on faith. This comes in a good way as Superman’s entire motto is hope and faith. Finding Bruce Wayne in the same sphere is definitely interesting. Snyder’s Cut ends with Bruce experiencing another version of the Knightmare. This was followed by a meeting between bruce and Martian the Manhunter. Martian the Manhunter decided to lend his help to the Justice League and also warned Bruce of another catastrophic event. This particular threat is the return of Darkseid to claim the Anti-Life Equation.
The arc of Batman was to follow directly into a solo Batman movie after the Justice League. It was to follow after Lex Luthor’s meeting with Deathstroke, who learns Bruce Wayne is Batman. Lex offers Deathstroke a pro-bono over something “personal”. Hence, Deathstroke would then continue to attack every aspect of Batman’s life. This would have mainly included revealing Batman as Bruce Wayne after forcing Batman to do something evil out of emotional rage. As per Joe Manganiello, Ben Affleck’s solo Batman film was akin to the Michael Douglas thriller The Game.
Here is what Justice League 2 could have looked like. Apparently, Darkseid now has Superman under his control through the Anti-Life Equation. As a result, Batman has to look for reinforcements. This leads to Batman joining forces with The Joker (Snyder’s Cut post-credit scenes). Cyborg, The Flash, Mera, Batman, Wonder Woman, and the Joker now follow Batman’s plan which is to steal one of the Mother Boxes from Darkseid in order to construct the Cosmic Treadmill.
In continuation, Barry Allen then runs back in time to stop Darkseid from killing Lois Lane as it was the key event in Superman’s life that emotionally killed him. Hence, Superman was vulnerable to the Ant-Life Equation. Justice League 3 would then lead into the final showdown with the Justice League and the forces of the Apokolips. Snyder’s whiteboards outlined that Aquaman and Wonder Woman would have enlisted Atlantis and Themyscira to face-off with Darkseid. But they were not alone, armies of mankind would also join them in battle.
This would have recreated the moment when Darkseid first came to Earth to invade and was defeated. This moment would have included all – Justice League, the armies of man, Atlantis, and Themyscira. Batman’s arc would now conclude with him sacrificing himself in the battle against Darkseid. Later on, Clark and Lois would honor Batman’s sacrifice and name their son Bruce Kent. They would also tell Bruce Kent to take on the mantle of Batman and continue his legacy.
Doesn’t this all sound interesting? Only if this was possible! Did you enjoy watching Zack Snyder’s Justice League? Let us know in the comments below!
