Welcome to For Snyder Cut. Your site for Snyder film appreciation and bringing to light the Snyder Cut of Justice League. Anyone with an open heart and mind is welcome, because sharing art appreciation always gives and never takes.

Art comes out of vision and Zack Snyder’s has given so much to us. We hope to share and help illuminate some of that vision. From luscious visuals, distinct irony, symbolic abstraction, technical execution, storytelling, and subtext- every director must have a vision but Zack Snyder’s fans have come to appreciate his distinction as a visionary.

Especially as it has been tied to comic books, graphic novels, superheroes, and sequential art.

Since 2004, Zack has been immersed in the language of comics. No other director has been so invested in comics on such a grand scale, bringing to cinematic life works deemed unfilmable, confronting rich philosophical, existential, and cultural questions, and treating the material with gravity, seriousness, intensity, and passion, yet being an absolute joy to work with by all accounts. 300, Watchmen, Man of Steel, and Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice all prepared him for Justice League. BvS was cast and produced with Justice League in mind.

Zack completed principle photography on Chris Terrio’s screenplay and screened “a rough cut of Justice League for fellow filmmakers and friends” but stepped back from the film after a family tragedy. During a London junket, Debbie Snyder shared,

“For us this whole thing is so bittersweet because we have been working on this franchise for the past eight years, when we started developing the script for Man of Steel, and then we moved on to BVS, and also Zack developed the story for Wonder Woman, which was leading up to the point of Justice League, where these characters were finally going to come together. Not being able to complete his vision was extremely difficult. So that makes it hard.”

Joss Whedon agreed to complete the film: from writing rewrites, to directing reshoots, to overseeing post-production and the final edit. Zack, by his own account, was hands-off thereafter. To Wired, he said it would “unfair in a lot of ways” to get involved again after being off the movie for so long. “I’ve kind of just let them do their thing.” After the film’s release, “I will be honest, I have not seen the film since I stepped away. You know I love these characters. I only wish I could have finished it for you and the others who love MOS and BvS.”

In his absence, Justice League departed from Zack Snyder’s vision.

ForSnyderCut.org’s mission is to share what we love about the vision we’ve seen and bring to light the vision on Justice League that we didn’t see.

The Snyder Cut would be driven by the consistency and integrity of principle photography under the same director, cinematographer, editor, and actors working from the same pre-approved script at the peak of their preparation.

Our goal is to see the time, care, deliberation, preparation, artistry, and intentions that went into principle photography, principle performances, polished production, and the prior screenplay composed out of a place of passion, joy, excitement, and cooperation; compared to the hurried and desperate efforts rushed out under duress.

However well-intentioned the latter, we believe the talent and artistry of the filmmakers, actors, visual effects artists, etc. will be better represented in the first case.

Please join our newsletter to help us bring their best work into the light and help the filmmakers take pride in their contributions to Justice League.

Justice League is Zack Snyder’s vision.

We disagree. Part of the mission of this site is to pull together the stories and evidence to the contrary. However, let’s look at a few ways Justice League diverges from Zack’s vision.

Different Directors

Every director has a vision, and however accomplished Whedon is in his own right, it would be difficult to find one whose approach is as incompatible with Snyder’s as Whedon:

Joss Whedon – Heart Broken – Return To The Scene of The Crime

MTV: Zack Snyder on The Why of Superman [Find a better clip?]

Whedon’s song mocks the idea of asking “Why?” from entertainment and ends resigning to selling-out and getting on the “Fun Train.”

By contrast, Zack’s films are intensely personal, specific to the point of divisive, and all demand the audience ask, “Why?” His films are filled with subtext. His seminal work, Batman v. Superman, begins with a non-literal dream sequence with trippy visuals and a spoken word poetry which insists the audience try and engage his work beyond the visceral surface level and immediately apparent. By contrast, Whedon tells his audience they aren’t to ask why he chose a color.

Whedon may have had every intention of delivering Snyder’s vision, but if they don’t see eye to eye on the basis of Snyder’s vision, how could he?

Different Cinematographers

Approximately 30% of the theatrical cut’s two-hour runtime is composed of reshoots. The reshoots are apparent compared to principle photography. A large part of Snyder’s vision is his aesthetic which is heavily reliant on his director of photography, Fabian Wagner.

In an interview with THR, Wagner shared that he was unable to participate in reshoots due to scheduling issues and,

“This one was even shorter than I expected, so there are scenes that aren’t in there. I really hope we get to see a director’s cut, which will give us everything that we shot that didn’t make it in. What I love about his [Snyder’s] director’s cuts is they are long, but he takes his time to tell the story. I’ve never watched any of his director’s cut and thought ‘This is long.” Whether they are three hours long, or three hours and 10 minutes, they always seemed to go quick.”

Scenes shot for night were changed to daylight in post.

Different Studio Intentions

The mandate of a two-hour runtime for a picture originally planned to span two films compromised the vision of someone know to “take his time to tell the story.”

After Justice League and an executive shake-up, to The Wrap, Tsujihara stated:

“Warner Bros needs to continue doing what it’s always done: producing the biggest, most diverse slate in the business. That’s what’s made us successful. We can’t do what Disney’s done. It’s worked really, really well for them, but it’s not who we are. We need to continue to create a balanced slate of all types of movies and all genres.”

How would they know they can’t do it unless they tried and failed? Implicitly, Justice League was that attempt after Snyder departed. The WSJ article with John Berg and Geoff Johns seemed to reinforce ideas of studio interference later supported by The Wrap reporting on behind-the-scenes woes. Justice League was a Frankenstein, not Snyder’s vision.

Different Writers

Whedon’s screenplay credit requires a storytelling contribution somewhere around a third. That’s a dramatic impact and revision of a story t refined in production for years. Goyer’s script completed April 2014 and Terrio’s rewrite coming in July of that year.

Terrio is a creature of intense and obsessive research, similarly inclined towards “the why”, history, world-building, and systems as Snyder. To WSJ, he stated,

“If you told me the most rigorous dramaturgical and intellectual product of my life would be superhero movies, I would say you were crazy. But I do think fans deserve that. I felt I owed the fan base all of my body and soul for two years because anything less wouldn’t have been appreciating the opportunity I had.”

By contrast, reportedly, Whedon wrote Flash’s fall into Wonder Woman’s breasts gag, which Gal Gadot refused to do. Whedon still shot the scene over her objections using Gadot’s body double.

Clearly the sensibilities differed. Even if late-comer Whedon wanted to write in-line with Snyder’s vision, he would not have the same insight as Terrio, who had been inhabiting these characters and world and collaborating with Snyder since 2014.

Different Editors

A film is found in the edit. Even if Zack had stepped down, someone with his same vision could find a film to honor it. Who better than Zack’s long-time collaborator, David Brenner, who edited Man of Steel, 300: Rise of the Empire, and Batman v. Superman?

Only, when Justice League was entering the final edit where was Brenner but at Zack’s side editing Snow Steam Iron? Instead, three editors are credited, none of whom have worked together or come as a team prior. Neither of the two new editors have worked for Snyder prior. Indeed, with the on-screen accreditation, we see the common “trick” wherein the names are staggered such that David Brenner’s name is first, top to bottom, but Martin Walsh’s name is first going left to right.

So, if these editors did not work together and the final editor had never worked with Snyder, how could his edit represent Snyder’s vision? How could he represent Snyder’s subtleties or non-verbal intentions?

It’s obvious that he didn’t and served other interests instead.

Different Composers

By now we’re seeing a tragic pattern. Everyone who represents continuity with Snyder’s efforts on these films are nowhere to be found in the final months of Justice League’s post-production. Those with loyalty to Zack, insight into his process and mind, time spent collaborating with him, and experience bringing his vision to fruition… all seem to exit Justice League. Wagner, Terrio, Brenner, and now Holkenborg.

Junkie XL, Tom Holkenborg, scored Batman v. Superman along with Hans Zimmer and was hired to score Justice League before being replaced by Danny Elfman. Holkenborg speaks about the specificity of vision:

“When you read a book and it says, ‘there is this great forest,’ everybody pictures a forest. None of these forests will be the same. It’s exactly the same with music. You can ask 15 other composers to read that same script, they will all have different musical ideas.”

We know that he would have poured his heart and soul into Justice League and been far along in the process. For example,

“Mad Max, I spent at least 7 months producing the score. Trying this trying that.”

It would have been an iterative, passionate product born of the same long-term immersion Zack’s family of filmmakers were all in.

“I don’t care what music it is, but if I make a track, it has to give me goosebumps, myself. I don’t say that to be arrogant, but if it doesn’t hit me in the stomach as being a great piece of music, I cannot expect the audience, anybody out there, to have the feeling that it hits the stomach.”

Contrast that against Danny Elfman’s statements to THR about his Justice League effort:

“I had a lot of storyboards in place of action. There would be full scenes and then a five-minute sequence of storyboards. Honestly, it was like working on an animated film. I didn’t score any of the unused footage — the movie that came out is the movie I scored, it was just in very rough form.”

Junkie XL would have been working for months on Zack’s vision, spotting footage as it rolled in, because Zack allows and likes the long reusable sketch pieces of Zimmer and, generally, does not shoot-to-score or score-to-shot or mickey mouse audio, meaning Junkie XL’s music would be more developed and find a home with Zack’s vision. Junkie XL’s dismissal is further indication that Zack’s vision wasn’t followed.

Different than Advertised

One of the clearest evidence of alteration to Zack’s vision is the changes and omissions from the advertising, trailers, and promotional materials compared to the final theatrical release. Marketing is only concerned with the best looking, most appealing, most enticing elements on which to build an advertising campaign around and those by-and-large came from Zack’s version of the film.

Marketing does not ultimately know what the final cut of the film will be and it’s telling that marketing routinely picked things from Zack’s vision which did not appear in the final film.

There is no Snyder Cut.

The Snyder Cut is aspirational and so-called because it makes reasonable best-efforts at capturing Zack Snyder’s original intentions with existing footage, exactly like the Richard Donner Cut of Superman II.

The Richard Donner Cut was not cut by Richard Donner (because it was too painful to revisit) and contains footage not shot by him (because he did not finish principle photography), it isn’t his Director’s Cut, but there is no better adjective than “Richard Donner” to describe the cut.

We apply the same ethos to Zack Snyder’s principle photography with guidance from his rough cuts and original screenplay before substantial rewrites. If Zack would participate, we would be overjoyed, but we respect his freewill and cannot insist upon his return. Rather, a restoration in-line with the screenplay already principally shot, before substantial rewrites and reshoots began.

It would cost too much.

ForSnyderCut.org has reliable sources that say Snyder’s rough cuts are further along than an assembly cut and are, in many respects, finished. Much of Snyder’s cut footage was composed not just of spectacle but of quieter character moments, performances, and breathing room.

Nevertheless, even conceding the cost, the benefits are for Warner Bros to determine.

At the 2007 Saturn Awards, Richard Donner thanked then WB President and COO, Alan Horn for greenlighting the Donner Cut despite being told, “It would probably not make very much money, it would be a loser.” According to Donner, Horn said, “Go ahead. Make it anyway.”

Yes, recouping costs through sales is one metric, but there are many other ways to justify and amortize the costs based on its impact on goodwill, legacy, PR, intellectual property, etc. By all accounts, the production of Justice League was enormous and nothing about Superman in Hollywood stays buried forever.

Eventually the stories will be told, things will come out, and the WB will lose its window to monetize premium footage shot by Zack Snyder, featuring performances by exploding stars like Gadot, while reinforcing the viability of these presently-contracted actors and icons, giving closure to passionate fans, and creating goodwill within the industry as a studio that cares about artistic integrity.

Regardless, Horn was willing to take a loss on the Donner Cut and that willingness was not only the right thing morally, but ultimately profitable and secured the WB’s good terms with Donner’s continuing legacy.

I love Justice League as-is / I hate Snyder’s other films.

ForSnyderCut.org obviously loves Snyder’s vision and wants to see a different version of Justice League, but that takes nothing away from you and ask nothing of you. That said, you might want to support and defend something you disagree with on principle for your own sake.

Taste and art is subjective and understanding that means there’s little merit in ugly divisiveness, factionalism, compartmentalization, and echo chambers.

Rather, take the lessons of heroes and civil servants- of Superman, soldiers, police, fire fighters, teachers, etc.- who aspire to serve the community as a whole even if they disagree or differ.

“I disagree, but will defend your right to say it.”

Even if you dislike Snyder’s vision, the nobler thing is to support the integrity of the arts as a whole… to allow such visions to come to light for those who do appreciate them. Even if you disagree with Snyder’s vision, the productive thing is to support its truest presentation as an example of what you disagree with and the preserve the lessons learned from that disagreement.

Suppression, only robs us of precedent, only fosters caricature and resentment, only acts as strawmen both as the thing railed against and as the thing held up as the vision. Suppression only leads to echo chambers only interested in agreement and vilification rather than conversation, empathy, collaboration, and learning. Ridicule instead of respect.

ForSnyderCut.org respects and honors those able to support another’s dream on principle.

Who We Are

Love, respect, wait, and act.

“Only love can save the world.” People are disappointed by the theatrical cut of Justice League, however, it’s more constructive to channel that into a love of Snyder’s vision seen and unseen, than to try to strike out in anger at others. Anger can motivate in short bursts but it has no endurance unless it festers into bitterness which serves no one. Trying to mock or shame people who worked on the reshoots or the WB is a poor way to build the bridges we need to see action.

Going after Richard Lester did nothing to bring about the Donner Cut. Instead, it was because an insider, Michael Thau was inspired and moved to passion by fans and fansites like these, that he was eventually able to persuade the reluctant Donner and WB to do the cut.

Going after DC did nothing for Siegel and Shuster, compared to Bob Kane’s negotiations, for decades. Only with the help of an insider, Neal Adams, could they get pensions and settlements, but that shame-based approach still lead to decades of lawsuits and bitterness afterwards. Only through love and appreciation were they finally credited properly.

Going after Bob Kane did absolutely nothing to help Bill Finger get credit for Batman, if anything it make Kane defensive and double down. Shaming DC for decades did nothing. Only with the love and passion of Marc Nobleman’s crusade was Bill Finger able to finally be credited properly.

The reception to Justice League is black eye enough. Piling on makes no one more inclined to help or join your cause. Hypothetically, imagine who could possibly be a better advocate for a Snyder Cut than Joss Whedon himself?

To that end, respect yourself and others. Respect yourself by not manufacturing rumors, becoming bitter, or becoming hopeless. Respect others by not tearing them down, being toxic, or impossible to communicate with. A fandom founded on love can be embraced and supported. A fandom that acts angry and entitled will be disavowed by the people with the power to bring you a Snyder Cut.

Respecting others also means being careful with the confidence and careers of others. When insiders take the time to connect and communicate with you, that isn’t license to out them and publish the conversations publicly without their permission without regard for the impact on their careers or contracts. Respect means allowing them to come to you rather than boxing them into the corner or trying to force them to take sides.

Waiting simply means patience. The arc of the universe is long but bends towards justice. We believe a Snyder Cut is in Warner Bros’ interest sooner than later, but it will take time.

Action means sharing the love you have for Snyder’s vision, gathering evidence and stories about what was, contributing positively to the community and world, and being ready to show your support in a coordinated manner when the time comes.