Director Zack Snyder revealed some interesting insights into the relationship between Batman (Ben Affleck) and Deathstroke (Joe Manganiello) in the forthcoming Snyder Cut of Justice League during Saturday’s IGN Fan Fest 2021. Traditionally Batman’s foe, Deathstroke, aka Slade Wilson, is an assassin (albeit one with his own code) who has allied with other supervillains in the past. However, the filmmaker told IGN that Deathstroke and Batman will forge an alliance in Zack Snyder’s Justice League. Watch the Full IGN Fan Fest Q&A With Zack Snyder Below: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/justice-league-inside-the-snyder-cut-with-zack-snyder-ign-fan-fest-2021"] “Joe's character in this movie when we find him, clearly he and Batman have struck some sort of a deal and they have a bit of a partnership,” Snyder explained. “There's a bigger enemy, I guess.” Snyder said this is what differentiates this version of Deathstroke from Manganiello’s cameo in the end credits scene of Joss Whedon’s Justice League, where Slade Wilson is recruited by Lex Luthor to join the Injustice League. “I think that's the big difference. They're not locked in mortal combat. They're actually working together to try to figure out how to make this world work,” the filmmaker revealed. Watch the IGN Fan Fest exclusive Snyder Cut clip below: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/zack-snyders-justice-league-the-mother-box-origins-exclusive-clip-ign-fan-fest-2021"] Might this mean Deathstroke serves as an ally of Batman's during the same Knightmare sequences Jared Leto's Joker appears in? Surely, the post-apocalypse will make for strange bedfellows. Manganiello recently shed light on Deathstroke’s new look in The Snyder Cut, which sees him sport a white mohawk. “The greatest warriors are the ones who walk into battle already dead or assuming that they’re going to die — they’re looking for someone who could actually kill them," Manganiello said. "There’s almost an excitement around that, like ‘Is today going to be the day?’ So there was a climactic moment in my standalone story where I wanted Slade to shave his head into this war-like mohawk knowing that he was going off to his own death. I said to Zack, ‘I always envisioned him with a big white mohawk,’ and he was totally down for it.” Joe Manganiello’s association with the role of Deathstroke has thus far been more noteworthy for what hasn’t ended up on film than what has. First revealed in test footage showing him in full armor, Manganiello’s Deathstroke was meant to be part of the Batman solo film Ben Affleck planned to star in, co-write, and direct. That project eventually fell apart. (There was even been chatter of a Deathstroke solo film directed by Gareth Evans at one point.) Affleck’s aborted Batman movie would have seen Deathstroke as the primary antagonist who systematically dismantles Bruce Wayne’s life and kills his loved ones. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=justice-league-snyder-cut-all-the-known-differences-from-the-theatrical-version&captions=true"] “It was a really dark story in which Deathstroke was like a shark or a horror movie villain that was dismantling Bruce’s life from the inside out," Manganiello explained last year. "It was this systemic thing: He killed everyone close to Bruce and destroyed his life to try and make him suffer because he felt that Bruce was responsible for something that happened to him.” While Manganiello’s post-Snyder Cut tenure as Deathstroke seems up in the air, fans will get to enjoy this frenemies version of Batman and Deathstroke when Zack Snyder’s Justice League debuts on HBO Max on March 18. While we wait, read up on everything else Zack Snyder revealed about the Justice League Snyder Cut during IGN Fan Fest.

Director Zack Snyder revealed some interesting insights into the relationship between Batman (Ben Affleck) and Deathstroke (Joe Manganiello) in the forthcoming Snyder Cut of Justice League during Saturday’s IGN Fan Fest 2021. Traditionally Batman’s foe, Deathstroke, aka Slade Wilson, is an assassin (albeit one with his own code) who has allied with other supervillains in the past. However, the filmmaker told IGN that Deathstroke and Batman will forge an alliance in Zack Snyder’s Justice League. Watch the Full IGN Fan Fest Q&A With Zack Snyder Below: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/justice-league-inside-the-snyder-cut-with-zack-snyder-ign-fan-fest-2021"] “Joe's character in this movie when we find him, clearly he and Batman have struck some sort of a deal and they have a bit of a partnership,” Snyder explained. “There's a bigger enemy, I guess.” Snyder said this is what differentiates this version of Deathstroke from Manganiello’s cameo in the end credits scene of Joss Whedon’s Justice League, where Slade Wilson is recruited by Lex Luthor to join the Injustice League. “I think that's the big difference. They're not locked in mortal combat. They're actually working together to try to figure out how to make this world work,” the filmmaker revealed. Watch the IGN Fan Fest exclusive Snyder Cut clip below: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/zack-snyders-justice-league-the-mother-box-origins-exclusive-clip-ign-fan-fest-2021"] Might this mean Deathstroke serves as an ally of Batman's during the same Knightmare sequences Jared Leto's Joker appears in? Surely, the post-apocalypse will make for strange bedfellows. Manganiello recently shed light on Deathstroke’s new look in The Snyder Cut, which sees him sport a white mohawk. “The greatest warriors are the ones who walk into battle already dead or assuming that they’re going to die — they’re looking for someone who could actually kill them," Manganiello said. "There’s almost an excitement around that, like ‘Is today going to be the day?’ So there was a climactic moment in my standalone story where I wanted Slade to shave his head into this war-like mohawk knowing that he was going off to his own death. I said to Zack, ‘I always envisioned him with a big white mohawk,’ and he was totally down for it.” Joe Manganiello’s association with the role of Deathstroke has thus far been more noteworthy for what hasn’t ended up on film than what has. First revealed in test footage showing him in full armor, Manganiello’s Deathstroke was meant to be part of the Batman solo film Ben Affleck planned to star in, co-write, and direct. That project eventually fell apart. (There was even been chatter of a Deathstroke solo film directed by Gareth Evans at one point.) Affleck’s aborted Batman movie would have seen Deathstroke as the primary antagonist who systematically dismantles Bruce Wayne’s life and kills his loved ones. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=justice-league-snyder-cut-all-the-known-differences-from-the-theatrical-version&captions=true"] “It was a really dark story in which Deathstroke was like a shark or a horror movie villain that was dismantling Bruce’s life from the inside out," Manganiello explained last year. "It was this systemic thing: He killed everyone close to Bruce and destroyed his life to try and make him suffer because he felt that Bruce was responsible for something that happened to him.” Watch the full Snyder Cut Fan Fest panel below: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/justice-league-inside-the-snyder-cut-with-zack-snyder-ign-fan-fest-2021"] While Manganiello’s post-Snyder Cut tenure as Deathstroke seems up in the air, fans will get to enjoy this frenemies version of Batman and Deathstroke when Zack Snyder’s Justice League debuts on HBO Max on March 18.

Breathedge, the comedic sci-fi survival game, is coming to Xbox One, PS4, and Nintendo Switch on April 6. Announced exclusively during IGN Fan Fest, a new trailer showed off the game in action, and revealed the new platforms and release date. Check it out below: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/breathedge-exclusive-console-version-reveal-trailer-ign-fan-fest-2021"] Breathedge sees you take on the role of The Man, who was trying to take his grandfather's ashes to a space funeral, and gets caught up in the middle of a conspiracy. It's a familiar mixture of survival, crafting, and lots of death screens – mixed up with some satirical comedy and a seemingly immortal chicken companion. Breathedge saw its 1.0 release on PC this week, after an Early Access period on Steam that saw it receive 91% positive reviews. If your interest's been piqued, we're also able to bring you an exclusive gameplay overview, below: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/breathedge-exclusive-gameplay-overview-ign-fan-fest-2021"] There's much more to come from IGN Fan Fest - make sure to check out our full Fan Fest schedule for everything we've got for you, from Zack Snyder's Justice League to Deathloop. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Joe Skrebels is IGN's Executive Editor of News. Follow him on Twitter. Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com.

Breathedge, the comedic sci-fi survival game, is coming to Xbox One, PS4, and Nintendo Switch on April 6. Announced exclusively during IGN Fan Fest, a new trailer showed off the game in action, and revealed the new platforms and release date. Check it out below: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/breathedge-exclusive-console-version-reveal-trailer-ign-fan-fest-2021"] Breathedge sees you take on the role of The Man, who was trying to take his grandfather's ashes to a space funeral, and gets caught up in the middle of a conspiracy. It's a familiar mixture of survival, crafting, and lots of death screens – mixed up with some satirical comedy and a seemingly immortal chicken companion. Breathedge saw its 1.0 release on PC this week, after an Early Access period on Steam that saw it receive 91% positive reviews. If your interest's been piqued, we're also able to bring you an exclusive gameplay overview, below: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/breathedge-exclusive-gameplay-overview-ign-fan-fest-2021"] There's much more to come from IGN Fan Fest - make sure to check out our full Fan Fest schedule for everything we've got for you, from Zack Snyder's Justice League to Deathloop. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Joe Skrebels is IGN's Executive Editor of News. Follow him on Twitter. Have a tip for us? Want to discuss a possible story? Please send an email to newstips@ign.com.

The Flash is finally returning for another season on The CW, and as part of IGN Fan Fest 2021, we can exclusively debut a new clip from the Season 7 premiere episode, "All's Well That Ends Wells." Check out the video below to get a taste of the premiere, as Barry Allen races against time to find Eva McCulloch and rescue Iris before his speed runs out for good. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/the-flash-season-7-premiere-exclusive-clip-ign-fan-fest-2021"] If you need a refresher on where The Flash left off in the truncated Season 6, Barry and Team Flash are currently grappling with Eva McCulloch (aka Mirror Master) who's managed to escape her Mirrorverse prison and return to the real world. Unfortunately, Iris is still trapped in the Mirrorverse. Barry now faces two ticking clocks in Season 7. With the Speed Force gone, his rapidly dwindling powers have almost run out, and the longer Iris remains trapped inside the Mirrorverse, the more her mind grows twisted and warped. The episode's title also suggests a heavy emphasis on Tom Cavanagh's Nash Wells. Given the series' habit of introducing a new incarnation of Harrison Wells each year, could we be in for the debut of yet another Wells? Like most current Arrowverse shows, The Flash was forced to suspend production in early 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As we learned at DC FanDome, filming had almost wrapped on Season 6, Episode 20 before the hiatus, so that episode has been slightly reworked to act as the Season 7 premiere. It remains to be seen how long the Mirror Master storyline will continue to play out in the new season and whether a new villain will eventually be introduced. We do know The Flash has already been renewed for Season 8. While most of the main cast from Season 6 will be returning, including Grant Gustin as Barry, Candice Patton as Iris, Carlos Valdes as Cisco Ramon and Efrat Dor as McCulloch, one series regular won't be coming back for Season 7. Hartley Sawyer was fired from the show in June 2020 after a series of racist, misogynistic tweets resurfaced. In his response, showrunner Eric Wallace said on Twitter that Sawyer's past tweets "broke my heart and made me mad as hell." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=the-flash-season-7-dc-fandome-trailer-images&captions=true"] This clip makes it clear Sawyer's character Ralph Dibny is currently in hiding with Sue Dearbon (who was framed for murder in the Season 6 finale). That could be a prelude to Ralph either being written out of the series or using his stretch powers to permanently alter his appearance, paving the way for a new actor to take over the role. The Flash: Season 7 kicks off on Tuesday, March 2, airing alongside the newest Arrowverse series Superman & Lois. Check out IGN's review of the Superman & Lois premiere and see why that series has a very confusing place in Arrowverse continuity. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.

The Flash is finally returning for another season on The CW, and as part of IGN Fan Fest 2021, we can exclusively debut a new clip from the Season 7 premiere episode, "All's Well That Ends Wells." Check out the video below to get a taste of the premiere, as Barry Allen races against time to find Eva McCulloch and rescue Iris before his speed runs out for good. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/the-flash-season-7-premiere-exclusive-clip-ign-fan-fest-2021"] If you need a refresher on where The Flash left off in the truncated Season 6, Barry and Team Flash are currently grappling with Eva McCulloch (aka Mirror Master) who's managed to escape her Mirrorverse prison and return to the real world. Unfortunately, Iris is still trapped in the Mirrorverse. Barry now faces two ticking clocks in Season 7. With the Speed Force gone, his rapidly dwindling powers have almost run out, and the longer Iris remains trapped inside the Mirrorverse, the more her mind grows twisted and warped. The episode's title also suggests a heavy emphasis on Tom Cavanagh's Nash Wells. Given the series' habit of introducing a new incarnation of Harrison Wells each year, could we be in for the debut of yet another Wells? Like most current Arrowverse shows, The Flash was forced to suspend production in early 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As we learned at DC FanDome, filming had almost wrapped on Season 6, Episode 20 before the hiatus, so that episode has been slightly reworked to act as the Season 7 premiere. It remains to be seen how long the Mirror Master storyline will continue to play out in the new season and whether a new villain will eventually be introduced. We do know The Flash has already been renewed for Season 8. While most of the main cast from Season 6 will be returning, including Grant Gustin as Barry, Candice Patton as Iris, Carlos Valdes as Cisco Ramon and Efrat Dor as McCulloch, one series regular won't be coming back for Season 7. Hartley Sawyer was fired from the show in June 2020 after a series of racist, misogynistic tweets resurfaced. In his response, showrunner Eric Wallace said on Twitter that Sawyer's past tweets "broke my heart and made me mad as hell." [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=the-flash-season-7-dc-fandome-trailer-images&captions=true"] This clip makes it clear Sawyer's character Ralph Dibny is currently in hiding with Sue Dearbon (who was framed for murder in the Season 6 finale). That could be a prelude to Ralph either being written out of the series or using his stretch powers to permanently alter his appearance, paving the way for a new actor to take over the role. The Flash: Season 7 kicks off on Tuesday, March 2, airing alongside the newest Arrowverse series Superman & Lois. Check out IGN's review of the Superman & Lois premiere and see why that series has a very confusing place in Arrowverse continuity. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.

Zack Snyder is getting ready to release his version of Justice League on HBO Max. Nicknamed by fans as the "Snyder-cut" the director's version of the 2017 DC team-up film is officially titled Zack Snyder's Justice League and will be released as a single, four-hour-long movie on the streaming service. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/justice-league-inside-the-snyder-cut-with-zack-snyder-ign-fan-fest-2021"] At IGN Fan Fest 2021, the director sat down with us to go in-depth on this new version of Justice League answering questions from us and fans online. There were plenty of details from Snyder ranging from information about new characters in the movie like Deathstroke and Jared Leto's Joker, as well as a chance to hear Snyder himself explain the backstory of his and Ben Affleck's version of Batman. But the full Fan Fest interview was chock-full of other details about the film. Here are the biggest things we learned about Zack Snyder's Justice League from Zack Snyder himself, plus the exclusive clip he brought to the virtual event below: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/zack-snyders-justice-league-the-mother-box-origins-exclusive-clip-ign-fan-fest-2021"]  

• For fans waiting for the definitive version of Snyder’s Justice League, the version being released on HBO Max will be the director’s final word as he tells IGN that Zack Snyder’s Justice League is “essentially the same movie” he was finishing in 2017.

 

• When Snyder finished his cut of Justice League back in 2016 there was an “even longer version that he and editor David Brenner cut down to hit four hours. “We just did some tightening and put the screws to it a little bit more to get it close to four hours,” says Snyder. (IGN has now confirmed the film's exact running time to be 4 hours and 2 minutes.) The version coming to HBO Max will be “essentially” the same as this original director’s cut, Snyder promises.

 

• When talking about the discussions with Warner Bros. to finally release this version of Justice League, Zack Snyder cites the fan support as being key to finally getting the Snyder-Cut out. The director shared that fan support was the “perfect storm that allowed [Zack Snyder’s Justice League] to become reality."

  [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/08/21/the-true-story-behind-the-snyder-cut"]  

• Zack Snyder’s Justice League “fills in a couple of impossible gaps that I thought were never going to see the light of day.”

 

• When asked by Sarwar Jiwani on Twitter what cut content he’s most excited for fans to see in his Justice League, Snyder tells IGN that it’s Cyborg’s backstory. “To me, [Cyborg’s backstory is] such an important part of the movie, and his whole arc and journey is so important. There was just really cool stuff that we shot and that we created that I was really excited for fans to see.”

 

• During the IGN Fan Fest, Zack Snyder shared a special sequence that he initially considered using for the opening credits of his Justice League coming to HBO Max. Styled after a classical Roman tableau, the "Mother Box Origins" sequence shows the various Justice League heroes immortalized as gods. But eagle-eyed viewers will have plenty of reasons to rewatch the opening, according to Snyder.

 

• “There’s a million Easter eggs” in the Mother Box sequence, Snyder says. “We just all started doodling and it became this fine art piece on its own that really talks about the Mother Boxes and the characters’ origins, and I find it really beautiful and immersive, and yeah, it’s super fun,” Snyder says. Check out all the easter eggs we found in the Mother Box Origins clip.

 

• Snyder says that, while an episodic release was considered, it “got complicated” – possibly due to contractual difficulties – and ultimately fans "would've been mad if they had to wait weeks" for an episodic Justice League to be completed. The movie was always filmed as a single piece with a six-chapter structure, which is how it will be released.

 

• Snyder also revealed two of the chapter titles from the Snyder Cut. Chapter 1 of the movie will be titled ‘Don’t Count On It Batman’, and Chapter 2 will be ‘The Age of Heroes.'

  [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2017/11/22/what-wasnt-in-justice-league-all-the-deleted-scenes-cut-from-trailers"]  

• Snyder says the newer films featuring members of the Justice League haven’t altered his creative decisions for the characters in the movie. “This film was finished before those films were probably even shot,” he explains, “and so I stayed the course with my point of view.

 

• “I think you can view my Snyderverse version of the DC superhero canon as its own thing. I love Patty and James and what they've done with their movies and are amazing, but at this point I was just like, this is its own thing and it doesn't really owe anything to anything, so I'm just going to do it exactly as I had always intended.”

 

• Snyder explained some backstory for his version of Batman, saying that the 20 years of crime fighting under his utility belt probably led to the grayer morals than we’re used to seeing from the character. “Our Bruce had a higher moral or stronger moral compass when he first started crime-fighting in Gotham 20 years ago,” the director explains, “but he's seen a lot of rough stuff happen over the years and I think that he's a bit jaded now, obviously. The death of Robin and others, I think that he now has found himself in a dark place but, yes, the whole point was that the death of Superman really shakes him out of that and puts him on this really cathartic path to form the Justice League and do his part.”

 

• There were long conversations with the studio about whether to put Superman in a black-and-silver suit, and the crew devised a way in which the suit could be easily color-corrected in post. “I was a big advocate [of the black suit],” Snyder explained, “they were not so much, and we would go back and forth. I said, ‘Okay, let me just at least do some tests to see if I could put him in the black suit and what it would look like.’ We devised a method in which we could easily turn the suit, using the existing suit, to the black and silver suit that you see in the movie. We knew exactly how to do it when we went into it and, as I say, it was always my intention to have him in that suit and it's glorious he's in that.”

 

• Snyder added last that seeing the suit in that style was a thrill: “It was cool, yeah, I got to admit, because the first thing we did was a quick test to make sure that we had all our ducks in a row. Just seeing it, we all just sat back like, wow, are we really doing this?”

  [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/justice-league-snyder-cut-harry-lennix-has-a-martian-manhunter-question-for-zack-snyder-ign-fan-fest-2021"]  

• Replying to a question from actor Harry Lennix, Snyder explained how Lennix’s General Calvin Swanwick and Martian Manhunter are connected in the new movie after we learned the alien superhero would be revealed. “In my mind, Swanwick and Martian Manhunter, it's like his alter-ego. That's kind of the way I see it. If you notice the way he's manipulated both Lois and Clark to do their best, to be the best they can be, because in this incarnation he wants humanity to do it themselves and/or this new hero in Superman. I think that that's kind of the way I see it – that they have the same voice.”

 

• Synder reiterated that Cyborg is the heart of his version of Justice League, saying “Everything turns on him, everything turns on the stakes that are presented to him, the events that befall him within the context of the film.” However, he makes clear that – despite the character being dropped from the upcoming Flash adaptation – he doesn’t see this as a standalone moment of the character, and says there’s still a story left to tell. “He's an amazing character and it's great to see him really realize that on the movie when you see it. You're going to realize that Cyborg is [the] tip of the iceberg, in my opinion, so who knows?”

 

• Jared Leto’s Joker makes an appearance in the film, with a new look based on his appearance in the post-apocalyptic ‘Knightmare’ reality Batman witnesses. It’s a cameo that wasn’t a part of the original script, but one Snyder says “is all about just trying to fulfill the promise of having the Joker in this universe and not having [him and Batman] come together. [I] always wanted him to be in the nightmare reality, and so it was a great opportunity. When I talked to Jared and he was interested in doing it, I just felt like, okay, this feels like a thing I can't pass up.”

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/14/zack-snyders-justice-league-official-trailer"]

• Snyder says that the movie ends on “a massive cliffhanger”, which would potentially have connected to Snyder’s plans for other Justice League movies. However, it sounds as though those plans may not make it past the ideas stage: “Well, it was meant to be two more movies. [This movie] doesn't really encompass any of the additional movies other than little... It hints, as you would, at a potential other world. I'd plant the seeds as I had wanted to of what would come in the later films. That's in there, but as far as those stories, that would be to come if ever that happened – which it does not look like it would.”

 

• Joe Manganiello's Deathstroke has already been confirmed, but Snyder explained how the traditional villain will fit in alongside the heroes: “When we find him, clearly he and Batman have struck some sort of a deal and they have a bit of a partnership. There's a bigger enemy, I guess. They're not locked in mortal combat. They're actually working together to try to figure out how to make this world work.”

 

• Snyder hinted that Darkseid was intended to be the villain in a notional Justice League 2, but made clear he will make a major contribution to this film: “He's certainly the sequel bad guy, but he definitely is in full effect. He's running the show. He's there. I don't want to, again, spoil it but, yeah, he's definitely there.”

 

• As for why he’s there, Snyder says Darkseid has “tons of human motivation”, not just a quest to conquer. “He operates on another plane, but certainly something happened to him in the past and he's not happy about it, and it's really hurt him. It's shaped him and he's looking to make it right, and so I think there's a lot of nuance in him and Ray [Porter] does a great job of voicing him.”

[widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=justice-league-snyder-cut-trailer-screenshots&captions=true"]  

• As for Steppenwolf, the villain of Joss Whedon’s cut of Justice League, Snyder explains that he and Darkseid have a “very complicated” relationship: “I'm not going to give it away but the dynamic between the two of them, some things happened in the past. There's a bunch of issues between them and so, yeah, I think that all plays out. Yes, the answer is there's quite a complex relationship there.”

 

• Snyder was asked whether he would accept an offer to make Justice League 2 but was a little cagey about what his answer would be. “That's very hypothetical. I think that I would say, I would believe it when I see it, and happy to cross that bridge when I see it approaching.”

 

• There’s long been discussion over who inhabited an empty Kryptonian pod in Man of Steel – and some wondered whether that mystery would be solved in the Snyder Cut. Sadly, the mystery will seemingly go on, and may never be solved. “It definitely is in Justice League,” Snyder says of the pod. “They pass it and they look at it. They don't talk about it but, yeah, that is an open question, and I would hope at some point to find out who was in there, what's going on.”

  [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=justice-league-snyder-cut-all-the-known-differences-from-the-theatrical-version&captions=true"]  

• IGN said a #ReleaseTheOpenPodAnswer hashtag would surely spring up, to which Snyder replied, “There already is, trust me. Yeah, you're not getting that one, not for a while anyway, or ever.” And if you were wondering whether there even is a definitive answer, Snyder made clear he knows who was in there.

 

• Zack Snyder, who is already releasing Justice League in a full-screen, 1.33:1 aspect ratio, also revealed that there is a black and white version of the movie dubbed the “Justice is Gray” edition. Snyder says he is a “huge advocate of and a huge admirer of,” this version of the movie and that it is his “favorite version of the movie.” IGN has confirmed this version will also be coming to HBO Max, although its exact release date remains TBD.

 

• The Justice is Gray edition will be released on HBO Max “at some point” after the release of Zack Snyder’s Justice League. But beyond that, Snyder hopes to one day tour the full four-hour-long version of Justice League on IMAX once theaters are safe to re-open, and it will include a “beautiful intermission, Junkie XL intermission,” according to Snyder. “It’s an afternoon and into evening experience that’s pretty cool.” However, there are no plans for the IMAX experience at this time.

Watch the full panel Q&A with Zack Snyder from IGN Fan Fest below: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/justice-league-inside-the-snyder-cut-with-zack-snyder-ign-fan-fest-2021"] At a little over four-hours long, Zack Snyder's Justice League is set to be the definitive version of the movie fans have been waiting for. The journey to get here was long, but you can read our timeline of how in 2017 Snyder left the project, only for Joss Whedon to step in as a replacement. Along with using almost two-hours of never-before-seen footage, Snyder shot a few minutes of extra scenes including introducing Leto's Joker from the Suicide Squad into the Justice League. Check out IGN's full interview with Zack Snyder and our full Fan Fest schedule for more panels, including ones for Godzilla vs. Kong and Shadow and Bone.

Zack Snyder is getting ready to release his version of Justice League on HBO Max. Nicknamed by fans as the "Snyder-cut" the director's version of the 2017 DC team-up film is officially titled Zack Snyder's Justice League and will be released as a single, four-hour-long movie on the streaming service. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/justice-league-inside-the-snyder-cut-with-zack-snyder-ign-fan-fest-2021"] At IGN Fan Fest 2021, the director sat down with us to go in-depth on this new version of Justice League answering questions from us and fans online. There were plenty of details from Snyder ranging from information about new characters in the movie like Deathstroke and Jared Leto's Joker, as well as a chance to hear Snyder himself explain the backstory of his and Ben Affleck's version of Batman. But the full Fan Fest interview was chock-full of other details about the film. Here are the biggest things we learned about Zack Snyder's Justice League from Zack Snyder himself, plus the exclusive clip he brought to the virtual event below: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/zack-snyders-justice-league-the-mother-box-origins-exclusive-clip-ign-fan-fest-2021"]  

• For fans waiting for the definitive version of Snyder’s Justice League, the version being released on HBO Max will be the director’s final word as he tells IGN that Zack Snyder’s Justice League is “essentially the same movie” he was finishing in 2017.

 

• When Snyder finished his cut of Justice League back in 2016 there was an “even longer version that he and editor David Brenner cut down to hit four hours. “We just did some tightening and put the screws to it a little bit more to get it close to four hours,” says Snyder. (IGN has now confirmed the film's exact running time to be 4 hours and 2 minutes.) The version coming to HBO Max will be “essentially” the same as this original director’s cut, Snyder promises.

 

• When talking about the discussions with Warner Bros. to finally release this version of Justice League, Zack Snyder cites the fan support as being key to finally getting the Snyder-Cut out. The director shared that fan support was the “perfect storm that allowed [Zack Snyder’s Justice League] to become reality."

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• Zack Snyder’s Justice League “fills in a couple of impossible gaps that I thought were never going to see the light of day.”

 

• When asked by Sarwar Jiwani on Twitter what cut content he’s most excited for fans to see in his Justice League, Snyder tells IGN that it’s Cyborg’s backstory. “To me, [Cyborg’s backstory is] such an important part of the movie, and his whole arc and journey is so important. There was just really cool stuff that we shot and that we created that I was really excited for fans to see.”

 

• During the IGN Fan Fest, Zack Snyder shared the opening credits of his Justice League coming to HBO Max. Styled after a classical Roman tableau, the opening shows the various Justice League heroes immortalized as gods. But eagle-eyed viewers will have plenty of reasons to rewatch the opening, according to Snyder.

 

• “There’s a million Easter eggs” in the Justice League opening, Snyder says. “We just all started doodling and it became this fine art piece on its own that really talks about the Mother Boxes and the characters’ origins, and I find it really beautiful and immersive, and yeah, it’s super fun,” Snyder says.

 

• Snyder says that, while an episodic release was considered, it “got complicated” – possibly due to contractual difficulties – and ultimately fans "would've been mad if they had to wait weeks" for an episodic Justice League to be completed. The movie was always filmed as a single piece with a six-chapter structure, which is how it will be released.

 

• Chapter 1 of the movie will be titled ‘Don’t Count On It Batman’, and Chapter 2 will be ‘The Age of Heroes’.

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• Snyder says the newer films featuring members of the Justice League haven’t altered his creative decisions for the characters in the movie. “This film was finished before those films were probably even shot,” he explains, “and so I stayed the course with my point of view.

 

• “I think you can view my Snyderverse version of the DC superhero canon as its own thing. I love Patty and James and what they've done with their movies and are amazing, but at this point I was just like, this is its own thing and it doesn't really owe anything to anything, so I'm just going to do it exactly as I had always intended.”

 

• Snyder explained some backstory for his version of Batman, saying that the 20 years of crime fighting under his utility belt probably led to the grayer morals than we’re used to seeing from the character. “Our Bruce had a higher moral or stronger moral compass when he first started crime-fighting in Gotham 20 years ago,” the director explains, “but he's seen a lot of rough stuff happen over the years and I think that he's a bit jaded now, obviously. The death of Robin and others, I think that he now has found himself in a dark place but, yes, the whole point was that the death of Superman really shakes him out of that and puts him on this really cathartic path to form the Justice League and do his part.”

 

• There were long conversations with the studio about whether to put Superman in a black-and-silver suit, and the crew devised a way in which the suit could be easily color-corrected in post. “I was a big advocate [of the black suit],” Snyder explained, “they were not so much, and we would go back and forth. I said, ‘Okay, let me just at least do some tests to see if I could put him in the black suit and what it would look like.’ We devised a method in which we could easily turn the suit, using the existing suit, to the black and silver suit that you see in the movie. We knew exactly how to do it when we went into it and, as I say, it was always my intention to have him in that suit and it's glorious he's in that.”

 

• Snyder added last that seeing the suit in that style was a thrill: “It was cool, yeah, I got to admit, because the first thing we did was a quick test to make sure that we had all our ducks in a row. Just seeing it, we all just sat back like, wow, are we really doing this?”

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• Replying to a question from actor Harry Lennix, Snyder explained how Lennix’s General Calvin Swanwick and Martian Manhunter are connected in the new movie after we learned the alien superhero would be revealed. “In my mind, Swanwick and Martian Manhunter, it's like his alter-ego. That's kind of the way I see it. If you notice the way he's manipulated both Lois and Clark to do their best, to be the best they can be, because in this incarnation he wants humanity to do it themselves and/or this new hero in Superman. I think that that's kind of the way I see it – that they have the same voice.”

 

• Synder reiterated that Cyborg is the heart of his version of Justice League, saying “Everything turns on him, everything turns on the stakes that are presented to him, the events that befall him within the context of the film.” However, he makes clear that – despite the character being dropped from the upcoming Flash adaptation – he doesn’t see this as a standalone moment of the character, and says there’s still a story left to tell. “He's an amazing character and it's great to see him really realize that on the movie when you see it. You're going to realize that Cyborg is [the] tip of the iceberg, in my opinion, so who knows?”

 

• Jared Leto’s Joker makes an appearance in the film, with a new look based on his appearance in the post-apocalyptic ‘Knightmare’ reality Batman witnesses. It’s a cameo that wasn’t a part of the original script, but one Snyder says “is all about just trying to fulfill the promise of having the Joker in this universe and not having [him and Batman] come together. [I] always wanted him to be in the nightmare reality, and so it was a great opportunity. When I talked to Jared and he was interested in doing it, I just felt like, okay, this feels like a thing I can't pass up.”

[ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/14/zack-snyders-justice-league-official-trailer"]

• Snyder says that the movie ends on “a massive cliffhanger”, which would potentially have connected to Snyder’s plans for other Justice League movies. However, it sounds as though those plans may not make it past the ideas stage: “Well, it was meant to be two more movies. [This movie] doesn't really encompass any of the additional movies other than little... It hints, as you would, at a potential other world. I'd plant the seeds as I had wanted to of what would come in the later films. That's in there, but as far as those stories, that would be to come if ever that happened – which it does not look like it would.”

 

• Joe Manganiello's Deathstroke has already been confirmed, but Snyder explained how the traditional villain will fit in alongside the heroes: “When we find him, clearly he and Batman have struck some sort of a deal and they have a bit of a partnership. There's a bigger enemy, I guess. They're not locked in mortal combat. They're actually working together to try to figure out how to make this world work.”

 

• Snyder hinted that Darkseid was intended to be the villain in a notional Justice League 2, but made clear he will make a major contribution to this film: “He's certainly the sequel bad guy, but he definitely is in full effect. He's running the show. He's there. I don't want to, again, spoil it but, yeah, he's definitely there.”

 

• As for why he’s there, Snyder says Darkseid has “tons of human motivation”, not just a quest to conquer. “He operates on another plane, but certainly something happened to him in the past and he's not happy about it, and it's really hurt him. It's shaped him and he's looking to make it right, and so I think there's a lot of nuance in him and Ray [Porter] does a great job of voicing him.”

 

• As for Steppenwolf, the villain of Joss Whedon’s cut of Justice League, Snyder explains that he and Darkseid have a “very complicated” relationship: “I'm not going to give it away but the dynamic between the two of them, some things happened in the past. There's a bunch of issues between them and so, yeah, I think that all plays out. Yes, the answer is there's quite a complex relationship there.”

 

• Snyder was asked whether he would accept an offer to make Justice League 2 but was a little cagey about what his answer would be. “That's very hypothetical. I think that I would say, I would believe it when I see it, and happy to cross that bridge when I see it approaching.”

 

• There’s long been discussion over who inhabited an empty Kryptonian pod in Man of Steel – and some wondered whether that mystery would be solved in the Snyder Cut. Sadly, the mystery will seemingly go on, and may never be solved. “It definitely is in Justice League,” Snyder says of the pod. “They pass it and they look at it. They don't talk about it but, yeah, that is an open question, and I would hope at some point to find out who was in there, what's going on.”

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• IGN said a #ReleaseTheOpenPodAnswer hashtag would surely spring up, to which Snyder replied, “There already is, trust me. Yeah, you're not getting that one, not for a while anyway, or ever.” And if you were wondering whether there even is a definitive answer, Snyder made clear he knows who was in there.

 

• Zack Snyder, who is already releasing Justice League in a full-screen, 1.33:1 aspect ratio, also revealed that there is a black and white version of the movie dubbed the “Justice is Gray” edition. Snyder says he is a “huge advocate of and a huge admirer of,” this version of the movie and that it is his “favorite version of the movie.” IGN has confirmed this version will also be coming to HBO Max, although its exact release date remains TBD.

 

• The Justice is Gray edition will be released on HBO Max “at some point” after the release of Zack Snyder’s Justice League. But beyond that, Snyder hopes to one day tour the full four-hour-long version of Justice League on IMAX once theaters are safe to re-open, and it will include a “beautiful intermission, Junkie XL intermission,” according to Snyder. “It’s an afternoon and into evening experience that’s pretty cool.” However, there are no plans for the IMAX experience at this time.

Watch the full panel Q&A with Zack Snyder from IGN Fan Fest below: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/justice-league-inside-the-snyder-cut-with-zack-snyder-ign-fan-fest-2021"] At a little over four-hours long, Zack Snyder's Justice League is set to be the definitive version of the movie fans have been waiting for. The journey to get here was long, but you can read our timeline of how in 2017 Snyder left the project, only for Joss Whedon to step in as a replacement. Along with using almost two-hours of never-before-seen footage, Snyder shot a few minutes of extra scenes including introducing Leto's Joker from the Suicide Squad into the Justice League. Check out IGN's full interview with Zack Snyder and our full Fan Fest schedule for more panels, including ones for Godzilla vs. Kong and Shadow and Bone.

Zack Snyder has exclusively shared a new Mother Box Origin Clip for IGN Fan Fest 2021, and it is filled with Easter Eggs and nods to the history of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Cyborg, and The Flash. From the iconic Bat-Signal to what looks to be the Kent’s farmhouse where Superman grew up to much more, we’ve gathered each and every Easter Egg and clue in the slideshow below: [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=justice-league-snyder-cut-all-the-hidden-easter-eggs-and-clues-in-the-mother-box-origins-clip&captions=true"] For those unfamiliar, Mother Boxes are powerful devices of Apokoliptian origin that were brought to Earth thousands of years ago in an attempt to create unity and terraform Earth to make it more similar to Apokolips. He was stopped by the Amazons, Atlanteans, and mankind, and the Mother Boxes were separated and left on Earth to be guarded. As the years went on, these Mother Boxes were used in the creation of Cyborg, the resurrection of Superman (in the theatrical cut of Justice League), and much more. The imagery of this Mother Box also resembles the Source Wall from DC's Fourth World comics. The Source Wall is a giant barrier surrounding the universe and separating it from the cosmic energy field known as the Source. Watch the full Mother Box Origins clip here: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/zack-snyders-justice-league-the-mother-box-origins-exclusive-clip-ign-fan-fest-2021"] The Source Wall is littered with the bodies of countless dead gods from eons past. They're all chained together and trapped in poses of pain and anguish, not unlike the Justice League characters seen here. Is this simply a reminder of Snyder's take on DC's heroes as godlike figures dealing with operatic tragedy? Or is it a tease that the Snyder Cut will delve deeper into the mythology of the New Gods than fans are expecting? For more on Zack Snyder’s Justice League ahead of its debut on March 18, 2021, in theaters and on HBO Max, check out Snyder's reveal of two of Justice League's new chapter titles, all the differences from each theatrical version of Justice League, and 27 things Zack Snyder revealed about the Justice League Snyder Cut during IGN Fan Fest. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.

Zack Snyder has exclusively shared a new Mother Box Origin Clip for IGN Fan Fest 2021, and it is filled with Easter Eggs and nods to the history of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Cyborg, and The Flash. From the iconic Bat-Signal to what looks to be the Kent’s farmhouse where Superman grew up to much more, we’ve gathered each and every Easter Egg and clue in the slideshow below: [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=justice-league-snyder-cut-all-the-hidden-easter-eggs-and-clues-in-the-mother-box-origins-clip&captions=true"] For those unfamiliar, Mother Boxes are powerful devices of Apokoliptian origin that were brought to Earth thousands of years ago in an attempt to create unity and terraform Earth to make it more similar to Apokolips. He was stopped by the Amazons, Atlanteans, and mankind, and the Mother Boxes were separated and left on Earth to be guarded. As the years went on, these Mother Boxes were used in the creation of Cyborg, the resurrection of Superman (in the theatrical cut of Justice League), and much more. The imagery of this Mother Box also resembles the Source Wall from DC's Fourth World comics. The Source Wall is a giant barrier surrounding the universe and separating it from the cosmic energy field known as the Source. Watch the full Mother Box Origins clip here: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2021/02/27/zack-snyders-justice-league-the-mother-box-origins-exclusive-clip-ign-fan-fest-2021"] The Source Wall is littered with the bodies of countless dead gods from eons past. They're all chained together and trapped in poses of pain and anguish, not unlike the Justice League characters seen here. Is this simply a reminder of Snyder's take on DC's heroes as godlike figures dealing with operatic tragedy? Or is it a tease that the Snyder Cut will delve deeper into the mythology of the New Gods than fans are expecting? For more on Zack Snyder’s Justice League ahead of its debut on March 18, 2021, in theaters and on HBO Max, check out Snyder's reveal of two of Justice League's new chapter titles, all the differences from each theatrical version of Justice League, and the history of this "lost" Justice League film. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Adam Bankhurst is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter @AdamBankhurst and on Twitch.