What To Believe? Will It Happen? | The SnyderVerse
Since the announcement of Zack Snyder's Justice League on May 20. 2020, many fans have been itching for more and more to be greenlit and announced from Zack's DC arc. The sad reality is Warner Bros. never intended to continue with Zack Snyder after releasing the Snyder Cut of Justice League. The true goal of that was to get content for their new streaming service HBOMax (now Max) as well as attempt to bring some of the DC fandom back into the fold with some good will.
Here we sit though, nearly four years later, and there is no sign of any SnyderVerse continuation. So what is going on?
What Happened to the Fandom?
One of the Most Vocal Snyder Loyalist Who Spews Toxicity on a Daily Basis
Undeniably Zack Snyder has a passionate and unrelenting fanbase that played a role in bringing his vision of Justice League to life in 2021. Unfortunately, instead of being thankful and appreciative of such a massive and unheard of gesture made by Warner Bros., a majority of the fandom decided unapologetically ask for more.
Now, that would not have been so bad had they stayed the course of their initial movement (#ReleaseTheSnyderCut).
During that time they were mostly seen as honorable and respectful and had a singular vision and goal. And let's not forget to mention the amazing work they did in raising money for American Suicide Prevention as well.
But eventually a shift would happen that would turn this fandom into the villains they once were fighting against.
Personally, I pinpoint it to the Ray Fisher accusations against Warner Bros, Joss Whedon, Geoff Johns and Walter Hamada. This isn't to say what any of those parties did to him or any of his co-workers was right. I'm also not saying that he should not have blown the whistle on these things. What I am saying is the way he went about it and tried to use Zack's fandom to pressure the studio to bend their knee to him was inappropriate and wrong. Because of this the Snyder fandom became spiteful and toxic towards Warner Bros.
Sure, prior to this fans were unhappy with how things played out under the Kevin Tsujihara regime. But with Warner Bros. now under ATT and them even giving the fans what they wanted. It seemed like the ill will was starting to subside, until Fischer began his crusade.
This Account Has No Understanding of the Industry
From that point on the fandom became increasingly angry at every turn. What made matters worse were those claiming to be in the know spreading false information about Warner Bros. having intentions to further expand the SnyderVerse. From false reports on Ben Affleck's Batman project being revived to Zack Snyder being handed the keys to complete his multi-film DC film arc.
The grifters found a way to make a buck by telling insignificant truths, while sprinkling lies into their rhetoric, all while leading the fans on by telling them what they wanted to hear.
It truly takes a special kind of evil to do this sort of thing.
But I digress, it was because of this that the fandom became even more vicious with the studio. Even when they would come out and tell the truth about them not having plans to continue, the fandom would attack and berate any executive who was part of WB.
There was a glimmer of hope though... or was there?
When it was announced that Discovery and Warner Bros. would be merging and David Zaslav would be overseeing the entire studio, fans rejoiced. They believed that this man, Zaslav, would be their saving grace and would immediately cancel all other DC projects, call up Zack Snyder and give him the keys to the I.P.
Well, at least that is what all the grifters wanted you to believe. They were so sure about themselves that I think they even convinced themselves that the lunacy they were spouting was true.
Ultimately though, when Zaslav came in and decided that the best course of action was to scrap everything and start fresh. Well the Snyder fandom lost their collective minds once again.
"How could Zaslav deceive us!?"
Since then we have seen the creation of DC studios, the hiring of Peter Safran and James Gunn as the CEO's of said studio, a slate for the new DCU Chapter One Gods and Monsters, and worst of all we have witnessed the Snyder fandom become the very worst version of themselves.
What About Snyder?
Through all that has transpired over the last four years with the fandom. Zack Snyder has signed with Netflix, started building not one, not two, but three universes on their platform and has stated that the chapter of his DC universe has closed. Sure, he'd be willing to do a true adaption of The Dark Knight Returns, but he is happier and has more creative freedom than he ever had while at WB.
The question we need to ask the fans is, why take that away from him?
It is true he has said things like, he would come back if given the opportunity.
But what else would he say? He isn't going to upset his fanbase and say ''no''.
Especially since his fanbase was built the last 7 years around his DC ideas.This isn't to say he would never return, this isn't to say he would. This is simply laying out the facts and foundation on which to see the full picture.
Personally, I believe if he was called up by James Gunn and asked to return to finish his story he would only do it if he had nearly complete control.
That is something I don't believe DC Studios or WB would or should allow.
Let's not forget that Zack nearly walked away from finishing ZSJL when he couldn't add in a scene that he was told he wasn't allowed to shoot, and he did anyway, into the movie. It's apparent he can sometimes be a little full of himself.
So When are We Getting the SnyderVerse?
Let's face it, DC Studios has far too much on their plate right now to worry about a universe that has been dead for 7 years. Nor should they even entertain the idea at this point. Their focus should solely be on that of the universe they are starting to build and create.
Fans may not like this approach, they may think that James Gunn and Peter Safran are in over their heads, or even that they aren't doing it right. The truth is, with the exception of fitting Peacemaker into this new universe, nearly every decision made to this point has been exactly what every other studio or producer would do in this scenario.
But what about the SnyderVerse going to Netflix?
I knew this question would come up and I even know you will mention things like Scooby Doo, Sandman and the old DCEU content going to other streamers as being signs that WB would be willing to license the SnyderVerse out to Netflix.
First off, STOP LISTENING TO THE GRIFTERS!
Stay away from Grifters who tell you EVERYTHING you Want to Hear.
Secondly, no one quite understands the undertaking financially that would be for Netflix. Sure, they could work out a deal where WB gets a nice chunk of change from merchandise or something like that. But lets not forget that Netflix doesn't make money off of their individual projects they release. They can't promise WB a cut of the Box Office (Similar to what Village Roadshow and WB did with Todd Phillips Joker). That means nearly all of the cost to obtain the licensing for the characters needed for Netflix and Zack to complete this arc would need to come directly from Netflix.
We are talking about Hundreds of Millions of dollars here. After the less than adequate response and excitement around Rebel Moon as well as the new Head of Films at Netflix, Dan Lin, looking to make smarter financial decisions. Can you see Netflix ever dropping that sort of money on something that would take years, if not decades to recoup? Not to mention the hundreds of millions of dollars the production budget would be. It really just doesn't seem feasible.
We then have to look at the ramifications of how the DCU would be affected. Like it or not, that is the priority for DC Studios, as it should be. They won't want to have a competing studio releasing live action movies with versions of the same heroes they are using in their films. Using logic we all know it would be a bad move on WB and DC Studios to allow that to happen.
The final option would be Animation, which Snyder said he is open to. Unfortunately, DC Studios is once again in the way a bit as they will also be using Animation to build out their DCU. This could throw a wrench in the fans attempt at pushing a #AnimateTheSnyderVerse campaign. However, if Netflix wanted to get serious and stay in the Snyder game (this is to be seen) then maybe... just maybe they make a push for obtaining the animation licensing rights?
This would be a much cheaper option for Netflix or any other potential bidder. And while production budgets aren't cheap for animation, it wouldn't be nearly as high or time consuming on the actors or Snyder to complete it in this form.
Never Surrender. Never Compromise
This is where things for the fandom get sticky. After everything laid out above, do you truly believe that there is a pathway of getting the SnyderVerse continued in Live Action?
From the toxic behavior of the Snyder fandom, to the newly blossoming DCU, on top of the crazy cost of the IP and budget. Live action is just not an option that any studio can even entertain at this time.
But what if the DCU fails?
What if it does? Honestly, that is a BIG IF. I can assure you though that WB, whether this incarnation of the company or another will not sit back and say "You know what? lets try another failed universe in hopes of it not failing now!"
If the DCU fails, well then WB will decide whether a connected universe is the way to go or if they will go back to the one off model they enjoyed success with over the years.
What this comes down to now is how can you as fans make it appealing to the studio to find a pathway of making this happen... Even if it isn't in live action.
The fans need to do a few things for anything to have a possibility of panning out.
Do their best to remove the toxic rhetoric from within. Stop bashing Gunn, WBD, DC Studios and anyone connected to the studios. None of them involved today are why Zack was screwed over in 2017. None of them are why things played out how they did and DC is where it is at.
This isn't to say you have to support, cheer on or even watch any of what they make. But the constant attacks and disgusting behavior needs to come to its conclusion.Compromise. Yea, you may have to compromise a bit here. I get that Live Action is how you want it. But from everything stated above and the current direction of the Comic Book Movie Genre, the most reasonable option for seeing the completion of the story is to #AnimateTheSnyderVerse.
Finally, have fun. Spread the joy of Zack's DC work. Don't always try to belittle other fans because they don't appreciate Man of Steel or Batman v Superman. Understand that all film is subjective and people are entitled to their own opinions. It's great that we love those movies so why not simply express our joy with them and not get roped into arguments and disagreements?
That all sounds so simple, but I know for this fandom it could be the hardest and most challenging obstacle yet.
#UsUnited #AnimateTheSnyderVerse
