It’s been a mixed bag this year for Warner Bros. Pictures' DC Extended Universe. The DCEU movies Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad collectively earned over $1.5 billion at the global box office this year. At the same time however, they did not perform well with critics, as a whole, and were largely divisive within the DC Comics fanbase, as well as the larger moviegoing public (to a lesser degree, of course).
Zack Snyder is the one responsible for laying the foundation for the DCEU with Man of Steel in 2013, before he moved on to direct Batman V Superman. The DCEU now has more of a proper architect in place to guide it onward, in the form of DC Entertainment president Geoff Johns. Meanwhile, Snyder completed production on Justice League earlier this year - and recently, the question was raised as to whether or not he will be returning to helm the sequel too, as was originally the plan back when the official DCEU film slate was announced.
Some months ago, Screen Geek picked up a rumor/unofficial report that Snyder would be stepping away from the DCEU after completing the first Justice League movie, in order to go work on a smaller-scale project thereafter. Cut to the present and it was only just revealed that Snyder is set to start work on his long gestating film, The Last Photograph, once Justice League is done. Although that same report indicated that Snyder still intends to return for Justice League 2 thereafter, there's now all the more reason to wonder if that old rumor about Snyder passing on Justice League 2 was accurate.
While nothing official has been announced regarding Snyder and his fate within the DCEU, it wouldn’t be surprising if he chose to step away. Having now spent several years working in the DCEU, Snyder might simply be ready to try his hand at something different. Moreover, Snyder has been working on The Last Photograph since 2007; if he sees a window of opportunity to get it made soon, it also makes sense that he’d take that now, DCEU notwithstanding. Half a decade of focusing on the DCEU is a long time to push your passion projects to the side, after all.
Given what we know—that Justice League 2 is delayed, that some fans to want him off the DCEU, and that there’s a window of opportunity for him to get a passion project off the ground—there's a reasonable chance that Snyder won't go back to the DCEU as director, by the time Justice League 2 is ready to production. This wouldn’t be a bad move for anyone involved. For WB, bringing in some new blood would allow it to move beyond the criticisms of Snyder and let another filmmaker put their spin on Justice League. For Snyder, it would allow him to work elsewhere, having seen a trilogy of DCEU movies through to the end.
Source: Screen Geek
