Is Zack Snyder still going to direct Justice League 2? For now, Zack Snyder has put the DCEU to the side for more important things. In the wake of his daughter's suicide in March, Snyder recently announced that he will be stepping down from Justice League and transferring post-production duties to Joss Whedon. Snyder's wife and producing partner, Deborah, will be stepping down as well - so she and her husband can focus on their family. Initially Snyder had intended to keep his daughter's death private.

According to a statement made by the filmmaker, he planned on keeping the information to a small circle of people and return to Justice League after a brief hiatus. Though, at first he thought returning to work would distract him, he's now decided that the demands of the film would be too much for him and his family during this emotional time. With Justice League Part 1 under new leadership, the uncomfortable question on everybody's mind now is whether or not Snyder will return for Part 2.

While the first Justice League is slated for release on November 17th of this year (a date that hasn't changed in spite of Snyder's tragedy), Part 2 isn't set for release until 2019. Originally the film was scheduled to come out on June 4th, 2019, but that date was pushed back to accommodate a standalone Batman movie. While the specific release date for Justice League Part 2 is unclear at this time, it's still on the studio's schedule for late 2019. Until then, Warner Brothers has a lot of unfinished business that needs attending to beyond Justice League. Doug Liman recently exited Justice League Dark, and The Flash is still in need of a director. With all of this, in addition to Justice League Part 2, it seems Warner Brothers will have some serious prioritizing to do in the coming months. Whatever the case, Warner Bros. president Toby Emmerich has publicly backed Zack Snyder's recent decision to pull out of Justice League.

The news of Justice League Part 2's delay came out in December. At that time it was also announced that Zack Snyder would develop non-DC projects in the interim. The director reportedly had plans to pursue The Last Photograph, a passion project he conceived shortly after making 300. The film, an Afghanistan-set war thriller, would be a significantly smaller film than another Justice League movie. Snyder has also toyed with the idea of adapting Ayn Rand's novel The Fountainhead into a film. If and when Snyder decides to jump back into filmmaking, he has the option of either returning to the large-scale superhero movies or sinking into more personal projects. Whichever he prefers at that time will be up to Snyder. Outside of movies, the filmmaker and his wife have reportedly voiced the hope that a sci-fi novel written by Autumn, Snyder's late daughter, would one day be published. The proceeds would be given to charity.

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Ben Affleck Zack Snyder Batman V Superman

Assuming Snyder does choose to back down from the second Justice League film, the question becomes a matter of who would take his place. Joss Whedon has been put in charge of post-production and reshoots for the first Justice League, and his selection is hardly - random since he was already tapped to write and direct a Batgirl movie. Because of that and because of his success directing Marvel's The Avengers, Whedon could be on Warner Bros.' radar for a Justice League sequel. Another director working within the DCEU is Patty Jenkins, the director of the Wonder Woman film set for release in early June. Early buzz for Jenkins' film has been largely positive, and the director has already floated ideas for a Wonder Woman sequel. If Warner Bros. decides to keep her around, then maybe they will also recruit her help for the Justice League franchise, similar to how Marvel promoted Joe and Anthony Russo from Captain America movies to Avengers: Infinity War.

There are also some directors with more tenuous connections to the DCEU, like Matthew Vaughn (X-Men: First Class, Kingsman: The Secret Service) and J.A. Bayona (A Monster Calls, the unnamed Jurassic World sequel), who could possibly sit in the director's chair. Vaughn was at one point a favorite to take on a Man of Steel sequel, but news regarding his involvement has since subsided. Faint rumors have spread about J.A. Bayona's interest in doing Man of Steel 2, but there's very little concrete evidence to support that it will actually happen. Neither has solidified a deal to work with Warner Bros., so any assumption regarding their involvement with Justice League would be based heavily in speculation.

Zack Snyder working on Deathstroke storyboards for Justice League movie

But when all is said and done, what's most important is how Snyder himself feels about returning to direct another Justice League. Right now he's put his family first and foremost, and until they've had time to heal, it's likely they'll remain ahead of any plans to film Justice League 2. When the time comes for him to consider making films again, the director might take comfort in the idea of returning to a franchise that he kickstarted with Man of Steel in 2013. Or perhaps he'll decide that films of that size are too daunting and opt for one of the smaller projects previously mentioned. Given that Snyder is willing to make decisions that best serve him and his family, it's reasonable to predict he'll make the call that will make him happiest in the long run.

Snyder has many friends in the filmmaking world, and the past few days have shown an immense outpouring of support in his time of need. On Twitter, fans have begun the hashtag #WeAreWithZackSnyder, using it to voice their goodwill towards the director and the hard decision he's made. Hollywood creatives have also offered their condolences to Snyder, ranging from people within the DCEU, like Patty Jenkins, writer/producer Geoff Johns, and Wonder Woman actress Gal Gadot, to directors like James Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy), Scott Derrickson (Doctor Strange), and Kevin Smith (Clerks). Wherever Snyder plans to take his career next, fans and colleagues alike will surely approve of the choices he makes.

Who do you think should direct Justice League 2?

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