The news just keeps on coming today for Zack Snyder's Justice League, with word that two producers of the theatrically-released Joss Whedon version are no longer associated with the project and will not be credited on the Snyder Cut. It's just the latest development now that the long-awaited recut is finally happening after years of fan demand. Snyder, of course, was the original director of 2017's Justice League, which would have been a monumental capstone to his DC directing career after Watchmen, Man of Steel, and Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice. But family tragedy forced Snyder to hand the reins to Avengers director Joss Whedon. The resulting film was considered a letdown by many moviegoers, causing a steady online drumbeat for Warner Bros. to release the Snyder Cut - and those demands were finally met in May when Snyder announced the Snyder Cut would debut next year on HBO Max as a four-part limited series.
Now that the project is officially underway with a $70 million budget, information has started to break through, culminating in today's huge news that Jared Leto will reprise his Suicide Squad version of the Joker in new scenes currently being re-shot, connecting Justice League more closely to Suicide Squad. Leto - who didn't appear in the original Justice League release - joins the previously-announced Ben Affleck (Batman) Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman), and Ray Fisher (Cyborg), all of whom are getting back in front of the cameras for the reshoots. Also today, the Snyder Cut got an official title: Zack Snyder's Justice League.
But amid the new title and Leto news, another development has gotten less attention, as THR reports that original Justice League producers Jon Berg and Geoff Johns have exited the project and will no longer receive on-screen credits. The duo were executives at Warner Bros. when they oversaw the Justice League feature film, earning them each the title of Producer. But both Berg and Johns have since left the studio and have not been at all involved with Snyder's resurrected production. Sources portrayed the move as intentional on the part of the ex-producers, citing not only their absence from the reshoots but also their desire to pay "respect to Snyder’s creative vision and the additional photography shoot."
Still, some are speculating that the duo's departure might also have something to do with actor Ray Fisher's allegations earlier this year that Berg and Johns were guilty of enabling abusive on-set behavior by replacement director Whedon, which has prompted an investigation at Warner Bros. Fisher - who has received support from co-stars Jason Mamoa and Kiersey Clemons - also specifically accused Johns of threatening his career. But one source told THR that the producers' exits "began months ago" and are "unconnected" to Fisher publicly calling them out.
Ultimately, this move will have little visible effect for viewers - the creative vision for the limited series will be coming primarily from the artist named in the title of Zack Snyder's Justice League, not from any current or former Warner Bros. executives. But it's likely the set will be a little bit less stressful than it otherwise might have been had Berg and Johns been there with Fisher, and that change could translate, however imperceptibly, to a more relaxed and confident Cyborg on screen. Either way, if Fisher's allegations about Whedon and the producers are true, it looks like Cyborg may have just brought a little bit more justice to the Justice League.
Source: THR
