In a surprising turn of events, Zack Snyder's Justice League accidentally releases on HBO Max a week before its scheduled debut. Fans have been clamoring for the so-called Snyder Cut of the Warner Bros. and DC ensemble film since its theatrical counterpart was released in 2017. Assembled by Joss Whedon, the version of the story that played on the big screen was nowhere near what the original director Zack Snyder wanted for the film. After years of campaigning, supporters of the Release the Snyder Cut movement are all buzzing about the upcoming rollout of the much-clamored-for cut, but it turns out, some of them may not have to wait until March 18 to see it.
Over the years, it's gotten increasingly clear what really went down behind closed doors that led to the significant changes made to Justice League after Snyder had to step away from the project due to a family tragedy. This was enough motivation for fans to demand the Snyder Cut, with the filmmaker consistently teasing what his original work would've looked like. Finally, thanks to the interest from his supporters, coupled with HBO Max's attempt to beef up their content following its launch, Zack Snyder's Justice League was finally greenlit. Not only did the director get funding to finish his cut of the movie, but he also got enough for additional reshoots resulting in him being able to slot Jared Leto's Joker into the project.
Since the release date for Zack Snyder's Justice League was announced, fans have been counting the days to its release. So they were surprised when various posts on social media revealed that HBO Max has accidentally released it a week early. The movie was seemingly uploaded in place of Tom & Jerry; viewers who were trying to watch the live-action cat-and-mouse romp were caught off guard when Zack Snyder's Justice League started playing instead, as seen in social media posts from Ryan Parker and leirbag. Watch the videos below:
The leak comes amidst the final push for Zack Snyder's Justice League marketing. Snyder has been releasing character-centric teasers and posters, with the latest one highlighting Wonder Woman's role in the project. Aside from that, other trailers such as a freshly-dropped teaser showcasing Darkseid battling Superman have been rolled out to further drive the hype for the HBO Max offering. Given this, it's uncertain what exactly happened to its premature release on the platform. Unlike typical leaks, the footage was categorized as an entirely different film, making this circumstance unique.
Whether or not this incident will be investigated is uncertain at this point, but it's disappointing that in the middle of fans' excitement for Zack Snyder's Justice League having waited for it for more than three years, it suffered this major snafu. A big part of the reason why HBO Max greenlit the project is that they recognized the massive clamor for it, and they thought it made sense to give the audience what they wanted. Knowing full well how important the film is to many, it's strange it wasn't handled with more care to prevent a leak.
Source: Ryan Parker, leirbag
