Zack Snyder remains the sole credited director of “Justice League.” Joss Whedon has a screenwriting credit on the movie.
Although Whedon stepped in to finish the feature when Snyder left the project last May in the wake of his daughter Autumn Snyder’s suicide, people who worked on what is perhaps the most crucial component of the DC Extended Universe of movies say that that’s exactly the way credit should be given.
“For us who saw a final cut of the film, we participated in a process that was mostly overseen by Zack,” says Ezra Miller, the actor who plays superhero The Flash in “JL.” “This film was his vision – Joss was brought on to fulfill his vision and we didn’t get to see the process. So it’s impossible for us, just as impossible as it is for anyone watching the film – to tell you exactly what was changed from the cut that Zack was working on at the time when he had to leave.”
“We weren’t involved in the post production,” adds Gal “Wonder Woman” Gadot. “We love Zack, and we are here because he chose us to be here. We were devastated to hear the news and we can only say how big fans we are of him and how talented we all think that he is.”
The studio line is that Snyder asked Whedon – who directed the first two, super-successful “Avengers” movies for rival Marvel Studios, and is attached to do so for a DC “Batgirl” movie – to consult on the venerable DC super group project well before the tragedy that led to Snyder’s exit. Whedon then oversaw additional photography in London last spring and early summer.
While no one’s saying exactly what Whedon’s rewrites of “Justice League” specifically were, there are certainly character developments and interactions, humor and cool conflicts that resonate more like “Avengers” stuff than Snyder’s previous DCEU entries, “Man of Steel” and “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.”
“I would say Joss definitely brought his own flavor to it, for sure,” says Ray Fisher, the actor who plays “Justice League” hero Cyborg. “When people watch the film, you’ll be able to spot the difference. He is a very specific director with a very specific style, At the end of the day, as long as the audience is getting the best possible experience, I’m all for it.”
After shooting with Snyder from March to October of 2016, Fisher describes returning to England under Whedon’s direction.
“The transition definitely was quick,” Fisher says. “My whole stance on it was, well, if this is who Zack picked, I’ll go with it with as much enthusiasm as I possibly can into whatever direction that is.”
For others, that enthusiasm extends to opportunities to work with Snyder again.
“Yeah, I would love to finish a film with him in the future,” Miller says.
RELATED: See photos of the stars of ‘Justice League’ from the premiere
