Zack Snyder Officially Suggests Sinister Reason Behind Removal From DCEU

During his time as the de facto architect of the DC Extended Universe, director Zack Snyder managed to make three movies before the reins of the franchise were taken away from him. The reason given at the time was that Snyder was dealing with a personal tragedy and simply could not devote the time necessary to complete work on Justice League. In a new interview, the filmmaker suggested a more sinister reason behind his firing. Warner Bros. infamously hired Joss Whedon to rewrite Justice League and oversee reshoots, resulting in a movie that underperformed at the box office and was criticized for being tonally all over the place. Snyder's wife forbade him from watching the theatrical version, and he continues to honor her wish.

He told Variety that he still hasn't seen the theatrical cut of Justice League, but fortunately, he was able to fulfill his vision for the movie thanks to a massive wave of fan support some years ago. He said that the months following the personal tragedy — Snyder lost his daughter while working on the 2017 release — were especially difficult because of the added blow of being removed from Justice League. He confirmed that his time at Warner Bros. during the DCEU era was wrought with tension and interference from the studio. "They had this massive IP that’s worth a ton and I can understand wanting to protect it as best they could since all their jobs depended on it working," he said.