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Zack Snyder’s DCEU feels like a long-forgotten fever dream now that the new age of the DCU dawns with James Gunn and Co. However, there was a time when Snyder’s unrealized plans for his DC films, which began with Henry Cavill’sMan of Steel,excited fans despite their polarizing response at the cinemas.
Snyder finished his run with the DCEU afterZack Snyder’s Justice Leaguebut revealed many of his initial plans for the franchise that included a five-film arc. Among other deviations from the comics, the filmmaker revealed that he planned to ground the origins of gods like Zeus and heroes like Wonder Woman in the reality of the films by making them Kryptonian.
Zack Snyder had different plans for the origins of Olympian gods
While the MCU and Marvel comics explored Norse mythology with heroes like Thor and Loki, the DC Universe explored Greek and Roman mythology in the comics. From the Amazons to Atlantis, the Greek mythologies were expanded to be included in the superhero universe of the comics, with characters like Zeus and Ares making appearances.
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While Ares was the main antagonist in 2017’sWonder Woman, the God of Lightning and the King of Gods, Zeus, was revealed in the opening montage ofWonder WomanandJustice League.Zack Snyder’svision for the DCEU included an exploration of the way gods and god-like figures are treated, with Henry Cavill’s Superman turning from an alien to a god.
In a Q&A panel held in 2023, Snyder revealed how he planned to give an explanation of the origins of other gods’ powers within the DCEU. He said (viaComic Book),
[We thought] Zeus could possibly be Kryptonian so that Wonder Woman’s powers…anyway, you can sort of see where that’s going. The whole thing of whether or not magic or gods…there’s a version of where you’re like ‘That’s cool, I guess,’ then there’s the scientific aspect. You have the pathology of wondering where gods come from. We had played around with that quite a bit.
The films would reportedly then explore the concept of New Gods like Darkseid and Steppenwolf, who entered Earth withJustice League.
The Superman connection to Zeus did not go down well with fans
Fans got a glimpse ofZack Snyder’s plans for the DCEUwith visions inBatman V Superman: Dawn of JusticeandZack Snyder’s Justice League. A post-apocalyptic world ruled by Darkseid and a rogue Superman, with Batman and other heroes teaming up with the likes of Joker to stop the two. However, Snyder definitely had more in mind.
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Despite the concept of a realistic explanation of Zeus and Ares’ powers as well as the difference between the Old Gods and the New Gods (with Henry Cavill’s Superman acting like a weird bridge) being interesting, the Kryptonian origins of the Olympian gods did not go down well with fans. Many criticized the idea and were grateful it was not realized on film.
This was always a stupid idea and I’m glad it never happened.https://t.co/TRBWlIfJID
I’m glad Snyder didn’t do it.Same with the Crimean Wonder Woman concept and the Bruce/Lois subplot.Axed them all before filming, and the movies were better off for it.
Making Zeus a kryptonian also feeds into the idea that Superman should be seen as a god despite the fact that he’s not supposed to be. And that would mean that Wonder Woman is part kryptonian too which wouldn’t make sense for the mother boxes to activate in ZSJL
Making the Amazon’s descendants of Kryptonians really takes away from the “Last Son of Krypton” thing for Superman, or in this case, “Last Daughter of Krypton” for Supergirl
The SnyderVerse is finally dead now and James Gunn is set to explore ‘Gods and Monsters’ in his own bright and hopeful way with the DCU andSuperman. David Corenswet’s Superman seems to be the only “god” on the horizon for now.
Nishanth A
Senior Writer
Articles Published :2416
Nishanth A is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, majorly focusing on TV shows with over 2,000 articles published. He has been an entertainment journalist for the past two years and a scriptwriter at various corporations before that, working on educational content. With a Communications, English Literature, and Psychology triple major, Nishanth usually covers news and analyses on Star Trek, particularly Strange New Worlds and The Next Generation; Doctor Who, the DCU, and more.A Nolan fan, Nishanth spends his time exploring the filmographies of various directors with an auteurial style or can be found making short movies of his own. He has also contributed as a feature writer for Film Companion, focusing on the South division.
