Studio interference has plagued almost every DCEU movie. Batman v Superman was butchered for its theatrical run, Suicide Squad was redited, Wonder Woman's ending changed. However, no DCEU film was ruined quite as much as Justice League which ruined an awesome story and turned heroes like The Flash into a joke.
With the real version of Justice League now available, fans got to see a perfect scene for The Flash. The character as a whole was improved, but his heroic save in the film's third act was mindblowing. Unfortunately, Warner Bros executives just didn't get it.
Warner Bros execs didn't understand The Flash action scene
At the end of Zack Snyder’s Justice League, the superhero team we've come to love fails. The Mother Boxes achieve Unity, sending a huge explosion that obliterates the team. Just before getting caught in the explosion, The Flash taps into the Speedforce to freeze time. In an incredible scene, the speedster runs faster than the speed of light to reverse the explosion and save the day.
Justice League’s VFX supervisor John DJ Des Jardin revealed that this scene was one of the first Warner Bros demanded to be removed. The VFX supervisor explained that the Warner Bros executives couldn't wrap their heads around what was going on. Des Jardin explained:
“It’s funny, because that was always in the story. We shot that way back in 2016. It was something that, I don’t know what it was, the mood of the studio at the time, they just didn’t get it, to be honest. They were just like ‘I don’t understand this,’ and maybe it was the previous nature of it or the post-vis nature or whatever, but it was one of the first things they threw out after they pulled Zack off the movie, sadly."
"I really loved the breath and depth and scope that he gave those big ideas that are in that imagery."
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What we got instead
The theatrical cut of Justice League changes up the ending of the movie significantly. The major beats are mostly the same, but The Flash is tasked with rescuing a random family instead of saving the world.
Joss Whedon’s theatrical version turned the character into a terribly unfunny comedy act. However, the character’s distance from the final battle was a disgraceful treatment of the Snyder Cut's bravest hero.
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