Whether or not you’re a supporter of Zack Snyder’s vision for the DC Extended Universe seems to be a moot point at this juncture. Warner Bros. and DC are limping forward with their hackneyed blueprint and the Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice director appears content – or as content as one can be when dealing with a betrayal of this magnitude – to purge his scrapped plans for the DCEU via whatever social media platform necessary.
Snyder has been running through the aforementioned superhero epic with a fine-tooth comb over the past month or so, divulging cut and concealed content from the blockbuster on his Vero account. Nevertheless, there is one thing that remains up for debate regarding BvS, and that’s whether or not the film was apart of Warner Bros.’ initial strategy following the release of Man of Steel.
It’s generally believed that, following that film’s reception, WB shifted their trajectory, eager to create something akin to the MCU. Thereby requesting that Snyder abandon his scheme for a Man of Steel sequel in favour of laying the framework for a shared universe. However, according to art department veteran Jay Olivia, this was not the case.
The Justice League storyboard artist set the record straight earlier today, Tweeting that back in April of 2013, Zack Snyder showed him storyboards for BvS.
Okay school is in session… Back in April 2013 (before MoS released in June) I was tasked with doing the Superman 75 short. I met with Zack who was the exec producer on it and he showed me storyboards of BvS with Batman already in it. AND it was a Batman from DKR.
— Jay Oliva (@jayoliva1) April 22, 2018
If Olivia’s to be believed, this would mean that Snyder always planned to introduce Batman in the subsequent Superman pic, three months before the theatrical release of Man of Steel, and three months before WB even confirmed there would be a sequel. Producer Charles Roven has echoed a similar sentiment, too, stating that, “When we started with Man of Steel, we knew that we were going to expand the universe.”
So, while there are still many questions regarding Snyder and his ultimate plan for the DCEU, it seems that we can now put this small but nagging issue surrounding what was to follow Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice to rest.