Why Zack Snyder’s Justice League needs to be a 4-hour movie

In a slight reversal, Zack Snyder’s Justice League will now be a 4-hour movie instead of a miniseries, and that’s what fans deserve.

Sometimes it’s really hard being a lifelong DC Comics fan. With all of the excitement and buzz surrounding Marvel movies and shows, fans have yearned for the DC Extended Universe to deliver stories that measure up. When Justice League arrived in 2017, marking the first time Batman, Wonder Woman and Superman had joined forces with Aquaman, Flash and Cyborg, it was all supposed to be the start of something spectacular for DC fans. But it wasn’t.

Zack Snyder’s Justice League, aka the Snyder Cut, is a chance to do it all over again, the way it was supposed to be done, and fans deserve all four hours of it.

By now you may have heard that Snyder’s redo of his original film will be four hours long when it arrives on HBO Max in March. Initially, Snyder said that the Snyder Cut would be released in four segments, but speaking on his Vero account, he’s now said that it is not a miniseries, but rather a very long movie.

Fandango’s Erik Davis noted that a four-hour movie would make it the longest comic book movie ever, eclipsing Snyder’s own Watchmen Ultimate Cut, which comes in at over three-and-a-half hours.

This may seem like a strange move. It’s hard to sit through a four-hour movie, and it may make sense to split it up so fans can remain engaged and hype can continue to build.

But Justice League was never meant to be anything other than a movie.

The whole reason the outcry for the Snyder Cut has been so great is that fans knew there was supposed to be more to the movie that was released into theaters. They’d seen the previews. They’d seen photos. These scenes went missing after Joss Whedon stepped in to complete the film when Snyder had to step back due to the tragic loss of his daughter.

What stung the most is that Snyder’s vision for the movie was completely stamped out, followed by Warner Bros. insisting that there was no “Snyder Cut.” But there was a Snyder Cut. Even the cast knew it when they started tweeting the battle cry hashtag #ReleaseTheSnyderCut. Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Ray Fisher and Jason Momoa all used the hashtag on social media, which stirred fans into a frenzy.

After Snyder’s announcement that the Snyder Cut was going to be a four-hour movie, there were rumblings across social media from people who thought it was a bad idea. Who would want to sit through that? The answer: All of the people who kept the torches lit for the Snyder Cut to begin with.

Justice League was never meant to be a miniseries. It was created as a movie. It would require edits and reshoots to give it proper endings and starting points in order for it to work as a miniseries. The beauty of the Snyder Cut is that there was so much footage that had been cut or set aside that Snyder only needed a few reshoots to bring his vision together without using Whedon’s material.

If that means the movie is over four hours long, then so be it.

In truth, Marvel fans have never had to deal with the disservice that DC fans have endured. Let’s face it: Marvel does it right the first time. There’s no dangling the carrot of footage that was mysteriously absent from a movie and being told that footage doesn’t exist. There is bonus material and blooper reels and all of that good stuff in addition to solid movies from the start. With Justice League, the change in director changed the tone of the entire movie, and not in a good way.

Fans will finally see Snyder’s vision for the Justice League come to life after years of hard work. It won’t matter if it’s four hours, two hours, seven hours or more. What matters is that Zack Snyder’s Justice League will be what Zack Snyder wanted it to be, and that’s exactly what fans deserve.

To stay up to date on everything fantasy, science fiction, and WiC, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and sign up for our exclusive newsletter.

Get HBO, Starz, Showtime and MORE for FREE with a no-risk, 7-day free trial of Amazon Channels

h/t The A.V. Club