The legend of the Snyder Cut has now taken on mythic proportions. Passionate Snyder fans are unwilling to let the matter rest until Warner Bros. finances a reshoot of Justice League under the filmmaker's directions, and Snyder himself continues to add fuel to the flames, most recently with a picture teasing the reveal of the Martian Manhunter which was cut from the final film.
The image, titled 'Love these two', is a black and white shot of two moments from the scene, one with a closeup of Lois Lane, played by Amy Adams, and another a shot of Martha Kent, played by Diane Lane. On its own, it might not be clear how these images tease the existence of the Martian Manhunter in the movie as planned out by Snyder, until you realize Martha in the image is actually the Manhunter in disguise.
Last year, Snyder had released a storyboard shot of the scene, which takes place near the beginning of the film, before Superman's resurrection. According to the storyboard, Lois has come to Martha to provide comfort to the older woman. After Lois leaves, Martha transforms into the Martian Manhunter, before transforming into the form that the character had been inhabiting even since his appearance in Man of Steel, as Secretary of Defense, Calvin Swanwick, played by actor Henry Lennix.
In the comics, the Martian Manhunter is the last of his race on Mars, accidentally teleported to Earth. An incredibly long-lived entity, the Manhunter possesses the ability to change his appearance at will, in addition to super strength, speed, flight, telepathy, and martian vision. With such an impressive grab bag of powers, fans have long been clamoring to see the hero on the big screen, and there was much disappointment when it was revealed by Snyder that his version of the character had been taken out of the final cut of Justice League.
In the film, the scene that Snyder shared on Vero was replaced by another one which takes place at The Daily Planet, when Martha comes to visit Lois and the two have a brief discussion about Clark and the present state of the world. Fans have complained that the scene looks like something out of a sitcom, lacking the rick texture and cinematic feel more in keeping with Snyder's filmmaking style.
While there is no definite reason known why the Martian Manhunter was eventually cut from Justice League, it is generally believed that the studio felt the movie was already overcrowded with heroes and did not need another one. Certainly, if another hero of Superman's level had arrived onto the scene, he and Superman would have dealt with Steppenwolf's army all on their own, without needing the rest of the league.
With there being very little chance of Snyder's grand plan for the DCEU getting revived by Warner Bros., it may be awhile before the Martian Manhunter makes his way to the big screen. Or any other superhero, for that matter, considering the present state of theaters worldwide. This news comes Zack Sndyer on Zero.
