Although Marvel is often, perhaps rightfully, granted dominance over the superhero movie boom of the last decade and a half, it’s arguably Zack Snyder who has, for better or worse, defined that trend more than any other singular figure. But, on the precipice of launching is own new universe, the director seems like he’s well and truly done with comic book heroes.
“We’ve been on the treadmill—it has not evolved. I don’t have the excitement for it that I used to have,” Snyder says of the superhero genre he’s leaving behind for sci-fi in Netflix’s Rebel Moon as part of a new profile at The Hollywood Reporter. Moon itself has almost been in the works as long as Snyder’s superheroic period—having grown from a short-lived Star Wars pitch, into a Game of Thrones-ian TV series, and now, into a duology of movies (and plenty more beyond the screen) at Netflix. While filming last year, Snyder would learn that Warner Bros. had found its next architects for DC moviemaking in Guardians of the Galaxy’s James Gunn, and producer Peter Safran.
“I called [James Gunn] and said I wish all the best for him,” Snyder told THR of the transition from what remained of his “Snyderverse” at DC, which is set to by and large wrap up next month with the release of Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. “I told him I wanted it to work.”
Whether or not it will remains to be seen, but either way, it very much seems like Snyder would be hard-pressed to make himself a part of it again. According to THR, the director has inklings of ideas that could get him back—“a true representation” of The Dark Knight Returns at DC, something involving Daredevil and Elektra at Marvel—but it truly seems like one of the most impactful shapers of the superhero boom is hanging up his metaphorical cape.
Want more entertainment news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and DC releases, what’s coming to cinemas in Australia this year, and everything streaming this month across all platforms. Check out our dedicated Entertainment tab for more.