Big Mistakes Batman V Superman Has Already Made
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is almost here, and fans are nervously biting their nails down to the quick in fearful anticipation. What if Zack Snyder and Warner Bros. totally blow it and the movie stinks? It's a natural worry, but frankly, we're too busy worrying about something else right now: all the massive mistakes Batman v Superman has already made, before even hitting theaters. Here's a look back at the many signs of impending disaster.
They hired Zack Snyder
Warner Bros. has been lusting after a piece of Marvel's pie ever since Avengers became a massive worldwide pop culture phenomenon. So teaming up some of their iconic heroes makes sense. What doesn't make sense: hiring Zack Snyder to do it. Yeah, he directed Man of Steel, but that wasn't exactly critically acclaimed. Nor was it nearly as big a hit as you might think: at $668 million worldwide, it came in well behind even Amazing Spider-Man 2, which was such a disappointment Sony cancelled the entire series. Snyder has one bona fide hit on his resume, but 300 was a long time ago. And don't even get us started on the ways he screwed up his adaptation of Watchmen. Pinning the hopes of an entire universe on this guy seems like the cinematic equivalent of Russian roulette.
It's a sequel to Man of Steel
The second issue with bringing in Zack Snyder for Batman v Superman? It means we're stuck using the dour and joyless Man of Steel as the foundation for the entire DC Cinematic Universe. Make no mistake, Warner Bros. had plenty of other options. For example, imagine a Batman v Superman that picks up after the events of Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy instead. Now that sounds awesome. The fact that we have to revisit the soulless wasteland of Man of Steel instead is a serious downer—and a big mistake.
They wasted Doomsday
The big exciting reveal in the trailers that the ultimate bad guy is Doomsday was supposed to be the show stopping moment that caused fanboys to mess their short pants. But it's actually just another face-palm kind of moment. When it comes to Superman, Doomsday is the end game. He only works in the context of the ultimate hero making the ultimate sacrifice to stop the ultimate villain. In other words, for Doomsday to work effectively as a character, Superman needs to be well established. But in Zack Snyder's universe, Superman is just starting his career; there's no context to the struggle with Doomsday other than what we as fans bring into the theater with us. Which is a cheat. Doomsday should have been saved for a future movie that could have done him justice.
The Justice League is shoehorned in
Look, we're as excited as anyone for the prospect of a Justice League movie. What we're not excited about is trying to watch a Batman v Superman movie where half the film is a bunch of cameos, Easter eggs, and plot teases to set up a future franchise. Marvel had it right when they introduced the main characters in their own movies first—Iron Man, Thor, Captain America—and then brought them together in Avengers. That gave the characters room to breathe. Contriving the Justice League into Batman v Superman so they can be spun off later makes it seem like less of an actual story than an extended commercial for the best movies of 2021.
Wonder Woman is just a third wheel
Speaking of characters getting shoehorned into Batman v Superman, lets talk a little about Wonder Woman. Does it really help anyone to jam her into this already overstuffed movie? Not only is she not going to get the screen time she deserves as one of the most important and most popular superheroes of all time, what time she does get on screen is just going to distract from the main story. Given how many solo films both Superman and Batman have each had in the past, a movie with both of them is going to be crowded enough as it is. Throwing Wonder Woman randomly into the mix doesn't serve anyone well—not the story, not the character, and definitely not her fans.
That casting!
Much has been said already about the dubious casting of Ben Affleck as Batman. And reams have been written about the unlikely choice of Gal Godot as Wonder Woman. Also, if you look back, there are plenty of skeptics regarding Henry Cavill's performance as Superman in Man of Steel. Oh, and Jason Momoa as Aquaman is certainly an oddball pick. Then there's the decision to cast Ezra Miller as the Flash, instead of Grant Gustin, who already plays the character on television. And does anybody else find the idea of Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor to be a little weird? Face it: this cast is totally bizarre. Maybe it will work, but gambling with the casting in a picture of this size and importance could be a major mistake.
The marketing
Finally, what the heck is Warner Bros. doing with the marketing? First there's the odd decision to debut the film in March, which is pretty much tantamount to just conceding that the movie isn't good enough to command mid-summer audiences. Then there are those posters, which in typical Snyder style suck all the potential joy out of the concept. The trailers haven't exactly set the world on fire either, in part because the coolest teases for the film have come so late in the game that they've kind of been overshadowed by Marvel's hype for Captain America: Civil War and by the success of Deadpool. That movie was fun, colorful, and irreverent—in other words, the exact opposite of Batman v Superman's marketing. Uh oh.