Darkseid's invasion. Several years after leaving Justice League, Snyder got the chance to complete the Snyder Cut and show fans what his four-hour R-rated version of the story looked like. The core story still revolves around Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Flash, Cyborg, and Superman ing forces to defeat Steppenwolf, but the setup for what could come next is vastly different from the 2017 theatrical cut of Justice League.
Although the third act of Zack Snyder's Justice League remains focused on the League stopping Steppenwolf and the Unity of the Mother Boxes, how this story ends and what it teases is not the same as before. Flash goes back in time to give the League a second shot at preventing the Unity after they failed the first time. When that is successful, the heroes work together to kill Steppenwolf and send his beheaded body back to Darkseid on Apokolips. The Justice League is ready for whatever comes their way, and Zack Snyder's Justice League even teases where their individual stories would go in future solo films. There are also further teases of what Justice League 2 would be about, as well as some establishing details from the movie that would have been more important in the future.
Warner Bros. and DC Films had plans for Zack Snyder to direct Justice League 2 back in 2014, but the sequel is no longer in active development with Snyder. The DC Extended Universe has moved forward without Snyder, and he's started to line up other projects that are not DC-related. But, Zack Snyder's Justice League is a fully-realized version of his vision for the single film and his planned five movie story. Even though the sequel is unlikely to happen, Snyder left all his cards on the table to show fans where the story could have gone from here.
Justice League Sets Up Darkseid's Invasion
Darkseid's inclusion in Zack Snyder's Justice League is one of the movie's biggest differences from the theatrical cut, but his story is only getting started in the Snyder-Verse. The movie features Darkseid leading the Apokolips army in its original invasion of Earth thousands of years ago, but they were defeated by the collective power of humanity, Amazons, Atlanteans, and more. This loss and discovery of the Anti-Life Equation on Earth left Darkseid searching for revenge and great power. He'll stop at nothing to get either and was willing to forgive Steppenwolf if he delivered Earth and the Anti-Life Equation to him.
Since Steppenwolf failed to overtake Earth, Darkseid catches a glimpse at what stopped him. The open boom tube allowed Darkseid to see Steppenwolf's failure and get his dead body back to Apokolips. He also manages to see the Justice League fully assembled waiting for him on the other side. Darkseid is surrounded by Desaad, Granny Goodness, and a legion of parademons. After Desaad remarks that he knew Steppenwolf would fail, he questions what the plan of action will be now that the Mother Boxes are out of commission. Darkseid declares that it is time to prepare the armada and take Earth the old-fashioned way.
In addition to Darkseid directly teasing his imminent trip to Earth to fight the Justice League, Zack Snyder's Justice League teases what will happen when he arrives. Cyborg sees a glimpse of the future through a Mother Box and sees the horrific events that come with their course of action and his arrival. Wonder Woman is dead in Themyscira, Darkseid kills Aquaman in Atlantis, and Superman is shown succumbing to the Anti-Life Equation following the death of Lois Lane.
Justice League 2's Knightmare Future Setting: Batman's Team & Evil Superman
The end of Zack Snyder's Justice League showcases the Knightmare future that would be a key piece of Justice League 2's story and setting. The director said the entirety of Justice League 2 is set in the Knighmare timeline. This is different than his original plans for the DCEU, which would've seen Justice League 3 primarily explore this future. Snyder first set up this apocalyptic future for Earth where Darkseid won in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. He elaborates on what it contains in the Snyder Cut with a prolonged tease that established Batman's new team and evil Superman.
The Knightmare timeline sees Batman leading the final resistance to Darkseid. He leads a team that contains Cyborg, Flash, Mera, Deathstroke, and Joker. Cyborg has a big gun attached to his back now, Flash wears a new armored suit, Mera carries water for her to manipulate, Deathstroke has Kryptonite bullets, and Joker continues to taunt Batman with their unlikely alliance. They are shown to be traveling through the wasteland hiding from patroling parademons and hoping not to encounter Darkseid's most powerful weapon, Superman.
Following the death of Lois Lane, Darkseid manages to turn Superman to his side using the Anti-Life Equation. This enslaves the Kryptonian hero to Darkseid's will, making him the last person Batman and his resistance want to encounter. Superman is hunting them down, and Bruce Wayne's nightmare of the future ended with Kal-El locating them after all this time. His evil turn builds upon the moment from Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice that Lois is the key. This wasn't referring to her helping collect himself after his resurrection but rather a warning that her death will cause him to turn against the League.
Justice League's Sequel Could Include New Heroes
Zack Snyder's Justice League is also full of teases for other heroes and characters who could be involved in his Justice League 2. The most direct setup comes for Martian Manhunter. The movie confirmed the fan theory that General Swanwick is the shapeshifting alien hero. Martian Manhunter visits Bruce Wayne at the end of Zack Snyder's Justice League to offer his help in whatever threats come to Earth next. He says that he's spent too much time in the shadows and finally realizes that he needs to use his abilities to protect the planet. But, neither Snyder nor the movie indicates what his exact role in Justice League 2's story would be.
Another hero who would factor into Justice League 2 is Green Lantern. Snyder's plans for the Lanterns have never been set in stone, but early ideas for Justice League 3 included Hal Jordan coming to Earth. With Snyder potentially shifting the Knightmare-focused story to the first sequel, Hal Jordan could appear in Justice League 2. Even if he wouldn't be part of the story, a member of the Green Lantern Corps would likely be included. The Snyder Cut even included a shot of Kilowog dead in the ruins of the Hall of Justice. Kilowog and Tomar-Re were at one point rumored to be included at the end of Justice League in a scene described to be very similar to how Bruce meeting Martian Manhunter happened.
Justice League 2 also might have featured Ryan Choi's transformation into The Atom. The character was not in the theatrical cut of the movie at all, but he is STAR Labs' director of nanotechnology by the end of Zack Snyder's Justice League. Choi is one of the people to become the size-changing hero known as The Atom in the comics. Snyder teased in the past that he could be one of many heroes set up in future movies to give Earth more people to fight Darkseid.
Justice League Teases Flash Using Time Travel
The finale of Zack Snyder's Justice League includes further setup for the plot mechanics of Justice League by introducing Flash's ability to time travel. These abilities were teased with Superman's revival, but Barry Allen is forced to go well beyond what he's done in the past to save the world. Flash's super-speed and potential to travel through time is even more important in Justice League 2. Snyder has confirmed that the sequel would see Flash and others in the Knightmare future plan a way for him to go back in time using a Cosmic Treill that amplifies his powers. This would connect to Flash's appearance in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and see him send a new warning to the past version of Batman with the hope that this time the Knightmare future can be prevented.
Lois Lane's Pregnancy & A Future Batman
Zack Snyder's Justice League also includes a tease of Lois Lane's forthcoming pregnancy and the future of the Batman mantle. A quick moment in the movie shows Lois has several pregnancy tests inside her bedside table. There is no confirmation that she is pregnant with Clark Kent's child during Zack Snyder's Justice League, but the director had plans for that storyline to be paid off down the road. Lois being pregnant would give Superman additional grief with her death, as he would lose his wife and future child. While it is unclear how much this storyline would've been included in Justice League 2, Snyder has confirmed that Justice League 3 ended with Superman and Lois' son becoming the new Batman after Bruce Wayne's death.
Will Zack Snyder's Justice League 2 Happen?
Now that Zack Snyder's Justice League has been released and teased this potentially epic story, the biggest question on fans' minds is whether or not Justice League 2 will happen. Snyder has done his part to downplay the likelihood of him doing Justice League 2 or other DC movies. This was a very unique situation where HBO Max and WarnerMedia got a major DC blockbuster movie to bolster subscriber numbers for a relatively cheaper cost than the average superhero event film. Zack Snyder's Justice League will need to be a massive hit for them to even consider it, but so far the response has been overwhelmingly positive.
Even if the studios and Snyder come to an agreement that Justice League 2 should be made, it will not be easy to make it work logistically. The film's cast would include some of the biggest stars in Hollywood, so scheduling would be difficult, and it would have to convince Ben Affleck to suit up again for an extended period of time. There are alternatives that all parties could consider to bring the story to life too, such as making it an animated movie or graphic novel. Only time will tell if Justice League 2 will ever happen, especially since the thought of Zack Snyder's Justice League being released seemed improbable only a few years ago.
