Last week we learned that Zack Snyder was taking a breather from superheroes to finally make his long brewing Afghan war movie, “The Last Photograph,” next. The director will be working on finishing “Justice League” first, but as for that initially planned sequel, which was originally announced and slated for a 2019 release, there’s been a considerable gear shift on that front.
THR reveals that WB is now planning to release Ben Affleck’s “The Batman” first, which essentially left time for Snyder to pivot to his drama. Frankly, the move makes a lot of sense. Considering “The Flash” still needs a director is looking more and more likely to slip from its planned spring 2018 release, and that movies like “Shazam!” and “Cyborg” (which I still can’t believe they’re going to make into a standalone film) seem to have gone quiet, and given Batman hasn’t had a solo film since “The Dark Knight Rises” in 2012 and is a staple character in the DC Films universe — the math adds up. All that said, Snyder is still keen on making the “Justice League” followup, but my guess is that if he doesn’t rebound from the critical mauling he took on “Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice,” WB will look for someone else.
“Justice League” arrives on November 17, 2017 and “The Batman” will start filming early next year.