Despite Zack Snyder's reputation as one of the biggest names in Hollywood, the writer/director has three cinematic franchises that remain incomplete. Snyder's DC movies are perhaps what the filmmaker is most known for, but he has also worked on projects outside the comic book genre. Unfortunately, the reception of Snyder's sprawling franchises has often failed to live up to the hype and his immense level of ambition. The result has been three sagas that haven't been seen through to a proper conclusion.
Zack Snyder has a long history of adapting source material into live-action projects, but he has also written and directed standalone movies. For instance, 2011's Sucker Punch was Snyder's first movie based on an original concept, rather than reworking an existing story or using established characters. Generally, Snyder has had far more success when adapting IPs, but his large back catalog has still gained him a devoted following. Unfortunately, this doesn't appear to be enough to save three of his biggest cinematic franchises.
Zack Snyder Had A Five-Movie Arc Plan For His DC Movies
Snyder's Justice League trilogy never happened
The biggest DC movie series, known as the Snyderverse, had the filmmaker heavily involved throughout. However, he was only directly attached in any meaningful capacity for three installments: 2013's Man of Steel, 2016's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and one of the two versions of Justice League. Although he was finally able to complete his vision for the latter with 2021's Zack Snyder's Justice League,Snyder initially had a plan for two more Justice League movies that never happened.
Snyder was credited as a producer on other DC projects, but he never wrote or directed another after 2021. Since then, he has been replaced by James Gunn, who is currently rebooting the DC cinematic universe. While this could be argued to draw a line under the Snyder era, Gunn has made the confusing decision to make Peacemaker season 2, the first run of which was set in the DCEU. The soft reboot of the series has led to some confusion, but Gunn himself has offered the cryptic statement (via IGN) that it's, "okay to be confused."
Army Of The Dead Was Supposed To Get An Animated Show
Lost Vegas was canceled ahead of the animation process beginning
2021's Army of the Dead eventually became the starting point for another Zack Snyder franchise, with Army of Thieves being released later that same year and acting as a prequel, forming the basis of a series that came to be known as the Army-Verse. Since then, there have been no new offerings from the franchise, but not for a lack of trying. Speaking with Screen Rant at New York Comic-Con, producer Jay Oliva discussed the fact that Lost Vegas, the intended animated addition to the Army-Verse, had been abandoned by Netflix.
The amount of work that had gone into Lost Vegas led Snyder to say that it would be possible for Netflix to simply reverse its decision if it wanted.
Snyder was serving as Lost Vegas' showrunner, with Oliva confirming that "all the pre-production was done" before Netflix pulled the plug on the show once animation had begun. The amount of work that had gone into Lost Vegas led Snyder to say that it would be possible for Netflix to simply reverse its decision if it wanted, and the production could resume relatively quickly. There are no other confirmed plans for a new entry in the Army-Verse.
Rebel Moon 3 Hasn’t Been Confirmed Yet Despite Six-Movie Plan
Netflix's space opera hasn't been particularly well-received
The first Rebel Moon movie was released in late 2023, with the sequel landing on Netflix early in 2024. Despite comparisons to huge space operas like Star Wars and Warhammer 40K, Snyder's sci-fi project fell very short of his lofty expectations when it came to the critics. Even releasing R-rated director's cuts of both Rebel Moon movies hasn't done much to save their reputation. Therefore, the plan confirmed by co-writer Kurt Johnstad in an interview with Screen Rant to expand the series by another four movies doesn't look likely to happen.
Snyder has confirmed that Rebel Moon and the Army-Verse are set within the same continuity. However, they're set so far apart from each other, it's pretty much impossible to tell.
Johnstad has previously addressed that the planned Zack SnyderRebel Moon saga would eventually become a trilogy, but with each movie being split into two parts. In other words, there were plans for a total of six films. Unfortunately, Netflix has yet to announce any official interest in making another Rebel Moon movie. Although the universe has been revisited in other forms of media since, Rebel Moon 3 and beyond could easily remain an unrealized goal.
Source: IGN
Zack Snyder
Discover the latest news and filmography for Zack Snyder, known for 300 and Justice League.
- Birthdate
- March 1, 1966
- Birthplace
- Green Bay, WI, USA
- Notable Projects
- Dawn of the Dead , 300 , Watchmen , Sucker Punch , Man of Steel , Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice , Zack Snyder's Justice League , Army of the Dead , Rebel Moon , Twilight of the Gods
