Zack Snyder's 'ideal' take on Justice League? It'd be black and white, and on IMAX

It's been a long journey for Zack Snyder's cut of the Justice League, which will only be finally making its way to HBO Max sometime next year. But even then, the Watchmen director says, it won't be the ideal version of his final vision, something fans have been clamoring for, for a long time.  

In an interview with The Film Junkee's YouTube channel, Snyder revealed that his ideal cut of the movie would be in black and white, which is what his cut of the movie had been edited in two and a half years ago when it was still just a rough cut sitting on his computer. 

"My ideal version of the movie is the black and white IMAX version of the movie," Snyder shared, when discussing the upcoming version of the 2017 film since dubbed the "Snyder" cut. "That, to me, is the most fan-centric, most pure, most Justice League experience. Because that’s how I lived with the movie for two years, in black and white." 

He went on to discuss the trailer for the movie, which will be released again on Tuesday. "When I do the live-stream of the trailer, Steph and I colored a black and white version of the trailer. And so the version, that I'll put out... will be the black and white trailer." 

Snyder's Justice League will be coming to streaming on HBO Max, where it will air in four parts, as opposed to the single-length, but six "chapter" version Snyder had initially envisioned for his final cut of the film, which clocks in at roughly four hours. His other idea had been to release the movie in two parts, with a month between them. 

However, the new film, which features at least 4-5 minutes of newly shot footage from earlier this year (plus a ton of footage that was left on the cutting room floor), will also see some familiar faces who weren't present in the 2017 version of the movie — namely Jared Leto's Joker, who'd last been seen in The Suicide Squad. 

Snyder notes that despite his being a fan of all the different takes on the character out there, even Joaquin Phoenix's latest Academy Award-winning one, he'd wanted Leto's incarnation when making this one. 

"The thing about my Justice League is it's a three-year-old story. It's a story from three years ago. In a lot of ways, the DC extended universe has moved on from my take of characters that have stuck," Snyder prefaced, before going on to say, "In my 'world,' if the Joker was going to make an appearance, it would be the Jared Leto Joker." 

The new material that will be featured in this new cut is all based on what he'd originally conceived years ago, though he'd never really tried to get Leto in the film at the time. However, when he began prepping this newer version, he called up Leto himself and talked him into reprising his character. 

"When I pitched him the idea he hooked onto the 'why' of it," explained Snyder. "Because there is a big why." 

Leto's Joker isn't the only character to be getting new footage. So will Ben Affleck's Batman (presumably with his clown-faced nemesis), Ray Fisher (Cyborg), and Mera (Amber Heard). 

Zack Snyder's cut of the Justice League will premiere on HBO Max sometime next year.