Zack Snyder added fuel to the fire: new photos of Superman and Deathstroke fueled rumors about the return of the DC cinematic universe

In the middle of the week, director Zack Snyder published two new photos in black and white on his social network. The photos feature Henry Cavill as Superman and Joe Manganiello as Deathstroke. This move once again caused a wave of discussions among fans of the previous version of the DC cinematic universe, as well as hopes for a possible continuation of Snyder’s projects within the franchise.

In the first photo, Henry Cavill appears in a Clark Kent costume. As the director himself clarified, the shot was taken on the set of the film “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice” using a Leica Monochrom camera and a Noctilux 50mm lens.

Snyder added:

“Henry Cavill is Superman. Shooting from BvS with my 50mm Noctilux monochrome.”

The second photo is dedicated to Joe Manganiello’s character, Slade Wilson. Snyder also used a Leica Monochrom, but the lens was “redesigned” by Zero Optik and became the same 50mm with nice optics. The director specifically thanked Manganiello for his participation, calling him “the perfect Deathstroke.”

In the DC cinematic universe, this character only appeared occasionally – Joe Manganiello played a small role in both versions of Justice League, mention of him was never developed. However, the new photos have once again caused excitement in the fan community, which is especially noticeable through the sharp activity on social networks.

Users began actively discussing the possibility of Snyder returning to DC projects and putting forward ideas about “reviving” his storyline, submitting requests to the Warner Bros. studio.

Some commentators have suggested that the studio could turn the characters and stories over to a director to make standalone films unrelated to the main series, or even license these projects to other platforms. There were also speculations that James Gunn would consider Snyder’s participation in separate works unrelated to the main cinematic universe.

Looking at the chronology, DC’s cinematic universe began in 2013 with the release of Man of Steel. 2016 saw the release of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and 2017 saw the release of Justice League, which underwent changes in the creative team and was released in a different edition than Snyder had planned.

After massive demand from viewers, the director’s cut of Zack Snyder’s Justice League appeared in online cinemas in 2021, and the last chapter of this line is considered Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, which premiered in 2023.

James Gunn and Peter Safran are currently working on the new DC cinematic universe. The first projects in their plans will be ‘Monster Commandos’ and a number of new films, including ‘Lanterns’ are expected around 2026. The release date has not yet been set, but films about Supergirl and the villain Clayface are planned for the same period.

Snyder himself is working on an independent feature film, parallel to the discussion of his figure in relation to DC. The new drama, titled The Last Photo, follows a former drug enforcement officer who travels to South America in search of his missing niece. The screenwriter was Kurt Johnstad, who previously worked with Snyder on the filming of the films “300” and “Rebel Moon”. The release date for this film has not yet been announced.