Zack Snyder Has Blunt Words For Any Fans Mad That Batman Killed Someone

Ben Affleck as Batman in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice

Whatever your view of Zack Snyder's DC superhero movies, there's little argument that his particular take on Batman and Superman would qualify as "non-traditional." One specific way that Snyder broke with previous versions of the character was when he made a version of Batman who had no problem with actually killing people, a line that the character traditionally would not cross in modern films and comics.

However, at a recent Q&A following a screening of Snyder's earlier comic book movie, Watchmen, the director made it clear that he has little sympathy for people who took issue with his version of the classic DC characters, as seen in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, as he feels they made sense for a modern comic book movie. According to Snyder...

Someone says to me 'Oh Batman killed a guy.' I'm like 'Really?' I'm like 'Wake the fuck up.' ... I guess that's what I'm saying about, once you've like lost your virginity to this fucking movie and then you come say to me something about like 'Oh my superhero wouldn't do that.' I'm like 'Are you serious' I'm down the fucking road on that. And it's a cool point of view. Look, I'm 100% fine, it's a cool point of view to be like 'My heroes are still innocent. My heroes didn't lie to America. My heroes didn't embezzle money from their corp, my heroes didn't commit any atrocities.' That's cool, but you're living in a fucking dream world, OK?

Snyder's comments at least make it clear where he was coming from in creating his version of the DC Universe. His earlier film Watchman, and the comic it was based on, argued that if superheroes were real, they would not be the paragon of virtue we're used to seeing in comic books. Snyder believes this idea so strongly that he carried it over to characters like Batman and Superman. He thinks viewing any sort of hero with that sort of idolization is akin to living in a dream world. Everybody has flaws and that should be understood.

While many might agree, the response on Reddit, where Snyder's comments were posted, is largely negative. Many feel that while a story like Watchmen has its place, Batman is something quite different and should be treated as such. Batman's decision not to kill his enemies is a key aspect of the character, and if you change it, he's simply not Batman anymore.

Of course, there's really no right answer to questions like these. There will always be fans of the traditional view of any character with a history as long as the one Batman has. Changes and new interpretations will always happen, but exactly what aspects of the character are immutable won't always be agreed upon. A Batman willing to kill certainly opens up interesting ideas to be explored that wouldn't be there with a more traditional iteration of the character.

What do you think about Zack Snyder's perspective on Batman? Let us know in the poll below.

This poll is no longer available.

Dirk Libbey
Content Producer/Theme Park Beat

CinemaBlend’s resident theme park junkie and amateur Disney historian, Dirk began writing for CinemaBlend as a freelancer in 2015 before joining the site full-time in 2018. He has previously held positions as a Staff Writer and Games Editor, but has more recently transformed his true passion into his job as the head of the site's Theme Park section. He has previously done freelance work for various gaming and technology sites. Prior to starting his second career as a writer he worked for 12 years in sales for various companies within the consumer electronics industry. He has a degree in political science from the University of California, Davis.  Is an armchair Imagineer, Epcot Stan, Future Club 33 Member.