Back in March,Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justiceopened huge in theaters with a whopping $166 million debut weekend, kicking off the studio’s DC Extended Universe (DCEU) by setting the stage for the two-partJustice Leagueadventure. The Monday after it opened, Warner Bros. surprised fans by releasing adeleted scenefrom the movie, featuring Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg), which many assumed would help set up theJustice Leaguemovie. Today we have new details about this scene, and how it reveals who the villain ofJustice Leaguereally is. There will be SPOILERS if you haven’t seenBatman v Superman: Dawn of Justiceyet, so read on at your own risk.
The deleted scene showedLex Luthorinside the Kryptonian ship where he was trying to create Doomsday. We see a number of soldiers advance on Lex, who is using the Kryptonian technology to create some sort of creature, who is seen holding what appear to beMother Boxes. This technology fromDarkseid’s Apokolips is also used to turn Victor Stone (Ray Fisher) intoCyborg. After the deleted scene debuted, many speculated that this creature is Steppenwolf, one of the New Gods. This report fromBirth.Movies.Deathreveals that the creature we saw is actually Steppenwolf, and that he will be the main villain inJustice League, not Darkseid.
Steppenwolf was created byJack Kirby, debuting in the 1972 comicNew Gods #7. In the comics, Steppenwolf is the uncle of Darkseid and his mentor, while serving as one of highest-ranking generals on the planet of Apokolips. He wields a massive energy axe and even rides a unique hoverbike in the comics, but it isn’t known if his weapon or vehicle will actually be shown in the movie. This report speculates thatJustice Leaguewill be at least partially based on the New 52 comics, where Steppenwolf invades Earth, but that hasn’t been confirmed yet.
This report also reveals that, in theJustice Leaguemovie, Steppenwolf has a “contentious relationship” with Darkseid, which could serve as his motivation for invading Earth. When this happens, theJustice Leaguereportedly cannot defeat him on their own, which leads them to turn to “a dead friend for help.” While the report doesn’t say it outright, they’re referring toHenry Cavill’s Superman, who died in the massive battle with Doomsday at the end ofBatman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. The final shot, where dirt was seen floating off of his coffin, hinted that the Man of Steel isn’t quite dead yet, but we still don’t know when Superman will come back to life inJustice League.
The report also reveals that Darkseid himself will have a presence in the movie, and will be seen at the end ofJustice League Part 1, with the site speculating that Darkseid’s full plan won’t be revealed untilJustice League Part 2. It is also revealed that the other solo DC movies will take place in “real-ish” time, withThe Flashset after the events ofJustice League Part 1. While we wait for confirmation on these details, take a look at the deleted scene that debuted back in March, and chime in with your thoughts below.
