Zack Snyder Breaks Down His Most Iconic Films | GQ
Film director Zack Snyder visits GQ to break down his most iconic films, including '300,' 'Watchmen,' 'Man of Steel,' 'Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice,' 'Zack Snyder's Justice League,' 'Dawn of the Dead, 'Rebel Moon' and 'Rebel Moon - Part Two: The Scargiver.'
REBEL MOON PART TWO: THE SCARGIVER releases on Netflix April 19, 2024
www.netflix.com/RebelMoonPart2
Director: Jeremy Clowney
Director of Photography: AJ Young
Editor: Jason Malizia
Talent: Zack Snyder
Producer: Kristen DeVore
Line Producer: Jen Santos
Production Manager: James Pipitone; Peter Brunette
Production Coordinator: Elizabeth Hymes
Talent Booker: Meredith Judkins
Camera Operator: Oliver Lukacs
Sound Mixer: Paul Cornett
Production Assistant: Mike Kritzell
Post Production Supervisor: Rachael Knight
Post Production Coordinator: Ian Bryant
Supervising Editor: Rob Lombardi
Assistant Editor: Billy Ward
00:00 Zack Snyder's Iconic Films
00:20 300
04:25 Watchmen
09:49 Man of Steel
15:29 Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
21:31 Zack Snyder's Justice League
29:13 Dawn of the Dead
30:56 Rebel Moon / Rebel Moon 2
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Christopher Nolan told Zack Snyder to never watch Josstice League. What a true friend.
I think Chris Terrio
Chris Terrio*
The Snyder fanboys watched it, though....
@@ColorOfExcellence DC fans* Hated it though. They hired a MCU director to Marvel-ify it aka take the soul out of it and they did. Snyder doesn't deserve the hate. He's an awesome dude
@yup9451 I don't hate Snyder. I hate that he butchered the DC IP making movies for his fanboys, Injustice gamers, anti-MCU weirdoes, and casual movie-goers.
300 inspired an entire generation of fitness enthusiasts.
Embrace the masculinity. We need more strong men and less weakness.
@@stevemuzak8526 just as long as they're mentally strong too
One of my all time favorite movies. It has inspired me so much.
In my opinion the watchmen movie is criminally underrated
One of the best super hero movies ever made
@@LuisSierra42 dare we say THE best
Yup. It has some sort of deep rooted humanity that many other superhero movies totally miss.
Unfortunately, just like every of his projects, his comprehension of the source material was merely on surface level
@@conservativepatrioticstrai5218thank you. Very surface level. That’s why I loved the HBO Watchmen series. The showrunners understood the actual themes of the original graphic novel.
The birth of Doctor Manhattan is one of the best sequences ever filmed for a comic book movie.
the way his whole body disintegrates is just sublime
Truly a Masterpiece that sequence.
Facts.
The analogy how to build a watch and reassemble the human anatomy step by step through it, always makes me think back with very positive vibes.
True dat
100% Ben Affleck is perfect Batman and Bruce Wayne casting.
Facts!
meeehhh
I don’t not like you 😫
@MessiahRamsay The best Batman
i strongly disagree
Batman vs. Superman is amazing and I will take that to the fckn grave
do it CinemaSins fans the cut was better
I don’t agree with all of his decisions. But he backs up all of them and explains them intelligently. Respect
I don't know about ALL of them. Look at his recent comments about how if you don't support his films you're telling studios you'd prefer the fast food equivalent of film.
@@garyking1986 well...that's true, especially in the sense that he was talking about studios cutting directors vision up with focus groups. It takes the "art" out of it. Do you want a Picasso painting where a group of suits said "well, can you make his face look more...normal?" He's making a larger statement about film by director VS film by committee, he's not talking solely about himself. He didn't say anything as callus as what you represented here.
@@apokolipsmeow5481 I’m saying exactly what he said verbatim. If he meant it another way then he should’ve said it that way.
@@garyking1986 lol OK dude. That's the least charitable way and most clip chimped way you can quote what he said to fit your point. I'm used to it tho atp so whatever.
@@apokolipsmeow5481 You need to chill, dude. We’re all friends here.
We have interviewed Zack a number of times. He is the nicest, most authentic person you will ever meet. He legitimately loves making films and I proudly call myself a fanboy of the most obsessed level.
Are u able to recognize the rebel moon series sucks even as a huge fan of his?
@@MtpMuzikthat’s how I personally feel. Can’t win em all though.
Thanks for this comment. It's really cool to hear. OOC have you ever asked him if he would want to adapt any Image comics? I've always felt he would be perfect for those. Zach Snyders Shadow Hawk would be the coolest thing ever.
Superman V Darkseid would have been freakin EPIC!
Honestly, I could listen to Zack talk about his movies for hours - he's just such a visionary. You can tell he loves, respects and understands what he does....
then you might need to get checked for brain tumors.
@@swagman4722 Again, YOU are the one who needs to be checked for brain tumors! Zack Snyder has made some of the best movies ever made!
Say what you want about this guys films, but he seems like such a genuine guy who just wants to make movies he wants to make and I respect that
I wish everyone felt that way
Just because he's a genuine nice guy doesn't mean we should liked his movies just because his attitude. If he makes a great movie, then it's great. If he makes a bad movie, it's bad, no excuse
@@4deleDaz33mhe is referring that is not ok to hate him as a person just cause he makes bad movies , it’s a shame he makes bad movies cause he seems like a genuine nice guy
@@yveltalpoderoso1303’bad’ movies 🙄🙄 I’ve watched lots of movies and it’s very rare that I watch anything that I consider to be fundamentally ‘bad’ We can dislike something and it not be bad….
who just wants to make movies*
The Watchmen is the best comic book adaptation ever. It's just insane how amazing this movie is.
Agree, the ending was greatly improved over original and they even went as far as to make the cartoon sections for the ultimate cut. Very faithful adaptation and most of the changes made were for the best.
@@JC-kl3uc that cartoon section was brilliant idea
His movies are like an actual live action graphic novel. Maybe not everyone's cup of tea, but I will always appreciate his style and commitment towards his ways
Footnote: Made by a guy who misunderstands the characters in those comics.
@adude9292 or it could be that your view is just too limited.
@JordonPatrickMears11211988 or could it be you don't know anything about comics
@@adude9292I don’t think that is exactly true. His Justice League proved that he understood the characters
@@thomaskiser3886 his 8 hour snooze fest proved why he shouldn't be allowed in a directors chair. I mean look how bad rebel moon was
One of my favorite directors. I saw 300 a million times. Still feel bad about his daughter.🙏
I saw it 300 times
Zack Snyder feels like one of us nerds who finally got his chance to be the director calling the shots and never forgot what made these characters, universes and film in general so wonderful and compelling in the first place. Just feels like such a simple but deep guy that I’d love to grab a beer with. I can’t wait to see his next project. Thank You Zack for all of your passion for film.
Exactly. I call him the geek version of Stanley Kubrick or Ridley Scott.
This has to be bait
@@spinosaurusstriker Bait? What are you talking about?
IMHO Zack Snyder's style to me is a combination of Stanley Kubrick, Ridley Scott, Tony Scott and Akira Kurosawa.
Too bad he couldn't achieve any of that when he made Rebel Moon
How can you not like this guy? All of the actors that has ever worked with him all said that he was an amazing human being and always go above and beyond to make sure everyone is comfortable.
Ofc they did they worked with him
I'm sure he's a nice dude but he ruined the entire DC universe so bad they had to reboot it
Great guy, terrible director
@@ar71498 No he didnt. stop being a sheep. WB ruined DC. His film sother than aquaman were the most successful. Both shazam movies didnt make as much and neither did ww84 or birds of prey. Blue beetle also flopped
I don't think people dislike him, they dislike his fans who are fanatical to an annoying extent
'300 with machine guns' we definitely want that.
"Ben Affleck is the most Batman-y Batman" - Zack Snyder for GQ
He's not wrong
@@LuisSierra42 he's so wrong it hurts
@@LuisSierra42 Bro have u ever heard of Kevin Conroy?
@@JustanotherNPC8454 best in live action
@@LuisSierra42 oh
"If we can make that shot last for 2 hours!?" Snyder, no problem! I have a slo-mo camera!
LOL
The way he explains MOS..is exactly why it is the peak Superman film, everything about it is flawless. I stand by this statement and nothing will ever ever ever change my mind. same goes for BVS:DOJ (UE), & ZSJL.
Agreed, jealous you guys got that film. I wonder if Feige could convince him to come over one day. Give us one of the Fantastic Four or X-Men sequels Zack
A little disappointed he didn't speak about Sucker Punch here, but this was fascinating!
GQ snyderscut
Same here
I only watched Suckerpunch because it had Silversun Pickups in the soundtrack.
Yes, me too! I love that movie!
That'll be in the Snyder cut
Watchmen has a better ending than the book. Great movie.
WB is the dumbest studio for ruining his Justice League saga.With Zack Snyder's Justice League 2 and 3 we could've had such an epic artistic superhero storyline.Even when he talks about those projects,it's goosebumps inducing.
JL 2 and 3.would've shattered the hemisphere.
They literally fire him because his ideas were terrible and it was gonna get worse
@@zarakikempachi1072Agreed 👍
@@zarakikempachi1072Nope. He got fired cause the critics and bloggers were upset he wasn't doing MCU 2.0
@@georgemirnich33 yes literally haven't you read the article? It's warner executives saying this dude doesn't give a sht about the actual lore, just fire him
The way he talked about Superman makes me so happy. I wanna see it completed one day.
Bro he literally murdered Superman in the second movie how is anything he says about that character not tainted by how he was utterly botched in Snyders movies?
@@ar71498 Superman giving his life for humanity is literally ultimate Superhero. How can I not love the character who'd do that for us?
@ar71498 you heard what he said in the interview, but you clearly didn't LISTEN.
@@emmanuelnaicker2067 it's obvious that he didn't come here for the interview dude just came here to argue with fans
Legendary director. Those first three movies he talks about are all gold standards.
His best movies so far.
Watchmen is ahead of its time. We weren’t ready.
Exactly. Long live the cbm maestro Zack Snyder.
@@AshrafAnam What's "cbm"?
@@MatthewTheWanderercomic book movie
@@manofmartin Oh, lol, I suppose I should have been able to figure that out, oops. Thank you!
Look dirtbag…we dont have anything in common other than we both watched this video. Dont presume to know what me or anyone else was “ready for”. Many of us read the watchmen when it was released over 12 issues and we got it then and its why it became so popular in the subsequent years. You dont sound poetic or poignant…you just sound like a cliche scumbag saying something that doesnt even make sense.
Watchmen is probably the most underrated comic book movie ever. I can't believe the negative reviews when it released
Watchmen is SOOOOOOO UNDERATED! Zach is one of the best film makers of the 21st century
Batman warehouse scene is the best scene of all time
It's top 3 for sure. But the fight scene of captain america and the winter soldier edges it out. It's the best Batman /DC fight scene for sure.
TBH Winter Soldier actually falls flat on me. While the action scene were great but it was mo where near The Warehouse Scene. But if the fights were to be brutal on The Winter Soldier then maybe it would have a little edge but who knows? Zack is just too perfect when it comes to action and cinematography
I bet he will announce an extended cut of this interview which shows the REAL interview like he originally intended it.
😂
And we will watch it. AN ICON
I mean this is obviously cut down to make it punchier but I do want to know his full thoughts (since he's a bit of a rambler)
It will be a 4 hour cut however he will say it was longer and GQ wouldn't let him release the actual interview.
Bruhhh
Let me go and watch Watchmen.
The movie is overrated. It completely missed the point of the original comic.
Watch the Director's Cut and then the Ultimate Cut only 💯.
you speak like a Trinidadian lol
Make sure it's the directors cut and it's brilliant Imo
@@Obi_Wan_Kenobi67573His fans just keep kissing that boot of his, channeling this realism delusion "ahead of its time!" (yet ended up being no more realistic than any CBMs and just pale dark gritty fantasy) despite the glaring obvious fact that he unintenionally quoted Manchester Black's dream comment towards supe🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
When it got to Justice League, I had to hold my breath because he was going to talk about his daughter. There was a sign in the movie, where Barry and Bruce go see someone and it said "You Are Not Alone." I don't like his movies but I'm glad that he's talking about it. The mourning period may be mostly gone but a piece of you will be missing. Zack, mad respects and take care of yourself.
As the Prophecy goes. Everytime there is a new Zack Snyder Video a War breaks loose in the comment section.
Zack Snyder is probably my guilty pleasure film director I watched on his filmography.
His obsession with film comes out through the entire interview and I love to see it
His resume is literally a list of some of the coolest movies in my lifetime
His resume, HIS SNYDERVERSE!
you need to get an MRI on your skull. Tumors knocking around in there
@@swagman4722 Speak for yourself! Most of Zack Snyder's movies ARE extremely cool!
Yet here you are watching a snyder interview 💀@@swagman4722
@@swagman4722 You should take your own advice
When I saw Watchmen I knew Zack’s vision was in the future. Years later it’s still a masterpiece.
No one has topped his Batman brutal fight scene in the warehouse …on film!
Who watches the Watchmen? I did. When it came out in theaters.
Amazing film ❤
MOS is such a great movie
Love the whole MoS segment. Snyder’s view on the Pa Kent, Zod, and Batman criticism is so excellent and makes perfect sense. I will never understand the hate.
People wanted another infallible shining knight hero Superman story.
20:18 Yes! Do 'The Dark Knight Returns.' A seminal graphic novel, crying out to be filmed. Both Ben and Henry are the perfect age to play their characters. Older, world weary. Throw in Jeremy Irons as Alfred, Cameron Monaghan as the Joker, Jessica Biel or Blake Lively as an ageing Selina and you've got lightning in a bottle!
This entire interview should have been filmed in slow motion.
I love the guy no matter what people say. Watchmen is a classic, and so is BvS
Honestly, most people love him. It’s always a vocal minority. Comment sections are a minority itself. Ask anyone outside in real life who knows more than blockbuster flicks, they all acknowledge Snyder.😊
@@lightup6751circlejerk level comment
@@Sid271 What an enriching contribution to a discussion. That’s really all you can manage to bring to a discussion? Yikes. I’m not even a big fan of his. Blockbuster and superhero flicks are not all of cinema. I merely stated that he is popular and acknowledged. And you got upset 🤦♂️
@@lightup6751 Normies barely know Spielberg and Nolan
@@lightup6751 Most people did not like BvS since it underperformed in both reviews and box office. I'd say the vocal minority are it's defenders.
I hope you get that chance Mr Snyder To finish the dceu
Knowing the actor got the sparta kick off guard is great. Had to rewind and watch it again. Beautiful.
I dont think i realized that Zack Snyder could be mistaken as Vince McMahon's brother.
The way he talks about MoS BvS & ZSJL 🥹 Snyderverse forever🙌🙌
I wanna see him direct/reboot League of Extraordinary Gentlemens
Zack was a genius for changing the ending for Watchmen! It was the perfect adjustment and the only one really needed to the source material.
Just love him! His visuals are unmatched!
A critic once described him as “A Meathead with a movie camera” I don’t think there are many other directors that have such a recognisable style as he does. He’s made some great films.
I don't think I appreciate that description. I'm a meathead and he seems a lot more well thought out and calculated than me.
To the perpetual chagrin of critics, meatheads buy lots of tickets, tapes, discs, t-shirts, etc.
You cannot deny that Zack and his casting department aren’t phenomenal. Literally besides maybe Jesse Eisenberg every character’s Actor has become Iconic for that role. Gerald Butler as Leonidas, Henry Cavill as Superman, Ben Affleck as Batman, Jackie Earl Haley and more. Picture Perfect castings.
Yes I can. He cast Ezra Miller as the flash.
Even Jesse was great for what he was cast for
I think the issue is that his take was a more 'crazy billionaire Lex Luthor', i didn't quite like that vision, i prefer the more genius-like ones like in Justice League: Unlimited.
I have not heard any other director speak about DC characters and lore like Zack Snyder does not even Chris Nolan in all his interviews for The Dark Knight Trilogy. You can just see here how extremely passionate Zack is about DC and his vision.
Zack Snyder literally butchered the DC Universe worse than any other director. It was so bad they had to reboot it all
@@ar71498 Well some people liked his take on DC and others didn’t, it is what it is.
@@ar71498 his movies and Wonder Woman are great. What came after butchered the DCEU.
@Immaando it's just dumb he's getting praised as this amazing director when the dude had 1 hit with 300 and literally everything after got panned by critics and fans
@@ar71498 well if his fans enjoy it, let them enjoy it. Every fanbase is considered “toxic” nowadays
Zack snyder ages like fine wine. Seriously fine.
Zack Snyder is the definition of "people hate what they don't understand" -Martha.
Could you be any more pompous?
Hate him or love him at least he has a awesome visual style
Watchmen is possibly still the best superhero movie ever made.
When people say "Zack Misunderstood these characters" I'm always like wtf are you talking about. This guy knows his stuff, probably better than most of these people. Someone will watch this clip and still go ahead to say "Zack misunderstood Superman". I'm curious do such people comprehend anything?
Apparently they don't. Like this one jackass KZheadr named Professor Geek. Dude claims he's a huge Superman fan and constantly trashes Snyder's but he's quick to defend the Reeve Superman like he's the definitive and only take of the character that matters.
Zach Snyder able to make his own Dark Knight Returns with Ben and the original cast would be amazing. Too bad DC will never let that happen, not even in an elseworlds 😢
Can happen if you change the board members and people who are running WB and their franchises
The fact that he is unironically using “bizarro” instead of the word bizarre shows his love for comics lol.
Dark Knight with his cast sounds awesome.
Watchmen is my favorite!
Give us the rest of the Synderverse!!! 😫
"You're locked in here with me!" 😢
I just love this dude. I dont care what others say but I really love to watch and enjoy his movies
I recently rewatched BVS for the first time in years. Watched it on the theater and didnt click with it, it was meh. But this time was different, it aged like fine wine. Once you sit and watch the story unfold and not get caught up in the "this wasnt in the comics, this or that" its an entire different movie, massive and epic. Its a shame the 5 part Justice League saga didnt happen.
Same here - Viewed it again - The third act to credits was amazing stuff.
Did you watch the Ultimate Edition the second time around? That version definitely has more connective tissue and allows the film to breathe. I agree, though. It's definitely a film that rewards rewatches.
@@DanKeatis Weardly no. I watched the Ultimate Edition when it came out and it was apparent the movie was 100% more coherent. However i still was indifferent. I stumble upon it on TV earlier this week and remembered what plot lines were cutted. Thats when it hit me and suddenly all made sense, the themes, the character arcs, the spectacle. Even the "Martha" moment didnt bother me at all.
@@Julian97MetalFighter Oh, interesting. Thanks for replying. Fair play! :)
There are a lot of Snyder's film-making decisions I don't agree with, but I was so happy when he got rid of the fake psychic space space squid.
Zach Snyder please make a Solo Batman movie with Ben Affleck
Zack is such a cool dude. He's as articulate with his explanations as he is with his drawings, always so expressive. Had to watch that ZSJL trailer after this, goosebumps every time!!
He's such a nerd and I'm totally here for it.
Zack Snyder 🐐🐐🐐
I love the meaning behind the Martha scene in BvS cause it's easy to think it means one thing but there's a deeper meaning to it in hearing the same name as his mother batman sees the humanity in Superman at that moment it's crazy when you look at it that way I never even thought that on the 1st watch
No. Its unnatural and stupid and rightfully clowned on.
No
@@ar71498Yes.
@@ar71498yes
300 and watchmen are 10/10
This guy is my role model.
"Dark knight returns with my original cast"
Now I see the reason and why Christopher Nolan loves and supports him. What a MIND.
Snyder once again proving that he gets the concept of cbm genre like no one else.
This is great. Now I want to see all of the films Zack directed that I missed. I’ve only seen two and enjoyed them both. I had no idea.
No Sucker Punch Talk?? Highly underrated movie.
Well I still wish we could see him finish his full vision of the story for Justice League (the sequels)
I hope they release the extended cut of this interview. I heard it's so much better than this one.
This is one of the few "iconic" interviews that really gets into some interesting aspects of those characters. So many of them I'm excited for but then it's just 30 minutes of "Everyone I worked with on that movie were just the greatest" and an anecdote about how they got the role even though they didn't even like it at first or whatever.
Superman vs doomsday scene was excellent
I’ll never not love Snyder, his DC movies are just moving comics and he has such an amazing eye for detail. BvS is one of my favorite movies ever made. His movies are just graphic novels and they’re amazing ❤
He needs to go ahead and do the Dark Knight Returns with Affleck. The Frank Miller story.
Let it go its never happening
If he respects the story and not making Batman a psychotic maniac.
@@micahjohansson7573 he uses dark knight returns as his excuse for his murderous batman lol
@@nutmegandpeach Watch the interview
Snyder's visuals are incredible. We're so lucky that several of his films got 3D conversions, I don't know if he will explore the stereo medium again
I don't love all of his movies but he does always seem like a really smart, nice guy
Don’t think he’s that smart.
Watchmen is one of my favorite movies ever. Very underrated
No mention of Sucker Punch!? 😞That's one of his best movies! Watchmen, 300, and Sucker Punch are his 3 best movies, in my opinion.
Can we PLEASE get a Snyder's Dark Knight starring Batfleck?! Unironically, since 300, that's all I've ever wanted.
Such a cool insanely visionary director. Always preferred his approach to superhero movies.
You preferred movies that are 6 hours, say nothing, and don't care about the source material? Weird taste but hey to each their own
@@ar71498at this point I think your just one of those toxic haters in the comic book movie fanbase 😂
His movies are really hit or miss for me, but I like his passion for his craft and enjoy hearing him talk about films
I love Zack Snyders Justice League
That makes you and like 4 other people. The entire Twitter campaign to get it made was all bots
@@ar71498 Gurl, but it got made, just shut up
@@chulobecerron and it was an 8 hour snooze fest that barely anyone watched.
@@ar71498keep crying 😂💀
@marcossantiago6796 bro if you wanna see crying go to the Snyder cut subreddit and watch them cry about James Gunn all day lmao I'm just crying tears of joy Snyder can't ruin Batman anymore than he already has.
His passion is so contagious that now I want to be a filmmaker
Please finish the justice league triology !
I'll never understand the dislike for this man's movies.
Zack Snyder knows his target market. Testosterone is a billion dollar business and he understands that every slow motion sequence he gives us is an adrenaline rush for every gym rat and fitness enthusiasts out there (including myself) gets it. 🙌🏽
Summed up in two words. Slow Motion. lol. Really enjoyed this and his films.
I love the slow motion because ss he's said before it gives you time to appreciate the details. The studios are spending millions on a single scene. I spent 3 grand on my t.v. I want to be able to enjoy those shots without having to pause every time
Just imagine if we got a second justice league with an evil superman as Henry Cavil...
Evil Superman…yawn…boring, overdone
@madtitan0825 overdone? Besides bright burn what else has really done an evil superman story. The boys and invincible are close but not actually evil superman.
No thanks.
@@JordonPatrickMears11211988 they are literally the concept of evil Superman but with a more creative approach, otherwise evil Superman in dc is just nothing but uninspired
@@madtitan0825literally has never been done in live action before 💀 only in games and comics. Plus the general audience won’t care cause everyone doesn’t read comics. The idea would’ve rocked