Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is a 2016 American superhero film featuring the DC Comics characters Batman and Superman. Directed by Zack Snyder, the film is the second installment in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU), following 2013's Man of Steel.[4] It was written by Chris Terrio and David S. Goyer, and features an ensemble cast that includes Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Jesse Eisenberg, Diane Lane, Laurence Fishburne, Jeremy Irons, Holly Hunter, and Gal Gadot. Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is the first live-action film to feature Batman and Superman together, as well as the first live-action cinematic portrayal of Wonder Woman. In the film, criminal mastermind Lex Luthor (Eisenberg) manipulates Batman (Affleck) into a preemptive battle with Superman (Cavill), who Luthor is obsessed with defeating.
Plot[]
Eighteen months after the battle between Superman and General Zod in Metropolis,[N 1] Superman has become a controversial figure. Billionaire Bruce Wayne, who has operated in Gotham City as the vigilante Batman for twenty years, sees Superman as an extraterrestrial threat to humanity. After learning of Batman's form of justice, Clark Kent (Superman's civilian identity) seeks to expose him via Daily Planet articles. Wayne learns that Russian weapon trafficker Anatoli Knyazev has been contacting LexCorp mogul Lex Luthor. Meanwhile, Luthor unsuccessfully tries to persuade Senator June Finch to allow him to import kryptonite retrieved from the Indian Ocean following Zod's terraforming attempt, claiming he wants to maintain it as a "deterrent" against future Kryptonian and metahuman threats. He instead makes alternative plans with Finch's subordinate and gains access to Zod's body and the Kryptonian scout ship.
Bruce attends a gala at LexCorp to steal encrypted data from the company's mainframe, but has it taken from him by an antiquities dealer named Diana Prince; she eventually returns it to Bruce when she is unable to access the information. While decrypting the drive, Bruce dreams of a post-apocalyptic world where he leads a group of rebels against an evil Superman. He is awakened from his dream by an unidentified person, appearing through a portal, who warns him of Lois Lane's crucial role in the future, and urges him to find "the others" before vanishing.[N 2] Upon fully decrypting the drive, Wayne discovers Luthor's files on several metahuman individuals across the globe. One of them is Prince herself, who is shown in a photo taken during World War I. Wayne admits to Alfred Pennyworth that he plans to steal the kryptonite to weaponize it, should it become necessary to fight Superman.
At a Congressional hearing, as Finch questions Superman on the validity of his actions, a bomb smuggled by Luthor goes off and kills everyone present but Superman. Believing he should have detected the bomb, and frustrated by his failure to save them, Superman goes into self-imposed exile. Batman breaks into LexCorp and steals the kryptonite. In preparation to battle Superman, he builds a powered exoskeleton, creates a kryptonite grenade launcher, and a kryptonite-tipped spear. Meanwhile, Luthor enters the Kryptonian ship and accesses a vast technology database accumulated from over 100,000 worlds.
To bring Superman out of exile, Luthor kidnaps Lois and Martha Kent, Clark's adoptive mother. He reveals to Superman that he manipulated Superman and Batman by fueling their distrust for each other. Luthor demands that Superman kill Batman in exchange for Martha's life. Superman tries to explain the situation to Batman, but instead Batman attacks Superman and eventually subdues him with the aid of a kryptonite gas. Before Batman can kill Superman with the spear, Superman urges Batman to "save Martha", whose name is also shared with Batman's mother, confusing him long enough for Lois to arrive and explain what Superman meant. Realizing how far he has fallen and unwilling to let an innocent die, Batman rescues Martha, while Superman confronts Luthor on the scout ship.
Luthor executes his backup plan, unleashing a genetically engineered monster with DNA from both Zod's body and his own blood.[N 3] Diana Prince arrives unexpectedly; revealing her metahuman nature, she joins forces with Batman and Superman to eliminate the creature. When they are all outmatched, Superman realizes its vulnerability to kryptonite, and retrieves the spear to kill it. In the creature's last moments, it kills Superman, himself weakened by exposure to kryptonite.
Luthor is arrested and Batman confronts him in prison, warning Luthor that he will always be watching him. Luthor gloats that Superman's death has made the world vulnerable to powerful alien threats. A memorial is held for Superman in Metropolis. Clark is also declared dead, with various friends and family members including Bruce Wayne and Diana Prince attending his funeral in Smallville. Martha gives an envelope to Lois, which contains an engagement ring from Clark. After the funeral, Bruce expresses his regrets to Diana about how he failed Superman. He reveals to her that he plans to form a team of metahumans, starting with those from Luthor's files, to help protect the world in Superman's absence. After they leave, the dirt atop Clark's coffin levitates.
Cast[]
- Ben Affleck as Bruce Wayne/Batman
- Brandon Spink as young Bruce Wayne
- Henry Cavill as Kal-El/Clark Kent/Superman
- Amy Adams as Lois Lane
- Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor
- Diane Lane as Martha Kent
- Laurence Fishburne as Perry White
- Jeremy Irons as Alfred Pennyworth
- Holly Hunter as Senator June Finch
- Gal Gadot as Diana Prince/Wonder Woman
- Scoot McNairy as Wallace Keefe
- Callan Mulvey as Anatoli Knyazev
- Tao Okamoto as Mercy Graves
- Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Thomas Wayne
- Lauren Cohan as Martha Wayne
- Hugh Maguire as Jack O'Dwyer
- Michael Shannon as General Zod
- Sammi Rotibi as General Amajagh
- Michael Cassidy as Jimmy Olsen
- Wunmi Mosaku as Kahina Ziri
- Dennis North as Senator Barrows
- Kiff VandenHeuvel as Officer Mazzuccheli
- Mason Heidger as Officer Mike Rucka
- Sebastian Sozzi as Cesar Santos
- Ralph Lister as Emmet Vale
- Rebecca Buller as Jenny Jurwich
- Harry Lennix as Secretary of Defense Calvin Swanwick
- Christina Wren as Carrie Farris
- Chad Krowchuk as Glen Woodburn
- Ezra Miller as Barry Allen/Flash
- Patrick Leahy as Senator Purrington
- Jason Momoa as Orin/Arthur Curry/Aquaman
- Joe Morton as Silas Stone
- Ray Fisher as Victor Stone/Cyborg
- Coburn Goss as Father Daniel Leone
- Joseph Cranford as Pete Ross
- Emily Peterson as Lana Lang
- Robin Atkin Downes as Doomsday
- Kevin Costner as Jonathan Kent
The Ultimate Edition[]
Main article: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (Ultimate Edition)
An extended cut of the film dubbed the Ultimate Edition was released on home media platforms, alongside the theatrical cut. This version received an R rating from the Motion Picture Association of America, for more violence than the PG-13 rated theatrical cut,[94][331] and is longer by 31 minutes.[332] With the release of the Ultimate Edition, which was the director's original version of the film before additional editing, critics noted that the film would have likely been better received with the additional footage.[333][334] Ben Kendrick of Screen Rant stated that while it was more "intelligible", character portrayal was not "fundamentally changed" and "for viewers who didn't like Man of Steel or Batman v Superman for larger reasons, such as tone, approach, and the darker characterization of DC's most iconic heroes, the Ultimate Edition is only a longer... version of a film that... is likely to remain divisive, even if the final product is a better film."[335] Phil Owens of TheWrap called it an improvement upon the original cut, writing, "Lo and behold somehow Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice has become something that approaches a functional movie. In the process, it only makes the original cut even more inexplicable and terrible."[336]
The film debuted in first place on the home video sales chart for the week ending July 24, 2016.[337] As of January 19, 2019, it has made $22.1 million in DVD sales and $55.9 million in Blu-ray sales, totaling an estimated of $78 million.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- This is the second film in the DC Extended Universe.
- It was the seventh highest grossing film of 2016.
- This is the highest grossing film featuring Superman and Wonder Woman.
- This is the first live-action film to feature Batman and Superman in the same film.
- This is the second highest grossing film in the DCEU.
- This is Zack Snyder's fifth film with Warner Brothers, the others being 300 (2006), Watchmen (2009), Sucker Punch (2011), and Man of Steel (2013).
- Gal Gadot is the first non-American actress to play Diana Prince/Wonder Woman. She is also the first actress to perform the role in theatrical films.
- First live-action film that includes Batman to not be released in the summer.
- The film's subtitle is a reference to the Justice League.
- The first cut had a runtime of about 4 hours.
- Gal Gadot has sixteen lines in the film. She is given one or two more lines in the extended cut.
- Superman only had 42 lines of dialogue throughout the entire movie.
- This was the eleventh time Batman has been portrayed since 1943. Superman, on the other hand, has been portrayed sixteen times since 1939.
- Jeffrey Dean Morgan was considered for the role of Bruce Wayne a.k.a. Batman. He was subsequently given the role of Thomas Wayne, Bruce's father.
- The metal exosuit is the first Batsuit not featuring a Batsymbol on its chest.
- It is the third live action film production to feature Batman (but not Robin), Superman, Lois Lane, and Wonder Woman onscreen together. All of their previous appearances together were in animated television programs and direct-to-DVD films.
- Many of the news cuttings on Wallace's wall are events which were featured in the Christopher Reeve Superman films.
- Timothy Dalton was considered for the role of Alfred J. Pennyworth.
- According to producer Charles Roven, Ben Affleck was their first choice, and the first person to whom they went, for the role of Bruce Wayne a.k.a. Batman.
- Doomsday is portrayed by Robin Atkin Downes in motion-capture and voice. This is Downes' third film as a Superman villain. He had previously played Solaris in All-Star Superman (2011), and Manchester Black in Superman vs. The Elite (2012).
- Ben Affleck and Diane Lane starred together in "Hollywoodland (2006)". Affleck played George Reeve, one of the earliest actors to portray Superman, and Lane played Reeve's lover. In other words, Affleck went from playing Superman to Batman, while Lane went from playing Superman's girlfriend to playing his mother.
- Han's Zimmer said this film, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), would be the last superhero film he would compose music for, however he did compose the music for X-Men: Dark Phoenix (2019) and Wonder Woman 1984 (2020).
- This is Zack Snyder's fifth film with Warner Brothers, the others being 300 (2006), Watchmen (2009), Sucker Punch (2011), and Man of Steel (2013).
- Carla Gugino, Patrick Wilson, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan, all of whom have cameos in this film (with Gugino and Wilson providing voice cameos) have all previously collaborated with Zack Snyder on Watchmen (2009).
- Bradley Cooper, Chris Pine, Ryan Kwanten, Matthew Fox, and Scott Porter were all linked for the role of Barry Allen a.k.a. The Flash in a previous iteration. Ezra Miller was cast.
- Ben Affleck is the oldest actor to play Bruce Wayne a.k.a. Batman (he was 43). Christian Bale was 30 when he played Wayne for the first time in Batman Begins (2005). Michael Keaton and Adam West were both 38 when they played Wayne in Batman (1989) and Batman (1966), meanwhile Val Kilmer and George Clooney were both 36 in Batman Forever (1995) and Batman & Robin (1997), respectively.
- Lauren Cohan and Jeffrey Dean Morgan play Bruce Wayne's parents in the film. They also both appear in the television series The Walking Dead (2010) as Maggie Greene and Negan, respectively. They were both in Supernatural (2005) as well.
- Released in the same year as a Marvel comics movie also revolving around two heroes battling each other, Captain America: Civil War (2016).
- Lynda Carter did not like Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman outfit, as she said it was missing the red, white, and blue.
| Batman |
|---|
| Batman (1943), Batman and Robin (1949), Batman (1966), Batman (1989), Batman Returns (1992), Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993), Batman Forever (1995), Batman & Robin (1997), Batman Begins (2005), The Dark Knight (2008), The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), Suicide Squad (2016), The Lego Batman Movie (2017), Justice League (2017), Joker (2019), Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021), The Batman (2022), The Flash (2023), Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023), Joker: Folie à Deux (2024), The Batman: Part II (2025) The Brave and the Bold |
| DC Extended Universe |
|---|
| Man of Steel (2013), Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), Suicide Squad (2016), Wonder Woman (2017), Justice League (2017), Aquaman (2018), Shazam! (2019), Birds of Prey (2020), Wonder Woman 1984 (2020), Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021), The Suicide Squad (2021), Black Adam (2022), Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023), The Flash (2023), Blue Beetle (2023), Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023) |