Warning - This article contains spoilers for Zack Snyder’s Justice League.
Zack Snyder's Justice League has made its grandiose debut on HBO Max , bringing four hours of action-packed content to avid DC fans.
With an interconnected movie like Justice League , it is expected that DC's pantheon of characters would be utilized to its fullest extent. Director Zack Snyder has certainly delivered in this regard, and The Direct is here to break down who appears in this ambitious project...
EVERY DC CHARACTER IN THE SNYDER CUT
The Snyder Cut has a lot of DC characters. Here's all of them:
SUPERMAN
The Man of Steel opens the Snyder Cut, with the film picking up right before his death in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Despite this, Superman isn't in a good portion of the film, only appearing around the last hour.
Even so, Kal-El's return is worth the wait, especially when viewers finally get to see him tear up shop in his slick black costume.
LOIS LANE
Amy Adams reprises her role as Lois Lane, acting as the key to turning Superman good once again. Although her role in the Snyder Cut is rather limited, the scenes she does get with Clark are incredibly endearing.
MARTHA KENT
Clark's mother, Martha Kent, appears briefly to round out Superman's supporting cast. Like Lois, Martha does not stick around in the film for too long but does have a notable surprise up her sleeve and under her skin. More on that later.
BATMAN
Bruce Wayne acts as the instigator for the entire Justice League movement, set on establishing a team as a means to grapple with the guilt he feels over the events of Batman v Superman .
Although he does not possess any flashy or over-the-top powers like his super-powered compatriots, Ben Affleck's Batman gets some standout moments with his hand-to-hand, firearm, and vehicular combat.
The most notable addition to the Snyder Cut for Batman is an all-new Knightmare sequence, where The Dark Knight is seen teaming up with an odd array of DC characters. This new scene adds a bit more context into Bruce Wayne's psyche as well as what could potentially come down the road for the Snyderverse.
ALFRED
Batman's right-hand man is here to help, with Alfred providing much of the technical and emotional support for The Dark Knight. Master Wayne is in good hands as his butler was able to supply him with armored plating capable of absorbing energy blasts that saved the Caped Crusader's life on more than one occasion.
COMMISSIONER GORDON
J.K. Simmons gets a few extra scenes in Zack Snyder's Justice League , giving him a chance to flex more of his acting chops as Gotham City Police Commissioner Jim Gordon. As Batman has been active for over 20 years in this universe, it is shown that Jim and the Bat have a good working relationship.
CRISPUS ALLEN
On the other hand, Gordon's partner is a bit more skeptical of Batman. Crispus Allen (no relation to Barry Allen) is a police detective who is often partnered with Renee Montoya in the comics.
WONDER WOMAN
Gal Gadot returns as Wonder Woman, aiding Batman in putting together a team. Diana does not have as many new scenes as some of her other fellow Leaguers, but she does receive a sequence where she explores the history of Darkseid using the Arrow of Artemis. Wonder Woman also receives a striking new Amazonian theme to compliment her original musical motif from Hans Zimmer.
Wonder Woman is notably absent from Batman's gang in the Knightmare sequence. The question is: what happened to her?
HIPPOLYTA
Connie Nielsen's Hippolyta receives a surprising amount of screen time in the Snyder Cut, with many scenes dedicated to the Amazon Queen. Not only do we see Hippolyta fight alongside her fellow Amazons against Steppenwolf and race to keep the Mother Box from the villain's spiky grasp, but a new scene is also shown of the queen warning Diana of the oncoming threat.
While unexpected, Hippolyta's extensive role in Zack Snyder's Justice League is a welcome way to reinvigorate the character after only appearing in supporting roles previously.
ANTIOPE
Amazonian general Antiope is briefly seen in the fight against Steppenwolf, once again played by Robin Wright. Though she gets no actual lines in the film, it is reassuring to know that she fought alongside her sister to fend off against the forces of Apokolips.
CYBORG
Of all the main heroes in the Snyder Cut, Victor Stone is undoubtedly the character that benefits the most from the extended screen time. Cyborg receives ample development and backstory, with a lot of his scenes delving into his life prior to his transformation into half-man, half-machine.
Much of this stems from the inclusion of...
ELINORE STONE
...his mother Elinore Stone, who serves as the only source of support in Victor's life. With Silas' father constantly busy at STAR Labs, Elinore has to pick up the slack.
Cyborg's mother is tragically killed in a car accident, which would have killed Victor too if not for the Mother Box. This leaves Cyborg with only his often-absent father...
SILAS STONE
Silas Stone gets a bit more play in Zack Snyder's Justice League , receiving more scenes to develop his relationship with his son.
Unlike the theatrical version of Justice League , Silas meets his demise in the Snyder Cut when sacrificing himself to put a heat signature on the remaining Mother Box. Without this, the League may not have been able to stop the Unity in time.
RYAN CHOI
Zheng Kai stars as Ryan Choi, a scientist who works alongside Silas Stone at STAR Labs. Comic book readers will know that Choi is the third character to take on the role of the Atom, a hero capable of shrinking himself to microscopic heights.
While it has been some time since Kai portrayed the character, perhaps there is still a future for him as the Atom in the DCEU.
AQUAMAN
Jason Momoa certainly makes a splash in the Snyder Cut but is a lot less excitable and lively in this version. Arthur Curry is much more serious here, having grown weary from his squabbles with his Atlantean heritage and struggles with his humanity.
Nevertheless, Aquaman fully realizes his potential as the film goes on, leading to some stellar action sequences with his trident. It is also implied that something happened to Arthur in the Knightmare sequence, possibly to do with Jared Leto's Joker.
MERA
Aquaman's love interest, Mera, joins the Atlantean hero, with the duo fighting together to guard Atlantis' Mother Box. A conversation between the two also provides backstory on Arthur's mother Queen Atlanna, which was expanded on in 2018's Aquaman .
Mera also returns for the Knightmare sequence, joining Batman's rag-tag group of misfits. She now bears a brand-new outfit in this hellscape of a world and carries Aquaman's Trident of Atlan from his titular film
VULKO
Willem Dafoe's Vulko also makes a brief appearance, this time with luscious locks and a completely new outfit for Zack Snyder's Justice League.
Vulko pleads with Arthur to take up his mother's trident and protect the Mother Box of Atlantis, a task that Aquaman eventually tries to help out with.
FLASH
Barry Allen races onto the scene, bringing new powers not seen in 2017's Justice League . The Flash seems to be capable of even greater speeds for the Snyder Cut, appearing as if he can use the Speed Force to stop and reverse time.
Because of this, the Flash arguably gets some of the most visually impressive moments in the entire four-hour extravaganza, with Barry's super-speed lending itself nicely to some creative sequences.
HENRY ALLEN
Barry's father returns for the Snyder Cut, being portrayed by Billy Crudup. Henry Allen was convicted and imprisoned for the alleged murder of Barry's mother, Nora Allen, a crime that the Scarlet Speedster is hellbent on disproving.
Though Henry tried everything in his power to dissuade his son from wasting his life, he was overjoyed when Barry revealed that he landed a job at a crime lab. Maybe Henry Allen will see the outside world again one day.
IRIS WEST
Kiersey Clemons' Iris West was one of the many characters to be cut from 2017's Justice League , but she now has a shot at redemption with the arrival of the Snyder Cut. Iris is seen in a new scene with the Flash, in which the Scarlet Speedster saves her from a car crash.
Though the scene is relatively short, it nicely sets up her future in the DCEU as a love interest for Barry Allen.
YALAN GUR
Although rumors of Ryan Reynolds have been debunked and dismissed, there is still one Green Lantern present in the Snyder Cut.
Yalan Gur is the Lantern operating over Sector 2814 in ancient times and aids the forces of Earth against Darkseid's invasion.
THE OLYMPIAN GODS (ZEUS, ARES, & ARTEMIS)
DC's heroes are often likened to the Greek gods of old, and Zack Snyder demonstrates exactly why this is the case in his version of Justice League . Zeus, Ares, and Artemis all play a part in defending Earth from the Parademon threat and act as a precursor to the new age of heroes that births the Justice League.
Much like 2017's Justice League , Ares is the same version seen in Wonder Woman , digitally applying David Thewlis' likeness to his face.
STEPPENWOLF
The villain from the theatrical version of Justice League is back and spikier than ever. Steppenwolf serves as the primary antagonist once again but receives an ample amount of development this time around.
Though it is unclear what exactly happened, Steppenwolf is shown to be invading Earth as a means to appease Darkseid for an apparent betrayal made against Apokolips.
DESAAD
Originally absent from the original version of Justice League , the treacherous DeSaad shows up here to act as Steppenwolf's first point of contact on Apokolips.
GRANNY GOODNESS
Another member of the New Gods also appears in a brief cameo, that being Granny Goodness. Though she gets no lines of her own, her brief appearance adds to the oncoming threat of Darkseid and his forces.
DARKSEID
Speaking of, the menacing Darkseid makes his live-action debut in the Snyder Cut, receiving a good amount of screen time in spite of his secondary antagonist role.
The villain is seen at various points in the film, including his first attack on Earth, a premonition that Cyborg experiences where Darkseid successfully defeats the League, and an ending tease for his future war plans.
PARADEMONS
What would Darkseid be without his minions? Parademons are seen throughout the Snyder Cut, peppered into every scene that will take them.
While often reduced to cannon fodder (literally), the Parademons of Zack Snyder's Justice League are much more intimidating than those seen in Whedon's version of the film.
LEX LUTHOR
One of DC's villains who makes a short appearance in the Snyder Cut is Jesse Eisenberg's Lex Luthor, who can be found in a bath of alien soup in Metropolis' Kryptonian Ship.
A deleted scene from Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice depicted Luthor using Zod's body to create Doomsday in the spacecraft, so it seems he did not make it too far after his Frankenstein-esque experiments.
Luthor also returns in a scene towards the end of the film, originally used as a post-credits stinger for the theatrical version of Justice League . Gone is the "league of our own" line setting up the Legion of Doom. Instead, the Superman villain reveals a key piece of information...
DEATHSTROKE
...to Slade Wilson, who once again shows up to meet up with Lex Luthor. Instead of establishing a villainous supergroup, Luthor reveals to Deathstroke that Batman is the one and only Bruce Wayne.
This piece of intelligence seems of little consequence in the long run though, as Deathstroke and the Caped Crusader end up on the same side in the Knightmare sequence. Slade Wilson sports a new hairdo in the twisted future seen in the epilogue, going full-mohawk to match the apocalyptic landscape.
DOOMSDAY
Another villain that is only briefly seen is Doomsday, the monstrosity responsible for killing Superman. The fallout from the creature's actions is massive, with Superman's death cries impacting many lives and playing a role in Steppenwolf's decision to invade Earth.
AN UNNAMED GREEN LANTERN
Yalan Gur is not the only Green Lantern in the Snyder Cut, as another is briefly seen in the future premonition seen by Cyborg when attempting to revive Superman. It is unclear which Green Lantern this could be (some have speculated to be Kilowog), but it does appear to be of alien origins.
MARTIAN MANHUNTER
The seventh member of the Justice League finally arrives in the DCEU, with Harry Lennix getting the chance to star as the Martian Manhunter. J'onn J'onnz has been long requested by fans and gets two new scenes in this new version of Justice League .
Lennix is also able to portray another one of his DCEU characters when he transforms into...
CALVIN SWANWICK
...the general from Man of Steel , Calvin Swanwick. This indicates that J'onn J'onnz has been sneaking around the DCEU ever since it started. The sneaky devil.
JOKER
Jared Leto's Joker is the final major DC character to appear in the Snyder Cut, appearing in the Knightmare sequence. Batman is forced to form a truce with the Clown Prince of Crime, explaining the Joker card seen on the Dark Knight's gun in Batman v Superman .
It is also implied that Lois is the key, but not in the way that Bruce thinks. From what the Joker says, it seems to indicate that Lois may have to die to prevent the Knightmare future that they are living in. Good luck explaining that one to Superman.
THE EVER-EXPANDING DCEU
Not only does the Snyder Cut unite the Justice League, but it also connects all corners of the DC universe. Though not all characters get a ton of screen time, it is ambitious nonetheless to bring together a whole host of different players from various areas of the DCEU.
Zack Snyder's Justice League is available to stream now on HBO Max.
