Warner Bros. has announced that its untitled “Man of Steel” sequel, which is tentatively titled “Batman vs. Superman,” will lead directly into a “Justice League” movie that will be directed by Zack Snyder, the studio’s president of worldwide production Greg Silverman confirmed Sunday night.
Ben Affleck and Henry Cavill are expected to reprise their roles as Batman and Superman, respectively, and Gal Gadot will likely return to play Wonder Woman.
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Warner Bros. has not scheduled a release date yet, though there conflicting ideas regarding the studio’s possible plans. The Wall Street Journal suggests “Justice League” will not hit theaters before 2018, while Latino Review claims the film will be released in May 5, 2017, and that Snyder plans to shoot “Batman vs. Superman” and “Justice League” back-to-back.
While Silverman didn’t reveal which other DC superheroes will join the aforementioned trio, expect to see The Flash, Aquaman and Green Lantern again, though it’s unclear if Ryan Reynolds will don the power ring or whether the role will be recast.
One casting rumor that has been circulating around Hollywood for more than a year is that Affleck’s close friend and collaborator Matt Damon is being sought to play Aquaman, though to be fair, Jason Momoa has also been rumored for that role (among others), and he is expected to appear in “Batman vs. Superman” in some unknown capacity.
“Mad Max” filmmaker George Miller had previously developed a “Justice League” movie that Warner Bros. came close to producing in 2008, though ultimately the project was scrapped.
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Sue Kroll, president of worldwide marketing for Warner Bros., also revealed that the studio is keen to make a “Wonder Woman” movie, but that a spinoff is dependent on the script.
“Batman vs. Superman” is slated to hit theaters on May 6, 2016, the same day Disney and Marvel plan to release “Captain America 3.”
The Wall Street Journal was first to report the news.