Batman Kills In ‘Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice,’ Zack Snyder Explains Why
Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice has been on the end of some rather abusive treatment from critics and film journalists across the world. Criticism regarding the blockbuster has focused on Zack Snyder’s treatment of Superman, but fans were also surprised to see that Batman kills in the film, too.
Zack Snyder, who previously directed Man Of Steel as well as Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice and will also oversee Justice League Part One, has now opened up about why he allowed Ben Affleck’s Batman to kill in the recently released film.
Snyder justified Batman’s actions to Hey U Guys, and even though most fans believe killing is something that Bruce Wayne/the Caped Crusader simply wouldn’t do the filmmaker insisted that all of the kills in Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice were “by proxy.”
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“I tried to do it in a technical way… I tried to do it by proxy,” Zack Snyder explained. “Shoot the car they’re in, the car blows up or the grenade would go off in the guy’s hand, or when he shoots the tanks and the guy pretty much lights the tank [himself]. I perceive it as him not killing directly, but if the bad guy’s are associated with a thing that happens to blow up, he would say that that’s not really my problem.”
Zack Snyder then looked to explain how Batman’s actions were more “manslaughter than murder” and that they were actually less brutal than the graphic novel that was one of his main inspirations on the film.
“A little more like manslaughter than murder,” the 300 and Watchmen director remarked. “Although I would say that in the Frank Miller comic book that I reference, he kills all the time. There’s a scene from the graphic novel where he bursts through a wall, takes the guy’s machine gun… I took that little vignette from a scene in The Dark Knight Returns, and at the end of that, he shoots shoots the guy right between the eyes with the machine gun. One shot.”
Snyder continued, “Of course, I went to the gas tank, and all of the guys I work with were like, ‘You’ve gotta shoot him in the head,’ because they’re all comic book dorks, and I was like, ‘I’m not gonna be the guy that does that!'”
Meanwhile, Zack Snyder also admitted that he took to YouTube to watch a variety of videos that showed exactly how Batman killed people in the Christopher Nolan Dark Knight trilogy, which included Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, and The Dark Knight Rises.
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— Batman v Superman (@BatmanvSuperman) March 25, 2016
Snyder explained, “There’s a great YouTube video that shows all the kills in the Christopher Nolan movies even though we would perceive them as movies where he doesn’t kill anyone. I think there’s 42 potential kills that Batman does! Also, it goes back and includes even the Tim Burton Batman movies. [I don’t know] where this reputation as a guy that doesn’t kill comes from.”
Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice has been met with indifferent reviews from critics, publications, and websites. Currently it has just a 30 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes, with the critical consensus from the website reading, “Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice smothers a potentially powerful story — and some of America’s most iconic superheroes — in a grim whirlwind of effects-driven action.”
Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice stars Ben Affleck as Bruce Wayne and Henry Cavill as Clark Kent, and it’s currently in cinemas now.
[Image via Warner Bros.]
