What We Know So Far About Justice League: Part One

Although critics have been more brutal than Ben Affleck's Dark Knight to Zack Snyder's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Warner Bros. and Snyder are going full steam ahead in expanding the DC Extended Universe with Justice League: Part One. Slated for a November 2017 release, principal photography is supposedly beginning on April 11, 2016 at Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden. Here's what we know so far about Warner Bros. and Zack Snyder's take on the Super Friends.

Superman's sacrificial death at the hands of Doomsday came as a surprising shock to many during Batman v Superman, but you can't have a Justice League movie without the Man of Steel. The final Dawn of Justice scene teased that Superman is still alive, if barely, but we don't know exactly how Superman will be his old self again. Maybe they'll find a way to hurl him towards the sun? Or maybe get him back inside his ship? His supposed death will allow Superman to lay low while the other Justice League members get their much-hyped debuts on-screen. Whatever the case, we know one thing for sure: Superman doesn't share Godzilla's fondness for nuclear warheads as a late night snack.

We all know Batman and Wonder Woman (and likely Superman) will be front and center in Justice League: Part One, but which other characters will round out the crime-fighting league? According to Dawn of Justice, they'll be teaming up with Aquaman (Jason Momoa), The Flash (Ezra Miller), and Cyborg (Ray Fisher). We can debate how awkwardly they were introduced in order to setup their eventual appearance in the franchise, but none of that will matter once fans of the comics see these superheroes show their stuff on the big screen.

Green Lantern, a member of the original Justice League seven, will be sitting this one out. Although his superhero redemption came in the massive success of Deadpool, Ryan Reynolds' failed take on Green Lantern in 2011 set the character back for DC. Not to worry, Green Lantern will be rebooted (possibly in the form of John Stewart) to fight evil with the release of DC's Green Lantern Corps, which is expected to hit theaters in 2020. Online speculation suggests the Green Lantern might join up with the group or introduced before the Corps in Justice League: Part Two.

In an interview with Yahoo! Movies, Zack Snyder stated that, "Bruce is having to go out and sort of Seven Samurai the Justice League together, which is fun, but slightly monumental. And at the same time they're starting to grapple with this coming threat." In a nod to Akira Kurosawa's classic film where an aging ronin recruits other wandering swordsmen to protect a small village from marauding bandits, the task Batman undertakes to assemble the Justice League will obviously happen on a much larger scale—and with way more explosions.

Almost just as important in the formation of Batman's sense of justice as his parents' untimely death and the guidance of his loyal confidant Alfred is the relationship the Caped Crusader has with Commissioner Gordon. In Justice League: Part One, he makes his first appearance in the DC Extended Universe. No word yet if Gordon condones Batman's cruelty towards criminals or his shrugging off of the no-killing rule, but the brilliant J.K. Simmons will no doubt deliver.

A deleted scene from Batman v Superman, which shows Lex Luthor still in the Kryptonian ship after Doomsday is defeated, has led many fans to the conclusion that the main villain in Justice League: Part One will be none other than the tyrannical ruler of the Apokolips, Darkseid. Couple that with the "Knightmare" Bruce Wayne experienced during Batman v Superman which featured Apokolips' winged Parademons, and all signs point to Darkseid as being the formidable opponent the Justice League will have to inevitably face.

The Justice League will have to find someone else to provide epic fight music as Hans Zimmer, the prolific composer who scored The Dark Knight Trilogy, Man of Steel, and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, has announced his retirement from "the superhero business." A replacement hasn't been confirmed as of yet, but Zack Snyder's oft-collaborator, composer Tyler Bates (300, Watchman, Sucker Punch) seems like the logical fit.