She declines, but Luthor makes alternative plans with Finch's subordinate, granting him access to Zod's body and the Kryptonian scout ship.īruce attends a gala at LexCorp to steal encrypted data from the company's mainframe, but antiquities dealer Diana Prince takes it from him she returns it after failing to access the information. Meanwhile, Luthor attempts to persuade Senator June Finch to allow him to import kryptonite discovered after Zod's terraforming attempt, so that it can be used as a deterrent against future Kryptonian and metahuman threats. Wayne learns that Russian weapon trafficker Anatoli Knyazev has been contacting LexCorp mogul Lex Luthor. Having witnessed the chaos of that battle in person, he sees Superman as an existential threat to humanity.Īfter learning of Batman's form of justice, Clark Kent (Superman's civilian identity) seeks to expose him via Daily Planet articles. Bruce is now a billionaire who has operated in Gotham City as the vigilante Batman for twenty years. Back in the present, eighteen months after the battle between Superman and General Zod in Metropolis, Superman has become a controversial figure. He falls into a cave, where a circling vortex of bats elevates him back to the surface. In a flashback to his childhood, Bruce Wayne runs from his parents' funeral. A follow-up, Justice League, was released in November 2017.
An extended cut dubbed the "Ultimate Edition", which features 31 minutes of additional footage, was released digitally on June 28, 2016, and on Blu-ray on July 19, 2016. Despite turning a profit, it was deemed a box office disappointment and received generally unfavorable reviews from critics for its tone and pacing, though some praised its visual style and acting performances (particularly Affleck and Cavill). Following a strong debut that set new box office records, the film experienced a historic drop in its second weekend and never recovered. Additional filming also took place in Illinois and New Mexico, concluding that December.īatman v Superman: Dawn of Justice premiered at the Auditorio Nacional in Mexico City on March 19, 2016, and was released in the United States on March 25, 2016, in 2D, 3D, premium large formats, and 70 mm prints by Warner Bros. Pre-production began at East Los Angeles College in October 2013, with principal photography starting in May 2014 in Detroit.
The film is also inspired by narrative elements from the " Death of Superman". The incarnation of Batman in the film is different from the character's previous portrayal in The Dark Knight Trilogy, serving as a cinematic reboot of the character.
Snyder stated that the film would take inspiration from the Batman comic book series The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller but clarified that it would follow an original premise. The film was announced at the 2013 San Diego Comic-Con after the release of Man of Steel. In the film, criminal mastermind Lex Luthor manipulates Batman into a preemptive battle with Superman, with whom Luthor is obsessed. 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. 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. The film was directed by Zack Snyder, written by Chris Terrio and David S. It is a follow-up to Man of Steel (2013) and the second installment in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU). Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is a 2016 American superhero film based on the DC Comics characters Batman and Superman.