Richard Donner's Superman II Paved The Way For Zack Snyder's Justice League
Before the Snyder Cut, there was the Donner Cut.
When Zack Snyder’s official cut of Justice League arrived on HBO Max in 2021, after four years of heated debate about its existence, it was something of a revelation. The misaligned theatrical cut directed by Joss Whedon was a massive disappointment to both critics and fans, and its obvious existence as an ineffective “Frankenstein’s Monster” of a movie only made hardcore DCEU fans more curious as to what Snyder’s operatic, mythic depiction of those larger-than-life characters would look like on-screen. Although Batman v. Superman ended its theatrical run with a staggering $874 million box office run, to the Powers That Be, it was a failure (considering the massive $300+ million budget), and the wide audience of the time felt like it was far too dour in comparison to the kinds of superhero movies that had been dominating the market since 2008.
Director’s cuts have existed in some form or fashion for decades now, but the Snyder Cut represented a renewal in the concept for modern audiences. And, 45 years after its initial release on June 19, 1981, Richard Donner’s eventual cut of Superman II is, in its own way, the blueprint for both the Snyder Cut as well as the current DCU cinematic universe.
Both original Superman films were initially planned to shoot back-to-back, with production starting in March of 1977, but in October of that same year, production was halted on the sequel (which was already reportedly 75% finished) so that Donner could focus on finishing the very first film. After the release of the original in 1978 led to the movie becoming a massive success, tensions between the producers (the Salkinds and Pierre Spengler) over the budget and production schedule reached a breaking point, and in March of 1979, Donner was officially replaced by second unit director Richard Lester.
At its core, the director’s cut represents a rejection of the shackles placed on mainstream filmmaking by studios looking to make money – whereas the traditional structures of Hollywood are constantly seeking the widest audience possible, a director’s cut, at its most radical, is an affirmation of the vision of a sole creator, perhaps not what the masses want to see but a singular artistic endeavor nonetheless.
Snyder getting to release his unbridled epic after leaving the project due to a familial tragedy only to be replaced in the post-production process by a more in-demand filmmaker was a clear underdog story, one that ended with a collective validation of his work on the project – and it’s a narrative with a clear lineage tracing back to an earlier example within the superhero genre, one that both paved the way for Snyder’s later efforts as well as laying the groundwork for countless superhero movies made in the aftermath.
It wasn’t until 2006 that Donner’s official vision of Superman 2 was released on home video (coinciding with the release of Superman Returns), supplemented by some footage Donner had planned that Lester had shot, as well as test footage of Christopher Reeve and Margot Kidder to make the film feel more complete. Although both versions of the movie follow the same plot – the escape of General Zod (Terrence Stamp) and his two allies from two-dimensional imprisonment in the Phantom Zone, coinciding with Superman’s decision to nullify his powers in an effort to become human – the difference between the two films feels like night and day.
The most seismic changes come from an altered beginning and ending, as well as the comedic tone Lester inserted into the theatrical edition (again, not unlike Joss Whedon’s approach to Justice League).
Unlike the more slapstick theatrical cut, Donner’s Superman 2 makes the Kryptonian trio feel shockingly scary.
Even though Donner’s version of the movie wasn’t released over two decades (and even then, it wasn’t an official director’s cut overseen by him), watching it allows you to understand the creative impulses that still make Superman II one of the best superhero films of all time and a blueprint for the genre. Unlike the theatrical edition, which plays Zod, Ursa (Sarah Dogulas), and Non (Jack O’Halloran) as superpowered comedic goons, Donner treats them like godlike fascists whose appetite for destruction is only rivaled by their appetite for power – their siege of the White House feels palpably frightening, a testament to their unstoppability measured in bullets and explosives that do nothing except enrage them. Zack Snyder’s depiction of General Zod in Man of Steel leans into the authoritarian traits established on-screen here: their backstory presents them as the Kryptonian equivalent of domestic terrorists, and their banishment to the Phantom Zone raises some bleak questions about the nature of carceral justice and reformation even in an advanced civilization like Krypton.
It’s also clear just how much the thematic and aesthetic backbone Donner inserted into the movie would influence future films in the genre. The relationship between Superman (Christopher Reeve) and his holographic father Jor-El (Marlon Brando) tangibly evokes the nature of the Christian trinity, with Clark’s decision to reject his powers and his heritage in favor of a normal life reminiscent of Jesus’ dark night in Gethsemane and his decision to sacrifice himself for the good of mankind. Once he realizes his mistake, he’s forced to reverse it at the cost of losing his connection to his father, a bit of Biblical drama that comes full circle when Brando’s Jor-El tells him that “the son becomes the father and the father becomes the son” right before vanishing forever. It’s one of many ideas that Snyder cribbed for Man of Steel, albeit in a much more heavy-handed way.
It’s a miracle that Zack Snyder could somehow create even more overt Christian imagery than in the Donner films.
But Zack Snyder isn’t the only Superman filmmaker to steal from Donner’s Superman 2 – James Gunn’s 2025 Superman film also borrows heavily from it, most notably in his depiction of Lex Luthor. While both films involve plot points that see Luthor break into the Fortress of Solitude in order to access messages from Krypton, every resulting depiction of the character (including Nicholas Hoult’s) seeks to modernize Gene Hackman’s interpretation of him as a ruthlessly corrupt business tycoon. Both Jesse Eisenberg in Batman v. Superman and Nicholas Hoult imagine him as a tech billionaire with unbridled political maneuvering, but that’s all downhill and directly connected to Donner’s conception of the villain as a capitalist con-man, just a contemporary presentation.
Superman II isn’t just noteworthy as a schematic for the modern Superman movie though — it remains the platonic ideal of what the character should look and feel like on-screen precisely because Donner understood him so well. Although David Corenswet is fantastic in the 2025 reboot, Christopher Reeve is still untouchable as the premier actor to embody the role; there’s a clear physical and presentational separation between his depiction of Clark Kent and Superman that’s a far better solution to the question of “why doesn’t the world know his identity” than hypnotic glasses. The film’s central drama (whether he should indulge his love for Margot Kidder’s Lois Lane or continue being humanity’s savior) reaffirms exactly the sacrificial moral backbone of the character and evokes far more tension and theatrical soul-searching than Henry Cavill’s wayward, perpetually brooding plot device.
There’s also a chaotic screwball energy to his relationship with Margot Kidder’s Lois Lane that remains one of the best interpretations of their dynamic — even though she’s treated more like a damsel-in-distress than some modern versions, there’s still a streak of her reckless journalistic instincts in her quest to prove Clark is Superman, and the scene in which she discovers his identity (impulsively shooting Clark with a revolver Donner’s version) is flawless, both because of how effortlessly Reeve plays the switch between identities but also because of Lois’ incredulousness at why the most powerful man on Earth would pretend to be a bumbling reporter.
Even though she has a bit less to do than in the original, the magnetic spark between Kidder and Reeve is on clear display in the sequel.
Both the theatrical cut and the Donner Cut of Superman II are remarkably entertaining superhero movies, but the Donner Cut wins out because it’s clear how much passion he had for both Superman movies as a genuine cinematic odyssey versus a mass-market appealing money-making venture. At a time when superhero movies are suffering from the obviousness of their existence as guaranteed corporate successes, the superiority of the Donner Cut (and the resulting demand for things like the Snyder Cut) should be a lesson in how the latter eventually outweighs the former. From films like Raimi’s first two Spider-Man movies to recent examples like Matt Reeves’ The Batman, the spirit of Superman II can be felt every time we get a comic book movie that’s spearheaded by a filmmaker with a desire to transform these archetypal characters into something truly cinematic and richly human.
Where to stream each version of Superman II
The 1981 theatrical cut of Superman II is currently streaming on HBO Max. Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut, released in 2006, is available to rent on Prime Video and elsewhere.
