Justice League Costume Tests Reveal Early Look at Aquaman, Batman, & Flash - Screen Rant

Justice League cinematographer Fabian Wagner reveals a number of images showing early costume tests for Aquaman, Batman, and The Flash. The movie, originally shot almost five years ago now, was released in 2017 to disappointing reviews and poor audience reception. Much of the blame for that poor reception can be laid at the feet of both Warner Bros. and replacement director Joss Whedon, who diluted the original director Zack Snyder's complex narrative and in-depth exploration of the universe's mythology in favor of a lighter tone, reportedly shooting almost 80 pages of new material.

The much anticipated Justice League brought together the titular superhero team for the first time, including Ben Affleck's Batman, Henry Cavill's Superman, Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman, Jason Momoa's Aquaman, Ezra Miller's The Flash and Ray Fisher's Cyborg. Fans were bitterly disappointed at the result, though, and campaigned for almost three years to see Snyder's original version of the movie, with the director finally able to reveal in May that his cut of Justice League will be released on HBO Max in 2021. Snyder is shooting five extra minutes of footage for the release, but the majority of the film will feature footage shot back during the original shoot.

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In the run up to the release, Justice League's cinematographer Fabian Wagner has been sharing some behind-the-scenes images from the original shoot, including some early costume tests that were shot with key characters. The images, shot against a painted sky backdrop and an early set, feature The Flash, Aquaman, Batman and, in one shot, Willem Dafoe's Vulko, who was originally featured in the movie, in a scene ultimately left on the cutting room floor by Whedon. You can see Wagner's images below:

Interestingly, the actor in the Batman costume doesn't look exactly like Affleck, and it may well be a stand-in, though it's not clear either way. Miller and Momoa are definitely the actors in costume, though, revealing this is from the original shoot and not the re-shoots, as Miller wasn't on set for those, instead filming his re-shoots on the Fantastic Beasts 3 set, with Snyder directing via Zoom. The addition is Vulko is interesting, confirming that Dafoe's character, who played an integral role in Aquaman, will make an appearance in the Snyder Cut.

Another interesting feature is The Flash's costume - the logo is different from the final version seen in Justice League, proving that this was very early in the production process. The images provide an interesting insight into the production process, and how aspects of certain characters can change over the course of a production, and are also a sign that Dafoe was involved in the movie right from the beginning. It only seems appropriate, then, that the actor's role will be restored in the upcoming Snyder cut of Justice League.

Next: Why Zack Snyder's Justice League is Getting So Much Extra Work Done

Source: Fabian Wagner/Instagram

Key Release Dates

Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)Release date: Dec 25, 2020
The Suicide Squad (2021)Release date: Aug 06, 2021
The Batman (2022)Release date: Mar 04, 2022
DC Super Pets (2022)Release date: May 20, 2022
The Flash (2022)Release date: Nov 04, 2022
Aquaman 2 (2022)Release date: Dec 16, 2022
Shazam 2 (2023)Release date: Jun 02, 2023

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Daniel Gillespie (572 Articles Published)

Daniel Gillespie has been a writer and editor for the past 11 years. His favourite filmmakers include Stanley Kubrick, Denis Villeneuve, Christopher Nolan, Wes Anderson, Edgar Wright and the Coens. Currently working out of New York City, he is a film-obsessed immigrant from Cape Town, South Africa. When he isn't watching, writing about or thinking about films, Daniel likes to go hiking in the mountains with his wife.