Justice League 2017 1080p

For the 1997 television film, see Justice League of America (film).

Justice League is a 2017 American superhero film based on the DC Comics superhero team of the same name. It is the follow-up to 2016's Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and the fifth installment in the DC Extended Universe,and was directed by Zack Snyder and written by Chris Terrio and Joss Whedon. It features an ensemble cast that includes Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Gal Gadot, Jason Momoa, Ezra Miller, Ray Fisher, Jeremy Irons, Diane Lane, Connie Nielsen, and J. K. Simmons. In the film, Batman and Wonder Woman recruit The Flash, Aquaman, and Cyborg after Superman's death to save the world from the catastrophic threat of Steppenwolf and his army of Parademons.

Plans for the film were announced in October 2014, with Snyder on board to direct and Terrio attached to write the script. The film was initially titled Justice League Part One, with a second film (under the name Justice League Part Two) intended to follow in 2019. However, the sequel was indefinitely delayed to accommodate the production of a standalone Batman film starring Affleck. Principal photography took place from April to October 2016. After Snyder stepped down to deal with the death of his daughter, Joss Whedon was hired to oversee the remainder of post-production, including directing additional scenes written by himself. With an estimated production budget of $300 million, Justice League is one of the most expensive films ever made.

Justice League premiered in Beijing on October 26, 2017, and was released in the United States in 4DX, RealD 3D, and IMAX 3D on November 17, 2017. The film grossed over $657 million worldwide against a break-even point of $750 million, becoming the highest-grossing film (as of 2019) to become a box office bomb, losing distributor Warner Bros. Pictures an estimated $60 million. The film received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the action sequences and performances (particularly of Gadot and Miller) but criticized the plot, writing, pacing, villain, and computer-generated imagery. Its tone was also met with a polarized reception, with some appreciating the lighter tone compared to previous DCEU films and others finding it inconsistent.

Thousands of years ago, Steppenwolf and his legions of Parademons attempted to take over Earth with the combined energies of three Mother Boxes. They were foiled by a unified army that included the Olympian Gods, Amazons, Atlanteans, mankind, and a Green Lantern.[N 2]

After repelling Steppenwolf's army, the Mother Boxes were separated and hidden in locations on the planet. In the present, mankind is in mourning over Superman for two years, whose death triggers the Mother Boxes to reactivate and Steppenwolf's return to Earth. In an effort to regain favor with his master Darkseid, Steppenwolf aims to gather the boxes to form "The Unity," which will destroy Earth's ecology and terraform it in the image of Steppenwolf's homeworld.

Steppenwolf retrieves the Mother Box from Themyscira, prompting Queen Hippolyta to warn her daughter Diana of Steppenwolf's return. Diana joins Bruce Wayne in his attempt to unite other metahumans to their cause, with Wayne going after Arthur Curry and Barry Allen, while Diana tries to locate Victor Stone. Wayne fails to persuade Curry but manages to recruit an enthusiastic Allen onto the team. Although Diana fails to convince Stone to join, he agrees to help them locate the threat if he discovers their location. Stone later joins the team after his father Silas and several other S.T.A.R. Labs employees are kidnapped by Steppenwolf seeking to acquire the Mother Box from mankind.

Steppenwolf attacks an Atlantean outpost to retrieve the next Mother Box, forcing Curry into action. The team receives intel from Commissioner James Gordon, leading them to Steppenwolf's army, based in an abandoned facility under Gotham Harbor. Although the group manages to rescue the kidnapped employees, the facility is flooded during combat, which traps the team until Curry helps delay the flood so they can escape. Stone retrieves the last Mother Box, which he had hidden, for the group to analyze. Stone reveals that his father used the Mother Box to rebuild Stone's body after an accident almost cost him his life. Wayne decides to use the Mother Box to resurrect Superman, not only to help them fight off Steppenwolf's invasion but also to restore hope to mankind. Diana and Curry are hesitant about the idea, but Wayne forms a secret contingency plan in case Superman returns as hostile.

Clark Kent's body is exhumed and placed in the amniotic fluid of the genesis chamber of the Kryptonian scout ship alongside the Mother Box, which in turn activates after Flash uses his powers to charge it up and successfully resurrects Superman. However, Superman's memories have not returned, and he attacks the group after Stone accidentally launches a projectile at him. On the verge of being killed by Superman, Batman enacts his contingency plan: Lois Lane. Superman calms down and leaves with Lane to his family home in Smallville, where he reflects, and his memories slowly come back. In the turmoil, the last Mother Box is left unguarded, and Steppenwolf retrieves it with ease. Without Superman to aid them, the five heroes travel to a village in Russia where Steppenwolf aims to unite the Mother Boxes once again to remake Earth. The team fights their way through the Parademons to reach Steppenwolf, although they are unable to distract him enough for Stone to separate the Mother Boxes. Superman arrives and assists Allen in evacuating the city, as well as Stone, in separating the Mother Boxes. The team defeats Steppenwolf, who, overcome with fear, is attacked by his own Parademons before they all teleport away.

After the battle, Bruce and Diana agree to set up a base of operations for the team, with room for more members. As the team is now established, Diana steps back into the public spotlight as a heroine; Barry acquires a job in Central City's police department, impressing his father; Victor continues to explore and enhance his abilities with his father in S.T.A.R. Labs; Arthur embraces his Atlantean heritage and continues protecting people on the seas, and Superman resumes his life as reporter Clark Kent and as protector of Earth as well while Bruce gets his house back from the bank. In a mid-credits scene, Superman and Barry have a friendly race to see which of them is faster. In a post-credits scene, Lex Luthor has escaped from Arkham Asylum and then recruits Slade Wilson to form their own league.

Directed by Zack Snyder

Produced by

Charles Roven

Deborah Snyder

Jon Berg

Geoff Johns

Screenplay by

Chris Terrio

Joss Whedon

Story by

Chris Terrio

Zack Snyder

Based on Justice League

by Gardner Fox

Starring

Ben Affleck

Henry Cavill

Amy Adams

Gal Gadot

Jason Momoa

Ezra Miller

Ray Fisher

Jeremy Irons

Diane Lane

Connie Nielsen

J. K. Simmons

Music by Danny Elfman

Cinematography Fabian Wagner

Edited by

David Brenner

Richard Pearson

Martin Walsh

Production

companies

DC Films

RatPac Entertainment

Atlas Entertainment

Cruel and Unusual Films

Distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures

Release date

October 26, 2017 (Beijing)

November 17, 2017 (United States)

Running time

120 minutes

Country United States

Language English

Budget $300 million

Box office $657 million

Ben Affleck as Bruce Wayne / Batman:

A wealthy socialite, and the owner of Wayne Enterprises. He dedicates himself to protecting Gotham City from its criminal underworld as a highly trained, masked vigilante equipped with various tools and weapons. Affleck noted on how the film gave him an opportunity to reinvent Batman and portray a more classic take on the character. He described that in the film, audiences will see Batman as more heroic, and more of a leader. "Batman is by nature, [while] not necessarily anti-social, pretty private, pretty a loner," Affleck says. "And then in this movie he's thrust into the role of having to not only work with people, but bring them together and convince them to come in and try to ... somehow with Wonder Woman hold all that community effort together. That was a really interesting thing to play for me, and it also does take us to a more traditional role for Batman in the Justice League comics, and his role with the Justice League versus the sort of less typical version we saw in Batman v Superman, where he was blinded by rage and wanted to take on Superman."

Henry Cavill as Kal-El / Clark Kent / Superman:

A member of, and inspiration for, the Justice League. He is a Kryptonian survivor, and a journalist for the Daily Planet based in Metropolis. In Justice League, Superman was portrayed as more optimistic and hopeful. The character was intentionally excluded from all Justice League marketing materials to emphasize his death as depicted on Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.

Amy Adams as Lois Lane:

An undaunted and compassionate award-winning journalist for the Daily Planet and the love interest for Kent.

Gal Gadot as Diana Prince / Wonder Woman:

An antiquities dealer, acquaintance of Wayne, and an immortal Amazonian warrior, who is the crown princess of Themyscira and daughter of Hippolyta and Zeus. She is endowed with metahuman attributes and abilities inherited from her parents.

Ezra Miller as Barry Allen / The Flash:

A Central City University student, who can move at superhuman speeds with his ability to tap into the Speed Force.

Jason Momoa as Arthur Curry / Aquaman:

Half-human and half Atlantean metahuman with superhuman strength and aquatic abilities. Momoa was cast as Aquaman in June 2014, and made a cameo appearance in Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice.

Ray Fisher as Victor Stone / Cyborg:

A former college athlete who, after being cybernetically reconstructed after a nearly fatal car accident, is turned into a techno-organic being enhanced by reactive, adaptive biomimetic alien technology. His enhancements include the abilities of flight, variable weaponry and technopathy. Fisher portrays the character through the use of motion capture for the cybernetic portion of his body.Fisher was cast as Cyborg in April 2014, and made a cameo in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.

Jeremy Irons as Alfred Pennyworth:

Wayne's butler, chief of security, and trusted confidant.

Diane Lane as Martha Kent:

Kent's adoptive mother.

Connie Nielsen as Queen Hippolyta:

Diana's mother and the Amazonian Queen of Themyscira.

J. K. Simmons as Commissioner James Gordon:

The Gotham City Police Department Commissioner, and close ally of Batman.

Ciarán Hinds as Steppenwolf:

An alien military officer from Apokolips who leads an army of Parademons and is searching for the three Mother Boxes held on Earth. The character is described as "old, tired" and trying to find a way to escape his role of servitude under Darkseid. Hinds portrayed the villain through use of motion capture and received some advice in the process from Liam Neeson, who had recently done similar work in A Monster Calls.After the release of the film, Hinds was reportedly unhappy with the final cut of the film, which trimmed down the backstory and characterization of Steppenwolf.

Amber Heard as Mera:

An Atlantean, who approaches Curry to discuss the nature of the Mother Boxes.

Joe Morton as Silas Stone:

Victor Stone's father and head of S.T.A.R. Labs.

During a scene a half hour into the film, depicting Steppenwolf's first invasion thousands of years earlier, Olympian Old Gods Zeus, Ares and Artemis are portrayed by fitness model Sergi Constance, stuntman Nick McKinless, and MMA fighter Aurore Lauzeral, respectively.All three were required to reach a specific degree of physicality, with Snyder instructing McKinless to sport "veins like worms and paper thin skin". In the finished film, McKinless' face was replaced with that of David Thewlis using special effects; Thewlis received the credit as Ares.The scene also shows a Green Lantern, named Yalan Gur, created through motion-capture CGI and embodied by an uncredited actor. Two ancient kings of Earth appear during the scene, including King Atlan of Atlantis and Arthur Pendragon of ancient England; portrayed by Julian Lewis Jones and Francis Magee, respectively. Billy Crudup appears, uncredited, as Henry Allen, Barry Allen's father. Joe Manganiello and Jesse Eisenberg appear uncredited in a post-credits scene as Slade Wilson / Deathstroke and Lex Luthor, respectively. Michael McElhatton appears as the leader of a group of terrorists who clash with Wonder Woman early in the film, while Holt McCallany makes an uncredited appearance as a burglar. Marc McClure, who portrayed Jimmy Olsen in the Christopher Reeve Superman film series, has a cameo as a police officer.

Willem Dafoe and Kiersey Clemons filmed scenes as Nuidis Vulko and Iris West, although their roles were cut from the final film. Both actors are signed for multiple films and are set to appear in the future installments of the franchise. A scene depicting Green Lanterns Kilowog and Tomar-Re visiting Batman was filmed as an additional post-credits scene, further teasing the upcoming Green Lantern Corps, but the scene was later scrapped. Other scenes that were filmed, but cut from the theatrical film, include: Ryan Zheng as Ryan Choi, setting up the character's future as The Atom a fight between Ares and Darkseid, with the villain portrayed by Ray Porter; Harry Lennix reprising his role from Man of Steel and Batman v Superman as Calvin Swanwick, in a scene where it would have been revealed that his character is actually J'onn J'onzz / Martian Manhunter; and scenes featuring Darkseid's servant DeSaad, with the character voiced by Peter Guinness.