‘Batman v Superman’s Zack Snyder Explains His Batman Vision

This week, Batman co-creator Bob Kane was posthumously given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice director Zack Snyder in attendance to give a speech about Kane’s ongoing influence in film, television and comics. Snyder also took some time out to discuss his own vision for Batman, portrayed by Ben Affleck in his upcoming film.

Snyder gave a speech during Kane’s dedication ceremony, in which he touched on the Batman co-creator’s inspiration on Snyder’s new iteration of the iconic superhero. Afterward, Snyder spoke with Comic Book Resources, explaining how he and designer Michael Wilkinson made this version of the costume different:

I had a really strong idea about what I wanted to do – I really wanted to do sort of a fabric-based Batman; not what’s become the more normal, armored Batman. That’s how we evolved it.

Snyder went on to say that he envisioned an older, “war-weary” Batman, making Affleck perfect for the role in his mind. He also spoke about Frank Miller’s influence on Batman v Superman, noting that while The Dark Knight Returns graphic novel was definitely a huge inspiration, this film is not a direct adaptation:

There are so many great artists who have drawn Batman. So many great comics that have been created – it’s countless. I was talking to Frank about it: “Dark Knight Returns” was such a big influence on me, that I wanted to to honor him through imagery in the movie. You could still make “Dark Knight Returns” into a movie, if you want. That’s what I’m saying, as far as how much we used and how much we didn’t use. The visual elements, there are some that I homage, but I don’t think the movie [is an adaptation].

And here’s a portion of Snyder’s speech from Kane’s dedication ceremony which features some charming sentiments (via Vulture):

We had built a set of an alley, graffiti, barrels with fire, steamy stuff, and it was this very kind of noir-ish setting to film our Batman for the first time. Ben put the suit on and we put him in front of the camera and I was just having him turn and look around, looking Batman-ish. And it was amazing because I felt in that moment that I had achieved this goal that I had set out for myself. When I looked at Ben, he was this perfect personification of the Batman that I had in my mind. But the truth is, he wasn’t really the Batman I had imagined. Because Bob really had put him there in my mind, through years of TV shows, comic books, movies.
I realized that we all — every single one of us — has a Batman, an imaginary Batman, in our minds, lurking in the shadows. In a lot of ways, that’s Bob’s legacy. Seventy-five years of Batman, he’s given this gift to all of us that endures. Because Batman — unlike Superman, or Wonder Woman, or Flash — is a guy without powers. He’s a man. He’s all of us. I think that’s it. We all carry around a hero inside of ourselves every day. It’s that guy. It’s Batman. I thank Bob for that. We all owe him a debt of gratitude. In that hero that we carry around, we realize that the hero is us, because he’s just the man. In truth, we’re all the Batman.

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice hits theaters on March 26, 2016.

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