Zack Snyder is handing off director duties for “Justice League” to Joss Whedon — the man behind “The Avengers” films — as he copes with the death of his daughter.
“I’ve decided to take a step back from the movie to be with my family, be with my kids, who really need me,” Snyder told the Hollywood Reporter on Monday.
His daughter, Autumn, committed suicide back in March while the filmmaker was still wrapping up the DC superhero flick for Warner Bros. She was just 20-years-old.
“In my mind, I thought it was a cathartic thing to go back to work, to just bury myself and see if that was way through it,” Snyder explained. “The demands of this job are pretty intense. It is all-consuming. And in the last two months, I’ve come to the realization …[My family is] having a hard time. I’m having a hard time.”
Snyder’s wife, Deborah — who was Autumn’s step-mother — has also decided to step down from her role as producer on the film, which is currently in post-production.
“Here’s the thing, I never planned to make this public,” the director said. “I thought it would just be in the family, a private matter, our private sorrow that we would deal with. When it became obvious that I need to take a break, I knew there would be narratives created on the Internet. They’ll do what they do. The truth is … I’m past caring about that kind of thing now.”
Warner Bros. Pictures is said to be in complete support of the director switch.
“What they are going through is unimaginable, and my heart — our hearts — go out to them,” said studio president, Toby Emmerich.
Whedon, who is best known for “Avengers” and “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” had already taken over post-production duties and been helping Snyder write some additional scenes before the “Batman v Superman” director decided to back out.
Snyder, after screening a rough cut of Justice League for fellow filmmakers and friends, wanted to add additional scenes, so he brought Whedon on board to write them.
“The directing is minimal and it has to adhere to the style and tone and the template that Zack set,” Emmerich told the Hollywood Reporter.
“We’re not introducing any new characters. It’s the same characters in some new scenes,” he said. “[Snyder’s] handing the baton to Joss, but the course has really been set by Zack. I still believe that despite this tragedy, we’ll still end up with a great movie.”
Despite the swap, “Justice League” is still slated for a Nov. 17 release date.