As much as Warner Bros tried to cram ‘Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice’ as world building for their DC Extended Universe, there was one important piece that was missing when it finally hit theaters. Well, several important pieces, based on the amount of material added to the film’s extended Blu-ray cut, but we’re focused on one in particular. That piece was a scene that was released online in the spring to tease the extended cut before ultimately being restored to its place near the end of the film. The scene in question made explicit what the theatrical cut only hinted at: the villain against whom the titular heroes would face off in ‘Justice League’.
That villain is Steppenwolf, uncle of Darkseid and commander of the militaries of Apokolips. And now he has been cast. Steppenwolf will be played by Irish actor Ciaran Hinds, perhaps best known to genre fans for his role as Mance Rayder on ‘Game of Thrones’. As the character will once again be represented on screen through CGI, Hinds will be providing both a motion capture performance and voiceover.
According to the producers, the plot of ‘Justice League’ will see Steppenwolf arrive on Earth with an army of Parademons in search of a set of three Mother Boxes. Based on this, the film seems to be drawing primarily on the first storyline of the New 52 ‘Justice League’ series, which saw the team come together to fend off an invasion from Apokolips (though the comic had Darkseid himself lead the invasion).
Directed by Zack Snyder, ‘Justice League’ is set to be the flagship entry in DC’s burgeoning cinematic universe. The film features returning stars Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck, and Gal Gadot alongside a wave of newcomers, including Ezra miller, Jason Momoa, Ray Fisher, Amber Heard, and J.K. Simmons. ‘Justice League’ will arrive in theaters on November 17, 2017.
