‘Justice League’ Movie: Joss Whedon Credited As Writer, Not Director

When Joss Whedon took over for Zack Snyder as director of “Justice League,” it seemed like he would just be putting finishing touches on the movie. Now, however, it appears that he has made a number of changes. His name is even on the screenplay.

In press materials for Warner Bros. fall movies, the company lists Snyder (who voluntarily stepped down after his daughter’s death) as the sole director. He and Chris Terrio are also credited for the story. However, it’s Whedon who is listed as responsible for the screenplay, along with Terrio.

This isn’t entirely unexpected. Tony Gilroy received the same credit when he did extensive reshoots on “Rogue One.” Gareth Edwards maintained his credit as director. It’s worth noting that Gilroy’s changes were reportedly pretty big, and Whedon’s might be as well.

The “Avengers” director’s new credit may hint that his changes are more noticeable than the cast lets on. After Variety reported in July that Whedon’s reshoots were quite extensive, “Justice League” actors played down his influence.

“They’re brief if anything,” Ray Fisher, who plays Cyborg, told the outlet. “Zack picked a great director to help clean up for us.”

Wonder Woman actress Gal Gadot also assured fans it wasn’t an overhaul in her Rolling Stone cover story last week. “Look, Joss, to my understanding, was Zack’s choice to finish the movie,” she said. “And the tone can’t be completely different because the movie was already shot. Joss is just fine-tuning.”

Variety reported that the reshoots are costing Warner Bros. about $25 million, more than twice what they usually cost on a movie of this scale. Typically, a superhero film would spend $6 to $10 million on additional filming.

The reshoots have also taken longer than expected. As previously reported, Superman actor Henry Cavill grew a mustache for “Mission: Impossible 6.” Paramount won’t let the actor shave his facial hair during production, so Whedon’s editors must digitally remove the mustache in post-production.

Some fans believe Whedon’s influence can even be seen in the new trailer. Certain scenes are apparently lighter. Twitter users posted side-by-side stills as evidence.

The lightening isn’t just literal. Actor Joe Morton, who plays Cyborg’s dad, revealed that Warner Bros. wanted the “Buffy” scribe to make the film’s tone less dark.

“I know that with Ray [Fisher], the young man who plays Victor, there were some adjustments that they made in terms of the tone of that character,” Morton told IGN. “I think what I heard was that there was a need from the studio to lighten up the film in a way, that the film felt too dark. I don’t know what that meant in terms of how it actually got translated in terms of the reshoots but that’s what I heard. That’s what I thought some of the reshoots were about.”

The feel of “Justice League” might not be the only difference. The Daily /Film podcast claims Whedon also changed the ending of the movie. Snyder had more of a cliffhanger while Whedon wraps up the loose ends much more.

Fan will have to see the final product to really determine if Whedon’s reshoots affected the film for the better. “Justice League” hits theaters Nov. 17.