Christopher Nolan Has Strong Feelings About Zack Snyder's Watchmen Movie
It has been over a decade since Zack Snyder brought DC Comics' iconic graphic novel, "Watchmen," to the big screen. The landscape of superhero-centric flicks has changed a lot since then, with the Marvel Cinematic Universe blossoming into a pop culture sensation and DC moving into experimental territory with movies like "Joker." In that time, opinions have remained somewhat split on Snyder's "Watchmen" and how it functions as an adaptation. However, the creative's opus has at least one major supporter: fellow director Christopher Nolan.
In a profile on Snyder, The Hollywood Reporter includes an email from Nolan, who gave his thoughts on "Watchmen" and how it was received at the time of its release. "I've always believed 'Watchmen' was ahead of its time," the acclaimed filmmaker wrote. "The idea of a superhero team, which it so brilliantly subverts, wasn't yet a thing in movies. It would have been fascinating to see it released post-'Avengers.'"
Nolan gave Snyder advice when making Man of Steel
Christopher Nolan's thoughts on Zack Snyder's "Watchmen" aren't just a retrospective take on the situation. Even in the years between the debut of "Watchmen" and the release of Snyder's "Man of Steel," the director felt strongly that the masses weren't ready for the twisted superhero tale just yet.
In a 2016 interview with the Los Angeles Times, Snyder revealed that Nolan advised him on how to approach his take on Superman after "Watchmen." "When I had my initial meeting with Chris Nolan about doing 'Man of Steel,' he said to me, 'Watchmen is a movie you made too early,'" the director recalled. "Because that movie was written deep into comic-book culture, as a way of exploring the way of heroes within pop culture."
While Nolan's advice may have influenced Snyder's approach to his subsequent DC films, the "Watchmen" director noted that audiences are far more receptive to experimental takes on the genre now compared to 2009. Shows like "The Boys," "Invincible," and 2019's "Watchmen" all focus on the dark underside of the superhero world and have been extremely well-received.
Snyder particularly singled out 2016's R-rated "Deadpool" as the superhero movie that broke the mold with the masses. "'Deadpool' shows that audiences have now gotten to the point where they can understand the satire of the genre," he said. "Before that, audiences were like, 'I'm not ready for that. I'm not there yet.'"