It didn’t seem like the news surrounding the theatrical cut of Justice League could really get much worse, but Ray Fisher’s newly released statements show us otherwise. Zack Snyder’s Justice League has seen an immense amount of success in the last month. Ray Fisher himself has said he has watched the four hour flick at least seven times, but, like the fans, Fisher was not so enthused about the original version of the film.
Fisher plays Cyborg in the movie. The difference between the two versions of Cyborg/Victor Stone in each film is like night and day. This, according to Fisher, is largely due to the change in director. Fisher grew close to director Zack Snyder and writer Chris Terrio. Unfortunately, Snyder had to back out of the project after a family tragedy, and Joss Whedon took his place. Fisher says this is where things started to go downhill.
Transparency would have gone a long way; if they had said to us, “Hey, we don’t like Zack’s movie, we want to shift gears completely and we need you guys to buckle down.” But they were trying to hold onto this narrative of doing it for Zack, and maintaining his vision, all the while completely not doing that.
Fisher was told that he could approach both Snyder and Terrio about ideas for his character’s story and arc within the film. Although he was told the same by Whedon’s team, the words were more said as a polite gesture than a genuine offer. Obviously, the character of Cyborg was greatly reduced in Whedon’s version of Justice League. However, other major differences could have included Cyborg being drawn and quartered, as well as jokes about Cyborg’s body.
Unfortunately, gaslighting occurred by asking for input but, ultimately, biting people’s heads off when you gave it.
Fisher was luckily able to have these more tasteless moments omitted from Justice League, but it took a lot of work and bargaining. Additionally, the film still showed Steppenwolf ripping off Cyborg’s leg at one point. However, Fisher was glad to have been able to work so openly with Snyder and Terrio.
Had I not been so welcomed in the initial process I might not have felt as comfortable speaking up about those circumstances, but I had to try to rein those guys in. It was not a good look to essentially pull this Black man… limb from limb.
Luckily, the Snyder cut was eventually released, allowing audiences to see a fuller version of both Cyborg and The Flash. This also allowed Fisher to finally get to see the footage of his amazing work with Snyder. We’re just glad that his experience playing Cyborg wasn’t all bad.
Hopefully Ray Fisher will one day get to return to the role of Victor Stone.
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