Standing on the dirty Gotham Police Station rooftop is Commissioner Gordon wearing a hat, tie, glasses and a long trench coat. He’s standing next to the Bat symbol and talking to Batman, Flash and Wonder Woman as smoke billows from nearby vents. As the camera slowly zooms in, I’m listening to the four of them talk about scientists disappearing. While it’s hard to figure out why they’re talking about missing scientists, it’s very much a comic book panel come to life with the way everyone is standing and framed to the camera. I’m smiling wide from ear to ear.

As I try and hear more of what they’re saying, all of a sudden Cyborg is walking across the rooftop towards our heroes saying that the head of S.T.A.R. Labs has been taken. As he gets closer he stands next to Wonder Woman and I watch as a huge smile appear on her face before turning back to the rest of the group. It seems like she’s extremely happy he’s joined them. I silently wonder if this is the first time all of these heroes have been together. As the group discusses the situation, they decide they’ll need to go somewhere to investigate. As Gordon continues to talk he turns and everyone is gone but the Flash. It’s like he didn’t get the memo that when Gordon turns to talk you need to quickly disappear. Flash says to Gordon, “Do they just do that?” Gordon says nothing as Flash speeds off. It’s funny to watch and I quickly realize the Justice League movie is going to be a lot more fun than I was expecting.

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Image via Warner Bros.

Let me take a few steps back. Just a few days ago I was watching this scene being filmed on a soundstage in London. I was invited, along with a number of other reporters, to the set of Zack Snyder’s Justice League. While most set visits are embargoed until very close to release, what’s amazing and unusual about my Justice League visit is how quickly they’re allowing me to talk about what I saw and learned on set. I don’t have to hold back about the new vehicles, the costumes, the action scenes, what the concept art revealed, or any other thing that was discussed on set. I can tell you everything right now.

And I think we all know the reason why: the reaction to Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and what it meant to the DC Extended Universe.

While I absolutely loved Man of Steel and think Zack Snyder did an amazing job with the material, like many of you, I had issues with Batman v Superman. However, while I enjoyed a number of parts, many people absolutely hated the film and the negative reaction led to lower-than-expected box office numbers and some dissatisfied fans. The fact is, Zack Snyder made a very dark film and it’s clear a not insignificant part of the audience wanted something else.

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Image via Warner Bros.

After Batman v Superman was released and the negative reactions hit, tons of rumors spread about Justice League. The film was in trouble. The script was being rewritten. You name it and someone was saying it. To help battle the rumors, WB invited reporters to set to reassure fans about the next installment. And while you might think what I’m about to say is not honest, I don’t lie when I write something. If I say it on Twitter I mean it. If I write something on Collider, it’s exactly how I feel. I never say anything, for anyone, ever, unless I mean it—and it’s gotten me in trouble many times. So trust me when I say Justice League looks like a completely different movie than Man of Steel and Batman v Superman. Sure the characters are the same. Yes Zack Snyder is still directing. And yes the look and feel of the world Snyder has created hasn’t changed….but what is being said by the characters and the way they’re reacting to situations is a complete 180. The easiest way to convey this change is I saw more people smiling on screen watching Justice League in one day than all of Batman v Superman in its entirety. And they weren’t smiling just to smile. They were doing it because of the dialogue and story. It seemed like the extreme darkness has been lifted from the universe and even though the characters are going to deal with very serious situations, there will be moments of levity and fun for the audience.

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Image via Warner Bros.

Towards the end of the day Snyder showed us an edited scene from Justice League without finished effects. The scene showed Barry Allen (Ezra Miller) arriving at his apartment only to find Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) sitting in his second favorite chair. Bruce is telling Barry that he knows he’s special but doesn’t know how and Barry is trying to deflect everything being said with humor and well-written dialogue. Finally, Bruce has had enough and throws a Batarang at Barry who proceeds to slow down time using his super speed and catches the weapon. As he examines the weapon it dawns on him that Bruce is Batman. As he enters real time Bruce says, “so you’re fast.” Barry then says “so you’re Batman?” Bruce explains he’s putting together a group to battle what’s coming. Before he’s even four seconds into his pitch as to why Barry should join him Barry says, “I’m in.” Bruce is shocked and proceeds to smile, extremely surprised at what just happened. Barry then tells him “I need friends. Can I keep this?” As the scene ended all the reporters in the room were laughing. Trust me when I say everything about the scene I just described couldn’t have been included in Batman v Superman. The scene was shot in a brightly lit room. Barry Allen was being played with fun and youthful energy by Ezra Miller (who looks so great as Flash). And Bruce Wayne had none of the cynicism and darkness that he did in BvS. Affleck was playing him with hope and an inner fire and a clear desire to protect the people and planet from whatever might be coming by surrounding himself with powerful people. I loved everything about this scene and it was a smart move for Snyder to show it 17 months before release, because if this is the type of movie he’s making, fans are going to be very happy.

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Image via Clay Enos

Like I’ve done on many set visits, I’ve compiled a huge list of things to know about Justice League and they’re all below. Obviously if you’re trying to stay spoiler free you might want to stop reading. However, no one on set gave up any of the big twists and turns and I don’t think we were shown anything from the third act of the film. And no, you won’t find out how Superman comes back from the dead because no one would tell us.

  • Justice League takes place a few months after Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.
  • We were on set on day 31 of 111.
  • Even though when Warner Bros. announced Justice League it was talked about as two parts, the production is acting like Justice League is one movie. Deborah Synder said it’s not a two-part movie.
  • Batman feels something is coming and the need to assemble a group that can fight the threat. The story is finding the group and putting them together and part of the fun is watching the different personalities of all the members of the Justice League interact with one another.
  • The movie’s MacGuffin are the three Mother Boxes and who controls them. There are three and they belong to mankind, the Amazonians and in Atlantis with Aquaman and his people. Each looks similar but they are distinctive by color (red, silver and brownish) and the symbols and shapes of the designs on the boxes themselves.
  • The film will help to explain the Mother Boxes by offering some sort of history lesson. I think Justice League opens many years in the past and attempts to explain how these boxes came to our planet. My guess, and to be clear this is me wondering out loud, is Justice League might open the way The Lord of the Rings did with a prologue to explain a bit about that world and then cut to present day.
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    Image via Warner Bros.
    Steppenwolf is the villain, but they haven’t closed on the actor’s contract yet so they couldn’t reveal who will be playing him.
  • The Parademons seen in the “Batman’s Knightmare” scene in Batman v Superman play a major role in Justice League.
  • Willem Dafoe plays Vulko. He’s from another generation than Aquaman. He has more layers to his costume.
  • Deborah Snyder says Zeus has a small part in the movie in the Mother Box history lesson.
  • Zack Snyder said they have yet to film a scene with all the members of the Justice League together.
  • They’re shooting on film but not in IMAX.
  • Justice League is about the purpose of being a hero. Batman was hit hard by the death of Superman and he feels like he didn’t honor him while alive. He wants to make it up to him and also protect the planet from an incoming threat.
  • A big change from BvS is Batman is learning to trust people in Justice League.
  • Junkie XL is doing the score without Hans Zimmer.
  • Producer Debbie Snyder said one of the things they learned from the reaction to Batman v Superman is audiences don’t want their superheroes deconstructed. She also said the darkest part of the story has already been shown (which was the last film).
  • Justice League is going to appeal to a younger audience. Snyder went on to say “Justice League is much more inclusive. I think also you have these two very young characters, Flash and Cyborg. And you know, they’re definitely lighter. I think they’re going to appeal to a younger audience.”
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    Image via Warner Bros.

Ben Affleck said that the version of Batman in Justice League is “a little bit more sardonic, humor, a little more irony. He’s on a little more man on a mission this time. As opposed to like he was so full of anger because of what happened at the Black Zero Event. That kind of character, that sort of rage that possessed him. And now he’s on a mission to get this group together.”

  • On being an executive producer and what it means, Affleck said it’s because he’s directing one of the upcoming DC movies (Batman).
  • One of the things fans have wanted to see is Batman using his detective skills. Affleck says in Justice League “the world’s greatest detective aspect of Batman is more present in this story than it was in the last one, and will probably be expanded upon further in a Batman movie that I would do. I think all the great Batman stories are, at their heart, detective stories.”
  • BVS was dark and gritty but that’s not Justice League, according to Affleck. He told us the film has “room for more humor. It’s not going to be – DC movies I think, by their nature are a little more – gothic, or mythic rather, excuse me, than some comic book movies are. But that movie was very dark and heavy because it was really rooted in Dark Knight Returns which is a heavy, dark book. And this is not that.”
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    Image via Warner Bros.
    Another change about Batman in Justice League is that he’s trying to redeem himself from his experiences in the last film. Affleck says “Batman definitely went to a very dark place that was rooted in trauma that occurred to people that he loved and worked with and what he saw. This movie is not about that issue for him so much anymore, he’s no longer sort of extreme in that way. From the experiences of the last movie, he’s sort of learned and now he’s sort of wanting to redeem himself and wanting mankind to be redeemed and he’s wanting to make the world better.”
  • On his solo Batman movie, Affleck says he doesn’t want to start filming until he has a script that’s 100% ready to go because, “I’ve been on the end of the things when you make movies when you have a script that’s not good yet and it doesn’t pan out.” He says they’re currently working on it but he’s not finished.
  • One of the sets we got to visit was called Wayne Hangar. Imagine an old hangar that’s been abandoned and taken over by Bruce to tinker with Batman’s tech and build new vehicles. One of the signs on the ground said Gotham Iron Foundry Company established 1920. I believe the hangar was located on or near Gotham Warf. Along the tables I saw vintage newspapers with numerous car, missile parts, and little miscellaneous pieces scattered about. In one corner of the room twenty missiles were stacked in four rows of five. In another area a Honda motorcycle. In another area the Batmobile. I’d say the hangar was big enough to hold at least 20 Batmobiles and still have some room. Also, in another corner, which looks like Batman’s desk, the monitors were displaying the scenes from Batman v Superman when Batman was discovering Luthor’s footage about Flash, Wonder Woman, Cyborg and Aquaman.
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    Image via Warner Bros.
  • Producers Debbie Snyder and Chuck Roven say that while each DC film is independent of one another, all the films are interconnected by bits of connective tissue. She said, ”All the films kind of fit in a timeline, but they're independent films. You can see one and not need to see the other. They operate on their own. They all have their own tone and they deal with different characters. Yet they're all in the same filmic universe and there is little bits of crossovers that we see. But that isn't essential to the story.”
  • We will see Atlantis in different time periods in Justice League. The culture is being created from the ground up. It’s a very ancient culture.
  • The producers wouldn’t comment on the way Superman is in the film. But based on what I saw and learned I’d say Superman isn’t in the first half of the film and might not be returning until close to the third act.
  • We get a very classic looking Commissioner Gordon in the film. We were on set for J.K. Simmons’ first day and he was wearing a hat, tie, long trench coat and glasses. He looked like the animated series Gordon and also like he was literally ripped out of the comics. Fans will be very happy.
  • Justice League features a number of new vehicles for Batman and his team to play with including the Flying Fox and the Nightcrawler. We got to see the top of the Flying Fox and the controls look very similar to the Batmobile controls.
  • The interior of the Flying Fox is massive. It’s a three story ship that can fit the Batmobile and tons of other Bat gadgets. The ship is self-contained and a fantastic piece of equipment.
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    Image via Warner Bros.
    We’re going to see an upgraded Batmobile in Justice League. Due to the additional threats Batman has added machine guns and a missile launcher to the top of the vehicle.
  • The Nightcrawler is MASSIVE. Imagine the main part of the Batmobile except where the wheels would normally go you have four spider like legs from the largest spider you can imagine. These legs allow the Nightcrawler to climb and move in ways a car or plane can’t. It also allows the vehicle to access hard to reach terrain. Something else to know is when the Nightcrawler moves it damages the terrain due to the base of its legs.
  • While the backstory of the Nightcrawler won’t be explained in the film, production designer Patrick Tatopoulos said that he imagined it’s an old piece of Wayne Technology created by Bruce’s father that was originally going to be used by the military.
  • The production only built the top of the Nightcrawler and the rest will be added in with CG.
  • The Nightcrawler is part of a massive action set piece that takes place in a tunnel between Gotham and Metropolis. We got to tour part of the set they built for the scene and learned the tunnel was built by the Gotham W.P.A. between 1925-1929 and it sounds like it was never completed. My guess is the action set piece takes place around half way through the film.
  • Zack Snyder said Jack Kirby’s New Gods influenced the Justice League movie.
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    Image via Warner Bros.
    When comparing the version of Wonder Woman we’ll see in Justice League to Batman v Superman and her solo film, Gadot said, “The Wonder Woman we see in the Justice League is similar to the Wonder Woman we saw on BvS. The Wonder Woman that you’ll see in the solo movie she’s different…it’s the coming of age story. It’s about her becoming an adult really. From a child to adult and understanding the complexities of life and human beings.”
  • Justice League is manufacturing all their costumes in-house and 3D printing is a huge part of making the costumes. The big challenge of creating them is making sure they not only look great but they’re functional for fighting and maneuverability.
  • Michael Wilkinson is the costume designer. He also worked on Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Man of Steel, Watchmen, 300, and tons of other films.
  • Cyborg’s costume is being created digitally from the neck down but still has to be designed. Not a lot of Victor Stone from the neck down.
  • Cyborg is using technology that he got from one of the Mother Boxes which was shown in Batman v Superman. His technology is mysterious and he discovers his “gun arm” in the film.
  • Cyborg’s suit can enlarge when provoked or when he goes into battle mode.
  • We’ll see Cyborg in civilian clothes during parts of the film. I think he wears sweatpants.
  • Flash’s costume is made up of 148 pieces and the cowl alone has 70 pieces. All the pieces have numbers on them to help put it together and two people need to assist Ezra Miller when dressing. However, while you might think it would take hours to assemble the outfit, it’s about five minutes!
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    Image via Warner Bros.
    When we first meet up with Flash the suit he’s wearing is a prototype. From what I gathered, it seems that Barry Allen may have broken into NASA and is using 3D printers to help make the outfit protect him when running at super speed. The design is very aerodynamic and, as many of you know, when Flash runs he generates electricity which circles around his body. The help make the effect come to life, the costume has black stretchy wires which will show the electricity and will be added in post-production. Once Barry Allen connects with Bruce Wayne and Wayne-Tech, Flash’s costume will probably get an upgrade….
  • Flash has a cool pair of sneakers with the Flash symbol on both sides and on the base. I’d imagine we’ll get some sneaker company releasing these sneakers when the movie is coming out.
  • When Wilkinson was designing Flash’s costume he didn’t feel the need to compete with the TV show because the design he needed to come up with had to work in Zack Snyder’s universe.
  • There are two Batsuits in the film. The first one looks like the Batman costume you’ve already seen excerpt it has new armor plates under the costume to give added protection. Also, on Batman’s forearms they’ve added spikes on the outside of the costume. The second Batsuit is towards the end of the film but it has added carbon fiber, more protection, and a new cowl which adds more strength and protection around the neck and added levels of communication with Alfred and the members of the Justice League. The second costume also has new goggles which help pilot a new vehicle. The costume also helps amplify his strength even when dealing with an old injury.
  • Wonder Woman’s costume has a few changes from Batman v Superman but it’s nothing major. From what I gathered it has a slight color adjustment (a bit more red) and has been designed to make the costume more comfortable and maneuverable.
  • Did you know Wonder Woman’s costume is 5,000 years old? Neither did I. But that’s what Wilkinson told us when talking about her costume.
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    Photo via Clay Enos
    In the costume department we saw some concept art of Wonder Woman with a pretty big blue cape over her costume and on her back. I’m not sure it’s in the movie but it looked pretty cool.
  • Everything Gal Gadot wears as Diana Prince is being made by the costume department. Nothing is store bought.
  • Justice League has to dress 3,000 extras and it has 200 speaking parts.
  • Wilkinson described Metropolis as a New York City while Gotham was more like a Philadelphia in terms of dressing the background actors.
  • Bruce Wayne has a new car in Justice League but no one would reveal what it was. While in Wayne Hangar a car was being covered by tarps to make sure we couldn’t figure out what it was. I will say the car was very low to the ground so I’m sure it will be expensive and cool.
  • Justice League is filming in London until September and after they wrap there they go to Los Angeles and another still to be determined location. Filming is currently scheduled to wrap in October.
  • During our interview with Ray Fisher (Cyborg) he talked about how he came to be in the film: “I was in a play off Broadway playing Muhammad Ali at the New York Theatre Workshop three years ago now. And around the time, Ang Lee, one of his upcoming projects was a 3D boxing movie about Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier and he came and saw the show at that time. And I hadn’t had an agent or a manager up until that point, but once people caught word of that, they started coming to the show to see who’s this guy that people are coming to look at and from there I signed up and went out to California for a visit and met up with Lord Kennedy and Kristy Carlson from Warner Brothers and they said, “we have something that may be right for you, but we can’t tell you what it is. It’s just in the real of the Batman/Superman universe.” And I was like, “I’m done, I’m done. Sign me up. I’ll play a tree.”
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    Image via Warner Bros.
    The production spent six months working on the costumes in research and development before any of the actors got involved.
  • Producer Debbie Snyder confirmed Amber Heard is still playing Mera in Justice League.
  • Batman continues to change the Batmobile to fight new enemies. We saw art that showed two massive machine guns and a missile launcher on top.
  • Alfred and Bruce Wayne develop a lot of tech for the members of the Justice League.
  • Steppenwolf, the creature we saw in the Batman v Superman deleted scene with Lex Luthor (Jesse Eisenberg) has not yet been cast. The creature will be voiced by someone but not acted the way some motion capture characters have recently been done.

On one of the walls in the art room they showed pictures of the cast with who they were playing below their pics. This is usually done for the main actors. Listed on the wall was everyone you’d expect except Jesse Eisenberg. I don’t know if it’s because they’re trying to keep his involvement a secret or if it’s because his role is more like a cameo. While walking around the war room we were able to see tons of pre-production artwork that was created at the end of last year and beginning of this year before Batman v Superman was released. Most of the artwork showed the vehicles and locations from part of the Justice League movie and almost all of it was missing Superman. The one piece of art that featured the iconic hero had him standing with Batman, The Flash, Cyborg, and Wonder Woman without a descriptive background. Meaning it could have been anywhere.

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Image via Warner Bros.

Some of the memorable artwork included:

  • A massive silhouette of Steppenwolf. The poster was at least four feet tall and showed his horns and a claw of some kind on his left hand.
  • Wonder Woman standing near the Batmobile fighting creatures with wings (Parademons).
  • The Nightcrawler (a variation on the Batmobile which has the typical control area with four massive legs that resemble a spiders legs and can get to areas a normal car or plane can’t) inside a tunnel between Metropolis and Gotham.
  • A new vehicle (on the artwork called a troopcarrier but I believe it will be called the Flying Fox) that Batman has brought in with three levels and in the artwork you can see the top level is where the controls are, the middle level had Flash walking around and the lower level featured Aquaman and Cyborg. Imagine a much bigger Quinjet from the Marvel universe.
  • A very cool looking water scene that had a huge looking vehicle sitting in the middle of a large body of water with the back open and Flash, Aquaman, Batman and Cyborg climbing aboard.
  • Barry Allen’s apartment which features multiple TVs and looks like it’s off the beaten path.
  • A cool picture inside the Batjet showing Batman, Aquaman and Wonder Woman flying together.
  • A number of pictures of concept art from inside S.T.A.R. Labs.
  • Alfred manning the gunner station inside the Flying Fox.

Final Thoughts While you can never be sure how a movie will ultimately turn out, I walked away from Justice League so much more excited about the film than when I stepped on set—which may have something to do with the fact that I got to stand next to Ben Affleck in his Batman costume and ask him questions. While that was incredibly cool and something I’ll remember for a very long time, that’s not the main reason I’m excited. The levity and fun I saw in the scenes made me very optimistic, and I’m hopeful Snyder will find a way to mix his great action with a better story that allows the DC universe to not be so dark. Hopefully Snyder and the cast of Justice League will be at Comic-Con and show you the Barry Allen/Bruce Wayne scene so you can also see what got me so excited. Fingers crossed. For much more of our Justice League set visit coverage, peruse the links below:

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Image via Warner Bros.