Fans of the long-awaited ‘Snyder Cut’ of Justice League got a treat on Sunday when its official trailer dropped.
The preview provided a first look at the new villain Darkseid, who was meant to be the main villain of the original cut before being left out.
Online meme makers also had much to celebrate after Jared Leto made an appearance and uttered the long-parodied line, ‘We live in a society…’
First look: Fans of the long-awaited ‘Snyder Cut’ of Justice League got their first glimpse of the villain Darkseid in the new trailer which dropped on Sunday
The trailer opens with dramatic footage of Superman (Henry Cavill) roaring with fury toward the sky as bolts of electricity zoom around him.
On the soundtrack, Jesse Eisenberg’s Lex Luthor character sinisterly intones, ‘The bell’s been rung. Out in the dark, among the stars, the god is dead,’ he says, seemingly referring to the death of Superman.
Then Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) is seen in his Batman mask and a trench coat as he said that he had a ‘dream’ or a ‘premonition’ of ‘an attack coming.’
Fury: The trailer opens with dramatic footage of Superman (Henry Cavill) roaring with fury toward the sky as bolts of electricity zoom around him
Something wicked this way comes: Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck) is seen in his Batman mask and a trench coat as he said that he had a ‘dream’ or a ‘premonition’ of ‘an attack coming’
In a massive chamber somewhere off Earth, the massive villain Darkseid is briefly glimpsed surrounded by his followers.
The film’s original villain, Steppenwolf (played by Ciarán Hinds), who was once meant to only lead up to a conflict with Darkseid, is also shown as he kneels down at the feet of his ‘lord.’
Darkseid appears to be a scaly-skinned humanoid with a headset-like helmet and a suit of armor.
Steppenwolf’s character design has been significantly changed for this new version of Justice League and given a more square, reptilian face and a more ornate suit of silvery armor.
‘My lord, this world will fall,’ he promises.
New villain: In a massive chamber somewhere off Earth, the massive villain Darkseid is briefly glimpsed surrounded by his followers. He appears to be a scaly-skinned humanoid with a headset-like helmet and a suit of armor
Replaced: The film’s original villain, Steppenwolf (played by Ciarán Hinds), who was once meant to only lead up to a conflict with Darkseid, is also shown as he kneels down at the feet of his ‘lord’
The trailer cuts back to Bruce Wayne, who is assembling a team of ‘warriors’ to battle the evil forces.
Batman is then seen with the Justice League team, including Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), Cyborg (Ray Fisher), The Flash (Ezra Miller) and Aquaman (Jason Momoa).
Cyborg reveals unexpected weapons from his metallic frame while Wonder Woman flies through the air to catch hold of her sword.
Team assembled: The trailer cuts back to Bruce Wayne, who is assembling a team of ‘warriors’ to battle the forces of evil, including Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), Cyborg (Ray Fisher), The Flash (Ezra Miller) and Aquaman (Jason Momoa)
Surprise! Cyborg reveals unexpected weapons from his metallic frame
Soaring: Wonder Woman flies through the air to catch hold of her sword
The trailer’s end credits are interrupted by a surprise as Jared Leto’s version of the Joker appears.
The character wasn’t featured in the original film but was brought back for the expanded version via reshoots.
‘We live in a society where honor is a distant memory,’ he says.
‘Isn’t that right, Batman?’ he adds with a growl over the Caped Crusader’s name.
The trailer’s end credits are interrupted by a surprise as Jared Leto’s version of the Joker appears with a monologue beginning with, ‘We live in a society…’
‘We live in a society’ was never previously spoken by the Joker, but it became a popular meme starting around 2015, when it was first used by alt-right social media users to complain about a society they thought didn’t cater to their interests.
Other users began to repurpose the line to mock those same people in subsequent years, and it became associated with the verbose Joker in multiple memes.
‘Zack Snyder will go down as the Madman who actually made Joker say “We live in a society” lmao,’ one Twitter user wrote. ‘Man’s on a whole new level of trolling.’
Another person tweeted: ‘When Jared Leto’s joker finally gives us the “we live in a society” that we’ve all been yearning for.’
They included a screenshot of Thanos from Avengers: Endgame saying, ‘Perhaps I treated you too harshly.’
Classic: The line, never previously spoken by the joker, has been widely memed since at least 2015
Finally: Some said Snyder was trolling, and one person tweeted: ‘When Jared Leto’s joker finally gives us the “we live in a society” that we’ve all been yearning for’
Another user wrote, ‘me being forced to give kudos to Snyder for having the Joker drop “we live in a society,”‘ with an illustration of a crying face behind a grinning mask.
Film critic and podcast Scott Wampler tweeted, ‘credit where credit’s due: having Leto Joker actually say “we live in a society” in that trailer is some grade-A trolling and I respect it.’
Jared Leto, who plays the Joker in Justice League and previously did in Suicide Squad, even got in on the fun by tweeting, ‘We live in a society.’
The four-hour Snyder Cut of Justice League will be available to stream on HBO Max starting March 18.
Bittersweet: Another user wrote, ‘me being forced to give kudos to Snyder for having the Joker drop “we live in a society,”‘ with an illustration of a crying face behind a grinning mask
Respect: Film critic and podcast Scott Wampler tweeted, ‘credit where credit’s due: having Leto Joker actually say “we live in a society” in that trailer is some grade-A trolling and I respect it.’
Meta humor: Jared Leto, who plays the Joker in Justice League and previously did in Suicide Squad, even got in on the fun by tweeting, ‘We live in a society’
Coming soon: The four-hour Snyder Cut of Justice League will be available to stream on HBO Max starting March 18