Zack Snyder fans know that the director was peppering in Easter eggs and references to his earliest DC films, building toward a Justice League movie. Sharp-eyed fans watching Man of Steel back in the say saw very quick references to Lex Corp. and Wayne Enterprises, alerting rabid DC fans to the fact that Lex Luthor and Bruce Wayne existed in the world Snyder was creating. Man of Steel apparently has a cool Watchmen cameo, as well – another reference to the director’s filmography. But one hint about the presence of the DC hero Martian Manhunter made its way into Man of Steel without Snyder really planning it. And he told the story behind the origin at SnyderCon on Friday in Pasadena.
Those of you who have watched all three Zack Snyder DC films – which has a few really good things going for them – know that in his extended cut of Justice League, the recurring character of General Swanwick (played by Harry Lennix), ends up being Martian Manhunter, a member of the eventual Justice League team. We first meet Swanwick as a contingent of the terrified military, reacting to the arrival of Superman (Henry Cavill) on our planet. Swanwick returns in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, then reveals himself to be the shape-shifting Martian Manhunter in Justice League. But when asked during SnyderCon when the creative team knew that Lennix’s Swanwick would also become Manhunter, Snyder confessed:
