Zack Snyder Reveals Why Darkseid Forgot Where The Anti-Life Equation Was

Zack Snyder reveals why Darkseid forgot where the Anti-Life equation was in Justice League. The theatrical cut of Justice League was released in 2017 to less than warm reviews from critics and audiences alike and only featured Darkseid’s name in passing. Cryptic messaging from Zack Snyder – who stepped away from the film before post-production could finish and was replaced by Joss Whedon – had many believing the theatrical version wasn’t the only version of the movie, leading the #ReleaseTheSnyderCut movement to be born.

That movement culminated in the official release of Zack Snyder’s Justice League on HBO Max in March 2021, a four hour director’s cut of the movie that restores Snyder’s original vision and then some. Critics and audiences mostly agree that the Snyder Cut is the superior film, with important backstories for characters like Cyborg and The Flash, giving them considerably more to do. Another character who has considerably more to do is Darkseid himself, as the Snyder Cut shows him firmly pulling Steppenwolf’s strings. This version even goes so far as to have Darkseid and not Steppenwolf come to Earth all those years ago to try and conquer the planet before Earth’s mightiest heroes drive him away. It’s during this sequence that it’s revealed the Anti-Life equation is on Earth, but the movie doesn’t explicitly explain how Darkseid would later forget its location, but Snyder has since offered a clarification.

Zack Snyder explained why Darkseid forgets the location of the Anti-Life equation in response to a fan’s question on Vero (via Twitter user @KnightFleck). According to Snyder, it’s the injuries Darkseid sustains from battling with Earth’s defenders that cause him to forget. You can see his full comment, below:

“He almost died when he returned to apocalypse [sic]. He was in a fight for power and much time passed before he was in a position of power again, and by then all who had been with him had been slayed.”

Some might say that the one planet that defeated Darkseid might stay with him for all eternity, or wouldn’t his ship have had some sort of tracking device that could take him back to Earth. Still this explanation from Snyder makes sense. Darkseid loses this most ferocious battle and is mercilessly wounded by old gods like Ares. And if none of Darkseid’s allies are alive to help track down the Anti-Life equation once again, it could be a bit of a struggle. As Snyder says, his most pressing issue when he returns to Apokolips is not heading straight back to Earth, but dealing with a power struggle on his own planet. A lot of time had passed and a lot of other planets were conquered before Darkseid is in a “position of power” again.

Surely, there are those who will debate whether or not this is a satisfactory answer from Snyder, but it is an attempt to clear up the minor plot all the same. After all, though Darkseid again has the location of the Anti-Life equation, with Warner Bros. having no plans to continue with Snyder’s Justice League 2, it’s extremely unlikely he’ll ever get to use it.

Source: Zack Snyder/Vero via KnightFleck/Twitter

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