‘Justice League’ to begin filming in April

Justice League: Part 1 is scheduled to begin shooting in the U.K. April 11.

Justice will be served.

Part 1 of Zack Snyder’s long-awaited Justice League is slated to begin filming on April 11, according to a report from EW. This start date comes a little over two weeks after the release of Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, which may not be a coincidence considering it helps prevent news from leaking from the set that may spoil the events of the previous film before it even hits theaters.

Justice League will unite a group of the most infamous superheros from the pages of DC Comics. While heavyweights Batman (portrayed by Ben Affleck) and Superman (Henry Cavill, continuing his role that began in Man of Steel) will start out on opposing sides in Dawn of Justice, the plot will inevitably lead to the heroes joining forces. They will be joined by Gal Godot’s Wonder Woman, who will also be featured in a prominent role in the film.

Minor appearances by Ezra Miller as the Flash, Jason Momoa as Aquaman and Ray Fisher as Cyborg are also expected, even if they may only amount to brief cameos that lay the groundwork for this expanding universe. Justice League will bring all of these heroes together, following the blueprint Marvel has used with its Avengers franchise.

DC’s film universe kicked off with 2013’s Man of Steel, leaving a three-year gap between films that led many to question if their plans would ever come to fruition.

"“It was a little bit of an ‘about time’ moment, and I don’t blame [the studio] for feeling that way, because it’s a long time coming,” Snyder told EW. “But I do feel like it’s a little bit of a creative hurdle. It seems like an easy thing to do at first glance, the idea that, ‘Oh, we just get the rest of the superheroes in there.’ But you have to [establish] a world where they can exist.”"

After taking the time to carefully map a course for the franchise, Warner Bros. is ready to roll. The August 5 release of Suicide Squad, as well as a solo Wonder Woman film in June 2017, will precede Justice League, with a sequel and solo films for the other characters in the pipeline. They may have started out slow building this shared universe, but the studio is now planning to pump out at least one film from the franchise each year through 2020.

"“The studio really wants us to try and pace it up, as far as — now we have an idea where we’re going,” reveals Snyder."

Previous attempts to bring these characters together on the big screen have fallen through, but this time it’s actually happening. Snyder is already in the U.K. preparing to start filming, which will primarily be done at the Warner Bros. Leavesden studios in England, as well as various locations in London and Iceland.

Dawn of Justice should provide us with some hints of what pushes these heroes to join forces, with more details likely to spill once shooting for Justice League begins. That should be music to the ears of fans who have waited a long time to see this happen.