The Wonder Woman Actor Who Had No Idea He Was In Zack Snyder's Justice League
When the original cut of "Justice League" landed in theaters in 2017, fans couldn't help but feel like something was missing. The sudden departure of director Zack Snyder due to a family tragedy left Joss Whedon to complete the movie, and rumors began flying that massive portions of the film had been scrapped. Calls to release the Snyder Cut became ubiquitous, and four years later, fans finally got their wish when "Zack Snyder's Justice League" was released on HBO Max.
As soon as the movie premiered on the streaming service, it became clear that the rumors were true, as the new film clocked in at over four hours instead of the original's two-hour runtime. The extra hours in "Zack Snyder's Justice League" included some big changes, with greatly expanded backstories, a new emphasis on the importance of the villain Darkseid, and a deeper exploration of the significance of the Anti-Life Equation.
The amount of additional footage included in "Zack Snyder's Justice League" wasn't just surprising for viewers — it even caught at least one performer off guard with his all-new part in the film. Here is the "Wonder Woman" actor who had no idea he was in "Zack Snyder's Justice League."
David Thewlis was unaware that he appeared as Ares in Zack Snyder's Justice League
As a result of "Zack Snyder's Justice League" doubling the runtime of the film's original cut, Snyder involved many more of the characters from the DC Extended Universe. One of those characters was Ares, played by David Thewlis — much to the apparent surprise of Thewlis himself.
The actor played Sir Patrick Morgan in 2017's "Wonder Woman," a sympathetic diplomat who was eventually revealed as Wonder Woman's arch-rival, Ares. The god of war is slain at the end of that film, which Thewlis apparently thought was the character's last appearance in the DCEU. However, dead is never really dead in comic book movies, and to prove it, the actor shared an image on Instagram that clearly shows him in "Zack Snyder's Justice League," which Thewlis captioned, "I would just like to say that I have no recollection of this ever happening — I assume it was before lockdown."
Thewlis seemed to take the surprise in stride, adding humorously, "I do not know these gentlemen and I have no idea why my left arm is so tiny. Anyone with further information please come forward." The scene in question is an expanded flashback that depicts Darkseid's initial attempt to invade Earth in search of the Anti-Life Equation, which was thwarted by a coalition of gods and men, including Zeus and Ares.
According to Comic Book Movie, Snyder shot the expanded scene with stuntman Nick McKinless standing in as Ares, while Thewlis' face was digitally added later. While it may have been a confusing situation for the actor, at least he has another fan-favorite blockbuster to add to his résumé.