The Batman versus Superman Easter Eggs That Flew Over Your Head
With a running time of two-and-a-half hours, Batman versus Superman: Dawn of Justice has a lot
going on. We've gone over all 153 minutes with a fine-toothed comb and picked out the
best and biggest Easter eggs to give you hints of what to look for in the movie. Here's a
spoiler-filled guide to all the DC Comics goodies peppered throughout the film. One
more time, for anyone who's not paying attention…
Major spoilers ahead.
Still here? Great. Let's dive in.
Darkseid is coming
Bruce Wayne's nightmare vision, which occurs while he's asleep at his Bat-desk, hints at
something major looming on the DC movie horizon. Fans of the comics will recognize the flying
creatures in this scene as Parademons, the nasty comics creatures who serve the intergalactic
uber-villain known as Darkseid. You can also see Darkseid's Omega symbol carved into the
ground at the beginning of Bruce's vision, and Luthor seems to directly reference his
impending arrival when he threatens "he's coming" at the end of the movie. But that's
not the only hints of Darkseid's presence we get out of Batman v Superman...
Mother Box
When Wonder Woman takes a tour through Lex Luthor's metahuman files, we get our best
looks yet at the future members of the Justice League, including the Flash, Aquaman, and
Cyborg. In particular, Cyborg's origin, told via lab footage that shows him being, uh,
booted up for the first time, has even more to offer fans than just the beginnings of
a major superhero. That's because we get a look at what seems to be a Mother Box, a super-powerful
supercomputer ripped right from the pages of Jack Kirby's New Gods saga. Just like Batman's
vision of the future, the Mother Box has major ties with Darkseid and the aliens of New Genesis
and Apokalips. Since it looks like Cyborg's creation has direct ties to New Gods technology—just
like the new version of his origin in the comics from 2011— expect the hero to play
a pretty big role in the DC Extended Universe.
Riddle me this
Batman's troubled past is felt more than seen or discussed in Batman v Superman: Dawn of
Justice, but Snyder's fondness for referencing comics lore can be seen in the building where
the showdown between the two heroes goes down. If you look carefully, you can spot what looks
a lot like some graffiti left behind by the Riddler, or perhaps some of his henchmen. Might
we see him in future DC movies? And will Jim Carrey reprise the role? Eesh.
KGBeast
Lex Luthor has a high-ranking henchman in Batman v Superman named Anatoli Knyazev (played
by Callan Mulvey), and although he doesn't look anything like he does in the comics,
DC fans will recognize that as the real name of the villain known as KGBeast. Could we
be seeing Knyazev in a different form later on? Considering his fate in this movie—getting
exploded after Batman shoots at the flame-thrower he's wearing on his back—it's a good bet
that he'll be more inclined to wear something closer to his comic book costume in future
appearances. Assuming, of course, he hasn't simply been incinerated, that is.
Mercy Graves
That's no ordinary employee bringing Zod's corpse to Lex Luthor. Fans of Superman: The
Animated Series will recognize the character of Mercy Graves, played here by Tao Okamoto,
Luthor's personal assistant and bodyguard. She became a fan-favorite during the run of
the series, and it's exciting to see her brought to the big screen in such a major movie. Of
course, unless we misunderstood the scene where she's inside the Senate building that...explodes
about halfway through the movie, we might not get much more Mercy in future DC Films
flicks. Ah, well.
Metallo
Before the movie came out, it was rumored that Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice would
feature an appearance by Metallo, the comics villain who goes from life as a soldier to
a life of crime after having his body rebuilt with Kryptonite-powered cyborg parts. That
didn't quite happen, probably because of how many other details were crammed into its running
time. Yet if you watch the closing credits, you'll see that one of the technicians demonstrating
the effects of Kryptonite in Luthor's lab is named Emmet Vale…which just happens to
be the name of the scientist who built Metallo. Watch for the metal man to make his debut
in a future DC Extended Universe film.
Jimmy Olsen
As much fun as Zack Snyder clearly has calling back to the comics, he isn't above changing
things up when it suits him. Case in point: Jimmy Olsen's brief (and ultimately tragic)
cameo in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Early in the film, when Lois travels to the
fictional country of "Nairomi, Africa" for a story, she's accompanied by a photographer
who turns out to be a CIA spook and is quickly put to death by the warlord she's interviewing.
According to remarks Snyder made during his press tour for the film, that's actually Jimmy
Olsen. Although Snyder didn't think there was any room in the DC cinematic universe
for him, the director decided putting one of Superman's best friends in the movie and
killing him off would be a way to "have fun" with the character.
Zod of Kandor
We saw a return from Man of Steel's bad guy, General Zod, albeit in the form of a corpse
(and then a CGI monster). While the trailers showed that to be the case months before the
movie dropped, the little robots inside the Kryptonian ship did give us another cool little
Easter egg. We find out that Zod comes from the City of Kandor, which is better known
to comic fans as the Bottle City of Kandor. The captial city of Krytpon, Kandor gets shrunken
and stolen by the Superman villain Brainiac, added to his intergalactic collection of artifacts.
After Superman and Brainiac square off, Kandor ends up under Superman's protection at the
Fortress of Solitude. Hopefully we'll have a chance to see a movie version of the classic
Superman villain with Kandor in tow.
The Dark Knight Returns
If you've watched Watchmen, you know Zack Snyder likes recreating comics panels in his
film adaptations, and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is loaded with callbacks to one
of its biggest inspirations, the Frank Miller graphic novel The Dark Knight Returns. It
starts early, with this movie's depiction of Bruce Wayne's parents being killed (a shot
of Mrs. Wayne's pearls around the mugger's gun is a direct lift from the book), and continues
throughout the movie, both in the dialogue and in the way certain shots are lined up.
More than anything, however, Batman's powered armor, which he wears during the title fight
with Superman, is taken straight from Miller's iconic series.
Action Comics
Love him or hate him, Snyder definitely enjoys paying homage to the comics. One brief example
comes during an argument between Clark Kent and Perry White at the office of the Daily
Planet, during which White tells Kent that he can't report on the types of stories he
wants to cover because "it's not 1938 anymore." As any DC fan will tell you, that's the year
Superman made his first appearance in Action Comics #1.
Must There Be a Superman?
The movie's Action Comics reference is far from the only nod to the Man of Steel's printed
adventures. During one scene, the senator played by Holly Hunter asks, "Must there be
a Superman?" It's an interesting question, and one that directly points to a 1972 issue
of the Superman comic in which our hero is forced to face a tribunal for his "crimes
against humanity." Since the hero is instrumental in the defeat of Doomsday and the foundation
of the Justice League, this is a question that gets answered with a resounding "yes"
by the end of the movie.
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any ones you think should've made the list!