Scrapped 'Justice League' Script Revealed

The Justice League that made it into theaters seemed to divide fans and critics, but there was another version of the script that looked dramatically different.

Before Warner Bros. had even started their DC cinematic universe with 2013's Man of Steel, a 2011 draft was a much different affair. The script was written by Gangster Squad's Will Beall in 2011, which was a year before Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises and Marvel's The Avengers. That script has now surfaced, and The Wrap has broken it down into digestible chunks: for example, it contains a DC universe with a son of Batman, a Green Lantern, and a Hawkman.

Beall's Justice League consisted of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, and Green Lantern, forgoing the inclusion of Cyborg and Aquaman. Aquaman is mentioned in an early sequence, but does not star. However, this does not mean the Justice League didn't feature a myriad of cameos.

The villain of the movie was Darkseid with help from Desaad and Steppenwolf. They make their presence known early on thanks to a huge shark tank-shattering battle sequence, where Desaad kills Killer Croc to gain access to some Kryptonite. Amanda Waller and King Faraday also make appearances as part of the Department of Metahuman Affairs, with Terrant, Coppherhead, Cheetah, and Solomon Grundy also appearing as part of the organization.

Green Lantern John Stewart and Hawkman are also featured early on in an action sequence that takes place in a space station nightclub, though this seems to be Hawkman's only appearance.

Back on Earth, in this version, Superman and Batman are friends and know each other's secret identities. It is also mentioned that Batman has a romantic history with Wonder Woman, which eventually leads him to head to Themyscira to recruit her. The reason he does this is because Superman is kidnapped by Steppenwolf and Parademons and taken to Apokolips.

Batman gathers Wonder Woman, Flash, and Green Lantern in the Batcave, which is filled with Easter Eggs. Afterwards, John Stewart returns to OA to find the Green Lantern Corps completely massacred by Darkseid, including the likes of Kilowog and Guy Gardner.

At this point, Darkseid invades Earth with a brainwashed Superman, and then things get weird. Wonder Woman is able to break Darkseid's hold on Superman, who then travels 11 years into the future. He sees that Darkseid has taken out 80 percent of the Earth's population, and meets what's left of the resistance. That group is led by Diana and Bruce Wayne, who now have a son named Clark Wayne and have teamed up with Lex Luthor.

They lead a team that consists of Deathstroke, Captain Boomerang, Huntress, and Cheetah, but they aren't enough to win the fight. The future Flash ends up traveling back in time to warn the League, so they can then save Superman before he is brainwashed. It all ends in a huge fight with the League, Amazons, and Green Lantern Corps against Darkseid, and they ultimately win the battle.

It's quite a departure from the current Justice League, and is an amazing case of what could've been.

Justice League is currently in theaters.