Octorox said:
Let’s be clear, the cut of Justice League released in theaters didn’t represent Zack’s vision, but it’s not like he had a finished alternate cut just waiting in the wings. Otherwise, WarnerMedia wouldn’t be spending 20-30 million dollars so he can finish his version. The Snyder cut never “existed”, it’s a new cut being created now.
Similarly, there’s no finished alternate cut of Rise of Skywalker lying in a vault somewhere, and unlike with Snyder, there’s been no indication that Abrams doesn’t stand behind the movie he made. The problems with Rise of Skywalker are honestly pretty typical of Abrams filmmaking style, the guy is notoriously bad at endings, and we know the production was rushed. I don’t see this being a case of studio meddling.
I don’t know about studio meddling, but there was definitely meddling with TROS. George Lucas got involved, multiple endings were shot, even internet fan theories were on the table, etc. It sounded like a mess, which is completely antithetical to what we saw in that documentary The Skywalker Legacy released by the studio. Regardless, I’d love to see all that deleted/alternate footage.
IMO, it’s just crazy that JJ’s best film and his worst film ended up being in the same trilogy.