WonderCon '09 - 'Watchmen' Panel

Geoff Boucher, writer for the Los Angles Times, moderated Saturday’s Warner Bros. Watchmen Panel at WonderCon. He immediately brought out the film’s director, Zack Snyder, to a massive, cheering crowd.

Snyder began by discussing the cast, mentioning how much he enjoyed working with them, and that he considered Tom Cruise for the role of Dr. Manhattan, which was played by Billy Crudup. He went on to tell the audience that the film will be a “depression era” film, saying it viewers would get more movie for their money. The film will run about 40 minutes longer than originally intended. He pointed out that scenes were cut from the theatrical version, and would be included on the DVD when released. He also revealed that the film will be screened theatrically as a director’s cut in July, at a length of about 3 hours and 10 minutes.

Snyder told the audience that while he was pleased that the studio let him make the film he made, they did require that he include less violence and “blue nudity” (as far as Dr. Manhattan was concerned) than he would have wanted.

Boucher and Snyder then asked the crowd if it was too early to show the film, to a resounding “no”. They then screened roughly 15 minutes of Watchmen which included the opening scene of the Comedian’s murder, the opening credits over a montage of the earlier Minutemen generation of heroes transitioning in to the Watchmen era, and a scene where Rorschach tells Nite-Owl about the Comedian’s murder. A brief shot of a young Rorschach was shown, and after the lights went up, Boucher told the crowd that the actor that portrayed him was Snyder’s son, who also played young Leonidas in Snyder’s previous film, 300.

Snyder talked a bit about the forthcoming Black Freighter animated adaptation, and said it would be included in a future Watchmen DVD release cut together with the main film, possibly in the fall.

Boucher then brought out several members of the film’s cast including: Malin Akerman, Billy Crudup, Jackie Earle Haley, Jeffery Dean Morgan, and Patrick Wilson. Dave Gibbons, the artist of original graphic novel that film was adapted from, also joined the panel.

Boucher briefly quizzed each panel member about their respective roles in the film, and then turned the floor over to audience questions:

A fan asked Morgan if he had a scene that he was anxious about. He said he “loved doing the rape scene.” He quickly clarified that he was being sarcastic.

Morgan was also asked if he would ever do a movie in which his character wouldn’t die, to which he said he hoped so.

Snyder was asked why Ozymandias’ costume was so “Batman and Robin-esque,” including latex nipples. Snyder said he was trying to adapt the costume from Dave Gibbons’ “purple and gold leotard” version in the comic, and it was tricky.

An audience member asked Malin Akerman if it was hard to transition from comedic acting to the more serious portrayal of the Silk Spectre in Watchmen, to which she said that she was “scared sh**less” at first, but was only playing off of emotions she experiences everyday.

Boucher then ended questions, thanked the fans, and ended the panel.

Related:

Jeffrey Dean Morgan Interview

Zack Snyder Interview

Watchmen Review