‘Batman vs. Superman’ Deleted Scene: What the Heck Is Going on Here?
It’s a little unusual (OK highly unusual) for a movie studio to release a deleted scene from a movie just three days after that movie opened in theaters, but such is the case now with Batman vs. Superman. While most of us are still processing what we saw in theaters this weekend, Warner Bros. has released the first Batman vs. Superman deleted scene online and it will definitely leave you scratching your head.
MAJOR spoilers for Batman vs. Superman ahead.
The clip, titled “Communion,” centers on Jesse Eisenberg’s Lex Luthor and takes place as he’s in the remains of the Kryptonian ship, presumably before Doomsday is unleashed. A group of military figures arrive, but not before some really weird s— happens.
There is a large alien creature holding out its hands with three boxes. It raises its head to the sky and then turns to dust and blows away. Lex is seemingly in a dream like state and snaps awake to find the military forces with their laser scopes aimed at his back.
While it’s unclear, it’s likely these are Mother Boxes from the comics. According to the Wikipedia page:
Mother Boxes can access the energy of the Source for various effects; they can change the gravitational constant of an area, transfer energy from one place to another, sense danger, sense life, create force fields, rearrange molecular structure of matter, absorb or project powerful shock blasts, create electro-webs, control the mental state of a host, communicate telepathically with a host or other life form, manipulate the life-force of a host to sustain it past fatal injuries, open and close boom tubes, take over and control non-sentient machines, evolve non-sentient machines, merge sentient beings into a single more powerful being, sustain a life form in a hostile environment such as space, and do many other things.
Mother Boxes were created by a scientist by Himon on Apokolips, the home planet of Darkseid, the DC Comics supervillain alluded to in Bruce Wayne’s Knightmare. In the comics, the Mother Boxes were able to open “boom tubes” (extra-dimensional point-to-point travel portals) that would allow characters to transport in between dimensions. In theory, this could be what allows Darkseid to travel to Earth (or vice versa). As for who that character is, it’s possible it’s Steppenwolf, a member of Darkseid’s Elite Forces and head of the Apokoliptic military (though that character is human and this character most definitely is not).
This scene likely takes place in the movie after Luthor first enters the ship and instructs the A.I. to “teach him everything.” The ship could be downloading information into his brain, so what you’re seeing isn’t actually taking place in front of him, but simply a vision he’s having, interrupted by the military (this could also be the scene where he’s arrested and taken into custody after the Doomsday fight). Another interesting connection is that these Mother Boxes communicate via a series of pings or dings, which may explain Luthor’s comments to Batman at the very end of the film about a bell being rung and the “ding ding ding” sounds he makes.
If you’ve got any other theories, let us know below and we’ll continue to update.