Filmmaker Zack Snyder has decided to step down from "Justice League," Warner Bros' all- star DC Comics superhero mega-movie that is in post- production, in order to deal with the sudden death of his daughter.
The filmmaker's 20-year-old daughter Autumn Snyder died by suicide in March, prompting him to take a break from work and hire Joss Whedon to finish the superhero movie, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Snyder's wife, Deborah Snyder, who is a producer on "Justice League," is also taking a break to focus on the healing of their family.
Snyder says he initially was eager to return to the project, which stars Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Jason Momoa and Ezra Miller.
"In my mind, I thought it was a cathartic thing to go back to work, to just bury myself and see if that was the way through it.
"The demands of this job are pretty intense. It is all- consuming. And in the last two months, I've come to the realization...I've decided to take a step back from the movie to be with my family, be with my kids, who really need me. They are all having a hard time. I'm having a hard time," he said.
The studio is completely supporting the director's decision, "What they are going through is unimaginable, and my heart - our hearts - go out to them," Warner Bros. Pictures president Toby Emmerich said.
This is not the first time that Warner Bros. Has had to deal with the unthinkable affecting a high-profile DC movie.
In 2008, Heath Ledger passed away after shooting had wrapped for "The Dark Knight" but prior to the movie being finished and released. The tragedy put the studio and filmmaker Christopher Nolan in a very delicate position of balancing mourning with the demands of releasing the movie.
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