Zachary E. Snyder BFA 89
Director, Writer, Producer, Director of Photography
Director, writer, producer and director of photography Zack Snyder is best known for his groundbreaking approach to filmmaking. Whether it be his astonishing visuals, his meticulous attention to detail or his mesmerizing exploration of characters, story and mythos, all combine to cement his unique and captivating style on each of his projects. Snyder is a masterful world-builder both narratively and technically, often creating new universes while fearlessly redefining genres. He produces through his company The Stone Quarry, which he co-founded with his wife and producing partner, Deborah Snyder.
Snyder is currently developing a wide range of projects under the Stone Quarry banner, including the epic zombie action heist film Army of the Dead, which he co-wrote with Shay Hatten and produced and directed for Netflix. Snyder also serves as cinematographer on the film, which is currently in post-production and set to be released on May 21, 2021. Snyder is currently producing an international Army of the Dead prequel feature film directed by and starring Matthias Schweighöfer and will follow his “Ludwig Dieter” character. Through their newly launched animation arm, Stone Quarry Animation, Snyder and Jay Oliva are re-teaming to develop and executive produce a new original anime series for Netflix, Army of the Dead: Lost Vegas, starring Joe Manganiello, Christian Slater, Harry Lennix, Ross Butler, Anya Chalotra, Vanessa Hudgens, Yetide Badaki, Christina Wren, Monica Barbaro, Jena Malone and Nolan North, as well as an animated series set in the world of Norse mythology also for Netflix. Upcoming, Snyder will direct and produce The Horse Latitudes, in which a photograph becomes the catalyst for a journey two men undertake into the rugged wilderness of South America.
Snyder most recently produced Wonder Woman 1984 which was released worldwide on December 25, 2020. Snyder co-wrote the story for and produced the critically acclaimed Wonder Woman, which broke multiple box-office records and made over $800 million worldwide. He was nominated for a Producers Guild Award and the film was named one of the top 10 of the year by the American Film Institute. Snyder is also executive producing an equally highly anticipated DC Extended Universe (DCEU) title The Suicide Squad, which will be written by James Gunn and released by Warner Bros. on August 6, 2021. Snyder served as executive producer on David Ayer’s Suicide Squad, starring Will Smith, Jared Leto, Jai Courtney, Joel Kinnaman and Margot Robbie. The film broke the record for the biggest August opening weekend, bringing in $133 million and eventually grossed over $740 million worldwide.
Additionally, Snyder is in post-production on the highly anticipated Zack Snyder's Justice League, which he directed and produced, based on a story he co-wrote with Chris Terrio and Will Beale. It will be released on HBO MAX on March 18, 2021, as a four-hour-plus director’s cut.
Snyder directed Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice, starring Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck, Amy Adams and Jesse Eisenberg, which also introduced Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, Jason Momoa as Aquaman, Ezra Miller as the Flash and Ray Fisher as Cyborg. The film grossed over $800 million dollars at the worldwide box office. Snyder’s first DCEU film, Man of Steel, produced by Deborah Snyder, Charles Roven, Christopher Nolan and Emma Thomas, earned over $650 million worldwide. In addition, Snyder served as an executive producer on Aquaman, which grossed over $1.1 billion dollars worldwide. Snyder’s current combined box office contributions so far to the DCEU total more than 4.9 billion dollars over the past five years.
Snyder produced and co-wrote 300: Rise of an Empire, directed by Noam Murro. The film, which was released by Warner Bros. in March of 2014, is the sequel to the 2007 blockbuster 300, which Snyder wrote and directed. Together, 300 and 300: Rise of an Empire grossed nearly $800 million worldwide.
Snyder previously directed Sucker Punch, an action fantasy that follows a young girl whose dream world provides the ultimate escape from her darker reality; Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole, an animated adventure film, Dawn of the Dead, an uncompromising delve into the world of zombies, and critically acclaimed Watchmen, based on the seminal graphic novel of the same name.
Always one to welcome the challenge of exploring new storytelling opportunities presented by emerging technologies, Snyder recently directed Snow, Steam, Iron, a short film shot entirely on an iPhone.
