This summer, Jared Leto will become the big screen’s latest Joker in Suicide Squad. But according to Zack Snyder, the Joker came very close to appearing in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. And apparently, the Joker wasn’t the only Batman villain originally in mind for this film!

“The Joker and the Riddler both came close to being in this movie,” said Snyder during an interview with Collider. “We talked about the possibility of putting them in. [Screenwriter] Chris Terrio and I talked about it a lot and felt that their mythological presence is felt in the movie and that’s cool, but I didn’t want to get my eye too far off the ball because I needed to spend the time, frankly, with Batman and Superman to understand the conflict.”

It was a logical assumption that the Joker could appear in Batman v Superman, but the Riddler? That’s a surprise. The Riddler hasn’t appeared in a Batman movie since Batman Forever in 1995.

More intriguingly, Snyder’s comments seem to indicate that both the Riddler and the Joker will be referenced in Batman v Superman. The ruined Robin costume glimpsed in the trailers has been widely assumed to be the Joker’s handiwork. Perhaps the new Batcave will feature a trophy or a “reminder” from one of Batman’s clashes with the Riddler. In fact, the Batcave could include a number of nods towards Batman’s classic villains. We’ll know more in just a few days, when Batman v Superman opens in theaters on March 25.

How do you think the Joker and Riddler references will be used in Batman v Superman? And who do you want to see as the next big screen Riddler? Let us know in the comment section below!

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HT: Collider

Image Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures