‘Release The Snyder Cut’ Campaign Was Partially Driven By Fake Accounts, Says Report – CNET [CNET]

According to a Rolling Stone report, at least 13% of accounts involved were fake.

According to internal reports seen by Rolling Stone, at least 13% of the accounts taking part in the #ReleaseTheSnyderCut conversation online were fake. Two reports, commissioned by WarnerMedia and obtained by Rolling Stone, were responsible for the findings.

Other cybersecurity firms contacted by Rolling Stone also appeared to confirm the Snyder Cut online discourse had a larger than normal amount of spam accounts driving the discussion. Real human activity did continue to drive the majority of conversation around the topic, but 13% is significantly above the usual amount of spam activity surrounding a topic on social media.

The Snyder Cut was a long-discussed Zack Snyder version of Justice League, a critically maligned superhero movie initially directed by Snyder but eventually taken over by Joss Whedon after internal conflicts about the length of the movie. Snyder’s 20-year-old daughter also tragically died during production of the movie, which ultimately led both Snyder and his wife Deborah Snyder to leave the project. Zack Snyder’s representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

After the release of Joss Whedon’s version of Justice League, fans began an online campaign to #ReleaseTheSnyderCut, which led Warner Bros. to release Snyder’s much longer, four-hour version of Justice League on the HBO Max streaming service. Zack Snyder’s Justice League ended up rated higher among critics compared to Joss Whedon’s original. Snyder’s cut holds a 71% rating on Rotten Tomatoes compared to the original’s 39%.

Rolling Stone’s report goes in-depth on the internal politics leading to the release of Snyder’s version of the movie. You can read the full story here.