"Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" stars Henry Cavill and Ben Affleck. (Photo : Getty Images)
One of Warner Bros. Pictures' major releases for 2016, "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice" began its promotional world tour on Friday in Beijing, gathering press from all over Asia, as reported by the Global Times.
The press conference featured the film's director Zack Snyder, along with Ben Affleck, who plays Batman, and Henry Cavill, who plays Superman.
During a fan meet the following day, Li Yifeng, the film's "official ambassador" to China and one of the biggest celebrities in the country, was invited to bring extra attention to the film.
With China being an important film market for Hollywood, more film studios have been centering their international marketing activities in the Middle Kingdom. While having major Hollywood stars visit China to promote a film may have been unlikely several years ago, now it is more commonplace.
"Batman v Superman" is set to premiere in the United States and China on March 25.
The film is set after the events of "Man of Steel," wherein Superman defeated the Kryptonian General Zod, leading many to see him as the savior of humanity. However, the devastation left in the wake of Superman's battle with Zod leads others, like Batman of Gotham City, to see Superman as a threat that must be removed.
Snyder admitted during the event in Beijing that he made "Batman v Superman" in order to honor the influence comic books had on him, while also using his personal style. The director considers himself a fan of both Batman and Superman, considering the project the fulfillment of one of his dreams.
One of the interesting aspects of "Batman v Superman," according to Snyder, is that each hero represents their own idea of justice and "neither of them is necessarily wrong in the analysis of the other."
With superhero movies being one of Hollywood's main weapons to conquer the worldwide box office, many are wondering if the market has reached the point of saturation.
However, Affleck, who is also a director, believes that superhero stories have become more popular because of the improvement of special effects.
"You can believe people can fly and shoot laser beams and that kind of thing," said Affleck.
Regarding saturation, Affleck said, "I think what happens is that there will be good ones and there will be some [that] don't work like any genre of movie."
