The famous Tales of the Black Freighter sequence which turns up frequently in the Watchmen comic book series was left out of the script I read for the film. The story worked well enough without it, as much as a fan I am of the tale from the comic that eerily and magnificently matches the plot of the book. You see the sequence is of a boy reading a comic, which happens to be about a pirate who is desperate to get home to warn his family about an impending attack from a mysterious Black Freighter ship.
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We know that Zack Snyder has always wanted to shoot the sequence, as has pretty much every helmer who has ever been linked with the film but it's always been a tough sell for studio's. After all, the studio's know if they finance the money to film it... when the final editing time comes around it will always be the first thing that is cut from the film. The absence of it, effects the main plot in no way shape or form. Moviehole are reporting the news that Snyder's ideas and concepts (possibly even test shots) have impressed Warner Brothers so much that the studio have agreed to accommodate the director in shooting the scenes, even if in all likelihood they will end up only appearing in an extended dvd cut. Interestingly as well will be the casting for this. It should only be a few days shoot, could this be the small cameo for Gerard Butler that Snyder has promised us all year? That could be pretty cool. This is a win-win situation for us. If it's so good and it's in the final cut then it not only pleases the fans but it's a cool sequence for us. And if it does get cut... then it will be put on DVD which we could always skip anyway if we don't like it.