Batman v Superman's Nod to Cover Art of The Dark Knight Returns

There's a scene in the movie Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice where Batman and Superman duel high above the ground. Batman is clinging to the side of a building while Superman is flying straight at him, eyes blazing with a blast of heat vision. Batman swings and with the use of his Bat harpoon gun, avoids getting fried.

The scene is quick but it's in the trailer and for the fans of Batman: The Dark Knight Returns graphic novels, it should be familiar because if you freeze the frame wherein Batman hangs by one hand while holding the harpoon gun in the other, the still actually reflects the pose of Batman on the cover of the graphic novel on which the movie is based on.

The images speak for themselves. There are of course, slight differences, but the layout and the all the other visual elements, down to the similarity of the cabling and the lightning on the cover, undeniably point to that particular scene as a nod to the cover artists' (penciler-inker Frank Miller and colorist Lynn Varley) work.

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Movie Poster 1


Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice Movie Poster 2