Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021)

Thousands of years ago, Darkseid and his Parademons attempted to conquer Earth using the Mother Boxes after learning that Earth harbored the Anti-Life Equation. The attempt was foiled by a unified alliance of Old Gods, Amazons, Atlanteans, humanity, and a Green Lantern. After the battle, the Boxes were hidden in different locations, guarded by the Amazons, Atlanteans, and Humanity, respectively. In the present, Superman’s death triggers the Boxes’ reactivation, attracting Steppenwolf, Darkseid’s disgraced lieutenant, to Earth. Steppenwolf aims to regain Darkseid’s favor by gathering the boxes to form “the Unity,” which would terraform Earth in the likeness of their world Apokolips.

Steppenwolf retrieves a Mother Box from Themyscira, prompting Queen Hippolyta to warn her daughter Diana Prince. Diana receives the message and learns of the events related to Darkseid and Steppenwolf. She informs Bruce Wayne, and the two seek to form a team of metahumans to protect Earth. Bruce locates Arthur Curry and Barry Allen, while Diana locates Victor Stone. Barry joins immediately, while Arthur and Victor refuse. However, Victor joins after his father Silas and several other S.T.A.R. Labs employees are kidnapped by Parademons seeking the humans’ Mother Box. When scouts from the Atlantean outpost guarding their Mother Box go missing, having been kidnapped and interrogated by Steppenwolf for its location, Arthur is asked by his mentor Vulko to assist fellow Atlantean Mera in protecting the outpost when his half-brother Orm refuses to take action. Arthur reluctantly goes to the outpost but ultimately fails to stop Steppenwolf from taking the Box.