The former president of DC Entertainment, Dian Nelson, has deleted her Twitter account following harassment from DC fans themselves.
Nelson posted a tweet in support of a camera test from Todd Phillips' Joker, which featured Joaquin Phoenix in his clown make-up for the first time.
"LOVE IT!” Nelson tweeted, “Great story, great actor, specific and strong vision from talented director. What DC should have been doing since Nolan. Even if die hard fans struggle with his vision. #goodmoviesaregoodmovies."
While the tweet seemed innocent enough, many fans of the DC Extended Universe felt like the tweet was an insult to filmmaker Zack Snyder.
Snyder was heavily linked to the building of the DCEU, which is used to describe the cinematic universe linking the films Man of Steel, Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, Justice League, Wonder Woman and the upcoming Aquaman.
While Wonder Woman was an epic success for the studio, the other films fell short of expectations and Snyder was quietly stepped aside before the release of Justice League. The studio brought Joss Whedon in to rework the ensemble flick via rewrites and reshoots.
The result was a laboured, by-the-numbers superhero romp with an obvious division between the two directors' visions that failed to resonate with critics, fans or mainstream audiences.
The failure of the film and a belief that Warner had Snyder's original version of the film in their possession led diehard Snyder fans to begin a campaign to #RelaseTheSnyderCut.
DC's struggles to compete with Marvel box office successes meant Warner were going to retool their approach to their releases, leading us to the "Worlds of DC". Unlike Marvel's approach of a streamlined universe, DC is creating standalone films like Phillips' Joker.
This leads us back to Nelson and her tweet. The wrath of Snyder's supporters -- seemingly under the banner of DC fanaticism -- continued, as they harassed her for being a "snake in the grass", and again demanding Snyder's cut be released.
Prior to deleting her account, according to Entertainment Weekly, Nelson tweeted in support of Snyder and denied her original tweet was a snub, saying: "I happen to count Zack Snyder among those things, if you are insinuating otherwise. No snake here."
In June, Nelson left DC Entertainment and Warner Bros. after 22 years with the organisation, after taking several months of leave. Despite DC's shaky film history, Nelson is credited as being instrumental in building up the brand's incredibly successful TV properties including The CW's slate of shows like The Flash and Supergirl.
Warner is hoping to replicate the success of Wonder Woman with Aquaman, which hits cinemas later this year.
Featured image: Warner Bros. Pictures / Getty Images.