HBO’sWatchmenhas a span of Easter eggs that shoutout to Zack Snyder ’s 2009 moving picture adaptation . Executive raise and written by Damon Lindelof , Watchmenis do 30 days after the events of the classic graphic novel byAlan Mooreand Dave Gibbons - not Snyder ’s movie . Lindelof ’s ambitious"remix"of the superhero saga tackles many of the same complex political themes but he transplants the chief story from 1985 New York City to 2019 Tulsa , Oklahoma .

Snyder ’s R - ratedWatchmenremains controversial ; while its fans praise the director ’s adherence to the informant cloth , coupled with Snyder and cinematographer Larry Fong ’s dramatic visual style , the moving picture ’s detractors take the picture show ’s slavish adaptation does n’t capture the intricacies of the graphic novel and they interview Snyder ’s hyper - naturalistic force and his option to give the motion-picture show a dissimilar ending . However , the bequest of Snyder’sWatchmencontinues to endure and discharge debate ; the motion picture has take in its place in superhero movie theater thanks to its superb cast , sensational costumes , and impressive production blueprint . But when conceptualizing his version ofWatchmen , Lindelof opted to stick to the original graphic novel with Gibbons ' blessing but not Moore ’s - though the reclusive writer disavows any adaptations of his books . Lindelof ’s HBO series holds the comic books as canon and serves as a subsequence to that news report . However , the shadow Snyder ’s film cast is unavoidable and HBO’sWatchmenfound subtle ways to acknowledge it .

While Lindelof’sWatchmenis certainly tearing in its own right wing , it ’s during a quiet moment during the pilot episode that a clever nod to Zack Snyder ’s movie can be heard . Tulsa Police Chief Judd Crawford ( Don Johnson ) and his wife Jane ( Frances Fisher ) have dinner party at the home of Detective Angela Abar ( Regina King ) , her husband Cal ( Yahya Abdul - Mateen II ) , and their three adopt young children . Angela also goes by the costume identity ofSister Nightand it ’s observable she and Judd are snug friends , as evidence by how Judd charmingly broke into birdsong at Angela ’s suggestion . During the dinner party scene , a song can be hear in the background and it ’s a version of Nat King Cole ’s " Unforgettable " - the same song that played in the opening view of Zack Snyder’sWatchmen .

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Zack Snyder ’s use of " Unforgettable " lived up to the song ’s title : InWatchmen2009 ’s volatile opener , a orphic mask aggressor ( later revealed to be Adrian Veidt , act by Matthew Goode ) attacked Edward Blake , AKA the Comedian ( Jeffrey Dean Morgan ) , in his New York City high - upgrade apartment . The incredibly brutal conflict scene ended with Veidt tossing Blake through a window so that the Comedian plummeted to his day of reckoning - but the whole time , the bally competitiveness to the death was set to the melodious vocals of Nat King Cole .

" Unforgettable " was also utilized in theWatchmengraphic novel ; it ’s the background song for the TV commercial hawk Nostalgia , a scent by Adrian Veidt ’s corporation . Nostalgia is a recurring theme inWatchmen- as Sally Jupiter ( Carla Gugino ) said,“the past , even the grimy parts , look brighter all the time”- but Snyder used the song ironically as Edward Blake finally got payback for all of his retiring sins , even though it deform out he was attack by Veidt because he learned ofOzymandias ' secret scheme and feel guilt and compunction over Veidt ’s planned mass murder .

There ’s also a 2nd Snyder Easter bollock in HBO’sWatchmen : throughout the original , there are TV commercials for a documentary calledAmerican Hero Story : Minutemen , an unmasking about the original coevals of costumed superheroes . Prominent in the ad is Hooded Justice , who looks very like to how he was depict in theWatchmenmovie . This   is a nod to one   of Snyder ’s military capability : his keen eye for superhero costume design . InWatchmen2009,Hooded Justice and the Minutemenhad costume made of cloth and materials that are appropriate for their 1940s era . The depicting of Hooded Justice in HBO’sWatchmenvery much tilt into how Snyder ’s style the part and it ’s an understated show of respect to the theater director and his film .

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