Los Angeles, May 23 (IANS): Filmmaker Zack Snyder has decided to take a break from work and step down from the film "Justice League"

Snyder's 20-year-old daughter committed suicide in March, prompting him to take a break from work and hire filmmaker Joss Whedon to finish the project, reports thehollywoodreporter.com.

"I've decided to take a step back from the movie to be with my family, be with my kids, who really need me," Snyder said.

Snyder says he initially was eager to return to the film.

"In my mind, I thought it was a cathartic thing to go back to work, to just bury myself and see if that was the way through it. The demands of this job are pretty intense. It is all-consuming. And in the last two months, I've come to the realization… I've decided to take a step back from the movie to be with my family, be with my kids, who really need me. They are all having a hard time. I'm having a hard time," he said on Monday.

Snyder's wife, Deborah, who is a producer on "Justice League", is also taking a break to focus on the healing of their family.

The film features Ben Affleck as Batman, Henry Cavill as Superman, Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, Jason Momoa as Aquaman, Ray Fisher as Cyborg, Amy Adams as Lois Lane, Ezra Miller as The Flash, Willem Dafoe as Nuidis Vulko and Jesse Eisenberg as Lex Luthor, on board.

Warner Bros Pictures President Toby Emmerich said: "What they are going through is unimaginable, and my heart - our hearts - go out to them."

Whedon, the "Avengers" filmmaker and creator of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", will help in the movie which is set to release in November.