After some tumult following 2017's Justice League film and a production delay due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Bruce Wayne will finally return to the big-screen in Matt Reeves' The Batman. Here's what you need to know about The Batman, including the movie's team, plot, release date and trailer.
Story details for The Batman are still vague at this time. While the movie is not an origin story, The Batman will focus on Bruce Wayne in his second year of crime-fighting as the Caped Crusader as he takes on a serial killer called The Riddler. In addition to The Riddler, classic Batman villains Selina Kyle/Catwoman, Carmine Falcone and Oswald Cobblepot/Penguin will appear in the film. President of DC Films Walter Hamada also confirmed that Pattinson's Batman exists on a different Earth than that of the rest of the DC Extended Universe.
Reeves has emphasized that the story will showcase Batman's detective skills more than any film version of the hero before. He also added, "Because it's still early and because he's a vigilante... I think we would wonder, 'Well, gee, that guy sounds a little dangerous... Some people are wondering, 'Does he exist?' So yeah, the public is afraid of him. That is something he will confront in the court of the story." Similarly, he noted that the movie's characters are not yet who fans know them to be.
As for the movie's tone, Reeves has said that The Batman will show a "humanist" side to the hero. His Wayne, he said, is "majorly struggling, and this is how he's trying to rise above that struggle. But that doesn’t mean that he even fully understands, you know. It's that whole idea of the shadow self and what's driving you, and how much of that you can incorporate, and how much of it you're doing that you’re unaware of."
Additionally, the film's cinematographer, Greig Fraser, commented on The Batman's tone and visual style to Collider, saying, "I don’t think it’s going to be oppressively dark in terms of visually, because that’s not what we’re trying to do. We’re not trying to have a competition about who can go the darkest of the darkest of the darkest. We’re trying to create intrigue." He went on to suggest that he is closely referring to comics as source material for cinematic and visual inspiration but could not indicate which comics specifically.
Reeves, who directed the two most recent installments in the Planet of the Apes series, co-wrote The Batman's script with Project Power scribe Mattson Tomlin.
As for the movie's cast, Warner Bros. has assembled a truly stellar group of both young talent and established actors. The Batman will star Robert Pattinson as Bruce Wayne/ Batman, Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth and Jeffrey Wright as James Gordon. The Dark Knight's rogues gallery is fully stocked, with Zoë Kravitz as Selina Kyle/ Catwoman, Colin Farrell as Oswald Cobblepot/The Penguin, Paul Dano as Edward Nashton/ The Riddler and John Turturro as Carmine Falcone. The most mysterious role is Peter Sarsgaard's District Attorney Gil Colson, a character with no comic book ties who some believe could be a stand-in for Harvey Dent.
The first official look at The Batman came when Reeves released a costume test clip that revealed a glimpse of Pattinson's suit, decked out with a mechanical-looking chest and shoulder armor. The video also played a snippet of composer Michael Giacchino's dark, noir-sounding score. Later, Reeves released photos that showcased the new Batmobile and a fully-costumed Pattinson.
In August, DC FanDome culminated with the premiere of a full trailer for The Batman, which included looks at Gordon, Selina Kyle and the Dark Knight in action. It puts Reeves' gritty and grounded Gotham on full display and portrays a young, mysterious, and shockingly violent Batman who is being sent a message through a series of murders, ostensibly being committed by Dano's Riddler.
Following the worldwide outbreak of COVID-19 in March 2020, production of The Batman in London, England, was halted. At The Batman FanDome panel, Reeves noted that they have only completed about a quarter of the filming. Filming finally wrapped in March 2021. However, as a result of these delays, The Batman was pushed back from its original release date of June 25, 2021, and then to October 1, 2021, before finally settling on March 4, 2022.
Directed by Matt Reeves and written by Reeves and Mattson Tomlin, The Batman stars Robert Pattinson as Bruce Wayne/Batman, Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth, Jeffrey Wright as James Gordon, Zoë Kravitz as Selina Kyle/Catwoman, Colin Farrel as Oswald Cobblepot/The Penguin, Paul Dano as Edward Nashton/The Riddler, John Turturro as Carmine Falcone and Peter Sarsgaard as District Attorney Gil Colson. The film arrives in theaters March 4, 2022.
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