Whereas new management at Warner Bros. Discovery has made headlines these days for slicing a lot of their programming slate and movie initiatives — together with the long-awaited Batgirl movie — one huge piece of fine information arrived this week. Filmmaker Matt Reeves and screenwriter Mattson Tomlin are about to start writing the sequel to 2022’s blockbuster reboot The Batman for WBD. Robert Pattinson will return within the title function.
Robert Pattinson stars in “The Batman”
The Batman grossed $770 million in its theatrical run after it’s launch in March of this 12 months, and is presently the fifth-highest grossing movie of 2022, behind Prime Gun: Maverick ($1.4 billion), Jurassic World Dominion ($984.7 million), Physician Unusual within the Multiverse of Insanity ($955 million), and Minions: The Rise of Gru (835.8 million). The Darkish Detective’s reboot was additionally critically acclaimed, having fun with an 85% “recent” score at Rotten Tomatoes and a Cinemascore viewers grade of A-. You may learn my very own assessment right here.
A sequel appeared inevitable, and the studio shortly arrange spinoff streaming collection at HBO Max together with The Penguin and Gotham Metropolis PD, the latter of which advanced into plans for an Arkham Asylum collection.
However the Warner Bros. merger with Discovery and subsequent cancellations and bulletins (together with that the brand new WBD wouldn’t develop huge branded IPs — together with DC properties — for streaming, reserving them for theatrical releases) all of a sudden forged doubt on the entire way forward for Reeves’ plans for Batman. And simply this week got here phrase that the animated collection Batman: Caped Crusader, government produced by Matt Reeves, Bruce Timm, and J.J. Abrams — would now not be launched on HBO Max. The studio plans to promote it to another streaming service.
So followers and leisure press have been anxiously awaiting affirmation of Reeves’ standing and whether or not his bat-plans are nonetheless getting the inexperienced gentle. Which is why there was nice aid when information of The Batman 2 being scripted was shortly adopted by affirmation that Reeves has signed a first-look take care of WBD and can also be persevering with his take care of WB Tv Group. That is the primary of such exclusivity offers with any filmmaker for WBD, and the main points of the announcement made it clear The Penguin and different Batman tie-in initiatives are nonetheless good to go and gained’t face the company axe.
Mattison Tomlin labored on the script for The Batman, however the last script was credit score to Reeves and Peter Craig. This time round, Tomlin might be cowriting the script for The Batman 2 with Reeves. You may get a have a look at Tomlin’s writing for the character in his distinctive comedian e book restricted collection Batman: The Imposter.
The Batman sequel scripting will start quickly, however to this point it’s too early to say when it will likely be completed or what it will likely be about. And any phrase of manufacturing begin dates might be some time in coming, too, so followers must be affected person. Reeves likes to take his time and ensure he will get all the things proper, and we ought to be glad of that.
Phrase that Reeves has the studio’s full help and can have the ability to proceed together with his Batman plans unhindered is music to the ears of those that really feel Reeves is completely suited to supervise your entire Batman franchise and bigger bat-world for a protracted whereas.
I’ve banged the drum for Reeves to be Warner’s Batman man since earlier than Affleck even formally left as writer-director on the solo Batman movies, and it’s no secret my very own greatest concern about the way forward for DC films was whether or not Reeves would get to pursue his imaginative and prescient and stick round on Batman. So for me and others who share my enthusiasm, realizing Reeves might be right here for a protracted whereas, and that his Batman world will proceed to increase, takes a number of the sting out of the dangerous information about different DC initiatives being cancelled or diverted.
Now that we all know a sequel is on the way in which, we will begin debating potential villains in earnest. I’ve written earlier than about which villains I believe are on the desk for The Batman 2 (which is able to certainly have a distinct title by the point a script is finished), with Mr. Freeze being a possible prime candidates since he was one identify singled out by Matt Reeves himself after I attended a particular early screening of The Batman. So keep tuned for lots extra hypothesis and evaluation about this over the subsequent few months whereas we wait to see which of the rogues gallery will arrive to problem the Darkish Detective subsequent.
I hope the plans for streaming collection The Penguin and (for lack of a greater reference title at this level) Arkham Asylum stay as Reeves desires and plans them. However a part of me wonders if WBD executives will attempt to persuade Reeves to merge his plans into a movie challenge or two, as an alternative of streaming them as collection. Or maybe they are going to ask if he could be prepared to meld the 2 ideas right into a single characteristic movie targeted on the villains of Gotham Metropolis, some on the streets and a few at Arkham.
Once more, it sounds just like the streaming collection plans stay in place — though maybe as an alternative of debuting on HBO Max (or no matter amalgamation service exists when Discovery+ and HBO Max are folded collectively) the studio may promote these exhibits to different streamers the identical approach they’re handing off Batman: Caped Crusader. So my hypothesis above is impressed by lingering considerations about studio meddling and seeming incongruity between WBD management’s intention to pivot away from debuting DC live-action content material on streaming as an alternative of theatrical on one hand, and the thought of live-action streaming exhibits set in The Batman’s cinematic world however.
Keep tuned and examine again quickly for extra updates as The Batman 2 enters improvement and as we be taught extra about plans for the spinoff streaming collection, and for extra phrase on Matt Reeves’ different initiatives below the brand new first-look deal between WBD and Reeves’ manufacturing firm sixth and Idaho.
