The Batman director Matt Reeves wants to be the architect of his own Batman cinematic universe.
One of the most striking choices from The Batman is that it doesn’t exist within the larger DC Extended Universe like Wonder Woman and Suicide Squad. Instead, it’s set to operate in its own stand-alone universe, which director Matt Reeves has playfully referred to as “the Batverse”. Warner Bros. and DC have already committed to the director’s vision, as two spin-offs are already in the works at HBO Max.
The first will focus on the Gotham City Police Department, likely from the point of view of Jeffrey Wright’s James Gordon. The other will give further insight into Colin Farrell’s Penguin. As for a sequel to The Batman? Nothing has been confirmed as of yet but it’s clear that Warner Bros. has a hit on its hand.
Speaking with EW, Matt Reeves opened up about his ambitions to tell more stories in this self-contained universe and how The Batman serves as the perfect springboard to launch a “Batverse”.
“What I really wanted this movie to do is create a Batverse. You don’t do a story and go, ‘This is Chapter 1’ because you might not get to do Chapter 2. So, the story had to stand on its own. But the thing about it is that the Bat world is so rich with character that as you’re starting to come to an end, you can already start thinking about the next thing. Because the idea, of course, is that Gotham’s story never ends.”
Matt Reeves continued by discussing the highly-anticipated Penguin series, which manifested out of conversations he held with HBO Max. The director went on to tease details from the upcoming show, comparing it to Scarface.
“I said [to HBO Max], ‘To be honest with you, the thing that was going to be the seeds of what I thought the next story could be in terms of the Penguin is that I saw there being this kind of ‘American dream in Gotham’ sort of story, almost like Scarface; the rise of this character who we all know will achieve mythic status.’ He is underestimated and he’s like a time bomb… They were like, ‘Oh my God, we’re in!’ And that was really exciting because, by that point, Colin had already given life to this character.”
Here is the synopsis for The Batman:
Two years of stalking the streets as the Batman (Robert Pattinson), striking fear into the hearts of criminals, has led Bruce Wayne deep into the shadows of Gotham City. With only a few trusted allies — Alfred Pennyworth (Andy Serkis), Lt. James Gordon (Jeffrey Wright) — amongst the city’s corrupt network of officials and high-profile figures, the lone vigilante has established himself as the sole embodiment of vengeance amongst his fellow citizens.
When a killer targets Gotham’s elite with a series of sadistic machinations, a trail of cryptic clues sends the World’s Greatest Detective on an investigation into the underworld, where he encounters such characters as Selina Kyle/aka Catwoman (Zoë Kravitz), Oswald Cobblepot/aka the Penguin (Colin Farrell), Carmine Falcone (John Turturro), and Edward Nashton/aka the Riddler (Paul Dano). As the evidence begins to lead closer to home and the scale of the perpetrator’s plans becomes clear, Batman must forge new relationships, unmask the culprit, and bring justice to the abuse of power and corruption that has long plagued Gotham City.
Directed by Matt Reeves, The Batman stars Robert Pattinson as the titular hero, Zoe Kravitz as Catwoman, Paul Dano as the Riddler, Jeffrey Wright as James Gordon, John Turturro as Carmine Falcone, Peter Sarsgaard as Gil Colson, Jayme Lawson as Bella Reál, with Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth, and Colin Farrell as the Penguin.
The Batman will hit theaters on March 4, 2022. Stay tuned for all the latest news surrounding the upcoming film and be sure to subscribe to Heroic Hollywood’s YouTube channel for more original video content.
Source: Entertainment Weekly
