Over the past 15 years, superhero films have taken on a life of their own. Marvel essentially redefined these projects as we know them with their myriad of successful franchises bolstered by the uber-successful Avengers franchise. Following them, other heavyweights in the space like DC Films have made strong attempts to make their presence felt with the highly lauded Wonder Woman reboot starring Gal Gadot. Last year though fans were introduced to a new style of superhero film that was as avant-garde as it was thought provoking, two elements typically not attributed to traditional superhero films. That was 2022’s The Batman starring Robert Pattinson as the titular hero, and now rumors are beginning to circulate regarding the impending sequel that is sure to intrigue fans.
While many of us chiefly remember The Dark Knight trilogy starring Christian Bale, which has been widely lauded as possibly the best treatment of the iconic superhero story given how much time and effort was put into those projects coupled with Heath Ledger’s iconic rendition of the Joker. The Batman took things in a different direction entirely, seeing Pattinson drop the fangs he donned in the Twilight films in favor of the iconic Batman suit with some unique touches that allowed the actor to put on an incredibly broody yet mysterious twist on the character. Because of this, many fans have argued it was quite possibly the most authentic portrayal of the role and earned the film an 85% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Matt Reeves, director, co-author and producer of The Batman, gave an exclusive interview with Collider this week however, and is eager about the reboot’s future: “To me, the thing that I really feel is that I also believe that Rob [Pattinson] is so special in the role. My goal has always been to do these point-of-view stories that allow the character to always be the emotional center of the story. Because a lot of times what happens is, after you do the first one, then suddenly other Rogues Gallery characters come in, and they kind of take over, and then Batman takes a backseat sort of character-wise, or emotionally.” He also confirmed that the sequel is absolutely being produced as we speak, and despite his desire to emphasize Pattison’s portrayal of Batman, Paul Dano’s fantastic performance of The Riddler, just one of Batman’s many adversaries, I’d bet we still get introduced to at least one more villain in the sequel. Eager fans, myself included, will just have to remain patient however as further updates about The Batman sequel become available.
When it comes to superheroes, few are as historically significant and beloved as Batman. Originally debuting as a comic book in 1939, the character has come a tremendous way and has had his status bolstered even further by iconic performances over the decades from Michael Keaton, Adam West and the aforementioned Bale and Pattinson. Pattison’s stint is just getting started though, and fans should certainly be excited for the magic Reeves and his crew are poised to create.
