Summary
- The Batman has a gritty realism that sets it apart from other DC films like Superman and Green Lantern.
- Changes on Warner Bros’ website hint at a possible shift in the franchise towards surreal and bizarre elements.
- Fans may expect a major announcement at Cinemacon regarding the sequel, as details are scarce due to a delayed release.
The Batman has a distinct and unique creative voice from James Gunn’s DCU. It’s grounded in gritty realism, standing apart from the more fantastical elements of a world with Superman or Green Lantern. But recent changes on a Warner Bros. website may indicate that The Batman is about to slide into the surreal and bizarre.
In a world oversaturated with superhero reboots, full of Spider-Men and enough live-action Batmen to do a DC Elseworlds story, it was a pleasant surprise when Reeves managed to give the character a fresh take. While Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight Trilogy may objectively be the better overall set of films, The Batman managed to mark its place atmospherically as the best Batman movie. Mainly because it captures the soul of Gotham in a way we’ve never seen onscreen before. Reeves treats the city like a character, and, as a result, its dirty, dystopian, dilapidated, and corrupt conditions seem so dire, that it feels warranted a Batman or Riddler would feel the need to take up their crusade of vigilantism and do something about it. A large part of its tone is in its careful balance of realism and the outlandishness of its characters. The first film was a pure epic crime drama. However, audiences may be surprised to know the franchise is about to embrace its more eccentric history.
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It was discovered on the Spanish Warner Bros. website that the film had received a title change from The Batman: Part II to Untitled Batman Film. It’s a slightly strange alteration considering that Warner Bros’ Cinemacon panel is just six days away. The panel is set to be two hours long in total. This could suggest that The Batman franchise may be in for a major announcement, potentially a title drop that would give fans more information about the story and its villain.
This may be the audience’s only piece of information for a very long time. The Batman’s sequel has been delayed until 2027 and Matt Reeves is allegedly yet to turn in a script. Reeves has since cleared the air and stated that a script is close to completion, with filming expected to take place in 2025. Still, it’ll be a three-year-long journey until audiences see the movie on the Silver Screen or any footage in the form of a trailer. So, a title drop would be a great way to keep up hype for the film.
Eagle-eyed fans will also have noticed that on the Warner Bros. website the genre has been listed as: action/adventure/sci-fi/fantasy. Sci-fi/fantasy will certainly raise a couple of eyebrows as it sits in direct contrast to what this franchise is supposed to be; a pragmatic deconstruction of the caped crusader. James Gunn has already firmly ruled out that Clayface will be The Batman: Part II’s villain. Clayface will be in his own R-rated DCU film, diving into the antagonist’s disgusting reality of a nightmarish psychological body horror. The film is set to be directed by indie horror darling Mike Flanagan, and will embrace every aspect of the outlandish in the DCU.
So, what does The Batman’s newfound relationship with sci-fi/fantasy mean? Which character from Batman’s rogues gallery could possibly balance their strange superhuman abilities with Reeves’ realism? Many have speculated that it could be Mr. Freeze, a metahuman that owes his quirks to a scientific experiment gone wrong. The villain is permanently encased in a suit designed to keep his body temperature at sub-zero conditions. Given Robert Patterson’s highly technical, advanced Batman suit, is it that much of a stretch to see a villain like Mr. Freeze existing in this universe in a more toned-down form? Gotham was flooded at the end of the last film. Did its freezing waters disrupt the scientist’s activities and lead to an irreversible change in his physiology? Much remains to be seen, but fans will be on the lookout for any information that may hint as to what The Batman’s next big bad may be.
