Based on everything we've heard and seen over the past few weeks, it really is starting to seem like a lot of what we thought we knew about The Batman - Part II might have been way off.
After previously describing Matt Reeves' sequel as a "radical retelling" of Batman, star Robert Pattinson is once again teasing a "different take" on the legendary DC Comics hero.
“It’s so ambitious. I mean, I sort of said the other day on something that the first one was a different take on a Batman movie, and this one is another,” the Primetime star tells Collider. “It’s a real left turn from the first one, but somehow it keeps elements of the kind of feel of it. But it just feels really ambitious, and I’m excited to see how it turns out.”
Recent set videos showed Pattinson's Bruce Wayne making his way through a crowd of angry protestors as he leaves a Gotham City courthouse. Some of the signs being held said: “Court of Fowls, I'm coming for you next, Your Greed is Killing Us, Oligarchs gotta go, The richer get richer, Eat the rich, One day the poor will have nothing," and "Re$i$t.”
The Waynes have always represented the elite in Gotham City, but the family was generally well-regarded by the working class. We're not sure exactly what Bruce did to change this, but it seems clear that he is no longer a very popular figure.
Could the actions of The Court of Owls or Anarky be behind this negative perception of Billionaire Bruce? (more here).
When Sebastian Stan's casting was announced, the trades indicated that he would play Harvey Dent/Two-Face, but this was never confirmed, and rumors later circulated that he'd actually been cast as deranged serial killer Victor Zsasz.
As for Scarlett Johansson, there are rumors that she will play a version of Poison Ivy. A blonde woman many believe to be the actress' stunt double was recently spotted riding shotgun in the Batmobile. The same woman was then seen standing with a mysterious child as Wayne was being resuscitated by Alfred.
Earlier this year, Reeves officially announced the movie's main cast on social media.
The filmmaker confirmed that Robert Pattinson (Bruce Wayne/Batman), Jeffrey Wright (Jim Gordon), Andy Serkis (Alfred Pennyworth), Colin Farrell (Oz Cobb/The Penguin), Jayme Lawson (Bella Réal) and Gil Perez-Abraham (Officer Martinez) will reprise their roles, alongside new cast members Scarlett Johansson, Sebastian Stan, Charles Dance, Sebastian Koch and Brian Tyree Henry.
Reeves did not reveal the characters Gotham City's new additions will play.
After several previous delays, The Batman - Part II was scheduled to arrive in theaters on October 1, 2027, but was recently pushed back to February 18, 2028.