As of now, the plan is for Superman: Legacy and The Batman II to both arrive in theaters next year. However, while the Man of Tomorrow is on track to make his DCU debut in 2025, we're not currently sure whether this "Elseworlds" Caped Crusader will make his return as soon as we'd hoped.
The WGA strike seems to have significantly slowed work down on the movie and, talking to Variety, Jim Gordon actor Jeffrey Wright confirmed he's still waiting on a script.
"Here’s the beginning, middle, and end laid out for you," he joked when asked for an update. "I have not read the script. I have not received the script. I’m waiting patiently. But I’ll tell you what? As soon as I get it, I’ll call you. I’ll send a copy right over to you. On the off chance that Matt Reeves hears this, the hairs on the back of his neck are going to stand up."
That's a little disheartening and the clock is definitely ticking when it comes to the sequel beginning production and being finished in time for that planned October 2025 release.
Getting serious about the secrecy surrounding a movie like The Batman II, the actor added, "Man, that thing is on lockdown. I think I had a paper version of the script for the first one, but they wanted to hold on to it after we were finished [shooting]. We would get these ‘Mission Impossible’ self-destructing files sent to us. It’s hardcore. It’s like five-step authentication."
Wright shared similar sentiments last month when he explained, "You've seen as much of a script as I have at this point. I don't want to jump ahead. I just want to go forward with it."
"Clearly, I'm Lieutenant Gordon at the end of the film, the first film, so we may be moving up in the ranks, I suppose, but I haven't seen anything yet," Wright added. "I'm being patient, letting [director] Matt Reeves do his thing - which is going to be magical and wonderful - and looking forward to diving back into it when the time comes."
Despite some pretty wild speculation online that DC Studios might sideline The Batman sequel in order to keep the focus on The Brave and the Bold, we're pretty sure the "Elseworlds" movie is still on the way, particularly with The Penguin coming to Max later this year.
Then again, it's easy to see why many fans are concerned when Reeves' Arkham-set TV show has gone from being a Bat-Verse project to one which takes place in the DCU. In an ideal world, James Gunn and Peter Safran would make Robert Pattinson's Dark Knight part of their reboot, but we're not banking on it.
The Batman II is currently scheduled to be released in theaters on October 3, 2025.