The Batman Epic Crime Saga is growing bigger by the day. With the massive success of The Penguin, it’s clear Matt Reeves has created something special. It’s about time too as Batman is well deserving of a full fledged, complex universe spanning movies and TV/streaming. As with any popular superhero related content, there is a whirlwind of rumors surrounding who will make an appearance in The Batman Part II, The Batman Part III, and any series that run in between or after them. Let’s break down how each rumored villain we haven’t seen yet could make an appearance.
***Spoilers for The Penguin if you haven’t finished it.***
Scarecrow:
We may have already seen Scarecrow in the form of Julian Rush, Sofia Falone’s psychiatrist in The Penguin. In episode four, there are items on Julian Rush’s desk that are obviously hints towards Scarecrow. On the left, there’s a glove with syringes attached to it that is reminiscent of the Arkham Scarecrow. On the right, there’s a mask which looks a lot like the mask Scarecrow dons in the comics. There is a good chance Scarecrow could be the main villain of The Batman Part II. The new drug, Bliss, could easily be changed by Julian Rush to create fear instead of positive emotions. One batch could be altered and Gotham would plunge into chaos.
Hush:
Hush is one of the most popular rumored villains. Someone with a vendetta against Bruce Wayne specifically could make for a much more personal story. For those that don’t know, Thomas Elliott (Hush) and Bruce Wayne are childhood friends in the comics, but Thomas takes a villainous turn when he murders his parents to make himself more relatable to Bruce. Thomas grows up to be an expert surgeon who can alter his face to look like almost anyone. I think Reeves would take a more realistic approach to it and have Hush be someone who can create perfect masks instead of performing surgery on his own face. Perhaps Penguin, who now controls crime in Gotham, even hires Hush to get Batman off his trail.
Mr. Freeze:
Personally, I would love to see a gritty take on Freeze. However, his freeze gun and whole ice gimmick could tonally clash with the realistic world of The Batman. It’s a risk, but a risk I think Reeves should take. I think it would be interesting to turn Freeze into a vigilante like Batman but one who isn’t afraid to kill. Somehow, the corrupt political network of Gotham, or maybe the Penguin, have caused the accident that turned him into a meta human and fatally injured or killed his wife. Putting Batman and Freeze on a collision course while they pursue the same goals would be very interesting. Freeze has always been one of the more sympathetic villains, so Reeves could potentially go as far as turning him into an anti-hero and giving him his own show.
Mr. Bloom
I wash shocked when I heard the name Mr. Bloom actually said in The Penguin. If you didn’t catch it, Trey Bloom is the creator of Bliss in The Penguin. In the comics, Mr. Bloom’s name is Daryl Gutieriez, but Reeves seems to like changing names. Bloom came up with an elaborate plan to plant seeds in many of Gotham’s citizens that then gave them plant based metahuman powers. Trey Bloom may just be a nice nod to the character, but it could also hint at something larger. Just like my idea for Scarecrow, Trey Bloom could use Bliss to perform acts of terror on Gotham and become its newest villain.
The Joker:
We’ve technically already seen Joker, but it was very brief and vague. Many people think we haven’t seen a good on screen Joker since 2008. We’ve barely seen Batman and Joker interact with each other for more than a few minutes since then. Whatever your opinion is about Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker, he doesn’t have a Batman to battle with. Barry Keoghan’s Joker was terrifying in the deleted scene in which Batman visited him in Arkham, and it left me dying for more. Joker could take a similar route to Scarecrow and Mr. Bloom’s potential plans and turn Bliss into laughing gas. Amazingly, we’ve never seen laughing gas on the big screen before. The chilling cinematography that could come with it is an opportunity that can’t be missed. The Joker will obviously show up in one or both of the sequels, but I’m hoping it’s the third. This leads me to the next villain.
The Court of Owls
The Court is arguably the most rumored and likely villains for one or both of The Batman sequels. Reeves has made a lot of comments recently suggesting that the corruption in Gotham will go much deeper than Batman suspects. It really sounds like he wants to just shout the phrase “Court of Owls!” but can’t. In The Penguin, Ozz even goes into a courtroom where the curtains just so happen to drape in the shape of an owl. What a coincidence. I think The Court and Joker could form a very uneasy alliance. Batman could be investigating the Court and, to throw him off their trail or even kill him, they could unleash the Joker on Gotham. I would love to see the final scene of The Batman II end with the discovery of the Court, the first act of The Batman III be Batman investigating them, the second act be Batman battling the Joker, and the final act being the destruction of the Court. What a movie that would be!
Let me know what you think below!