Like many other countries and cities across the globe, the United Kingdom was put on lockdown last month. That meant production on The Batman had to be halted by Warner Bros., and what was a two-week delay now looks set to last for the foreseeable future (potentially into the summer).
Unfortunately, there's nothing that can be done about that as COVID-19 continues to take lives, and when The New York Times recently spoke to director Matt Reeves, they asked the filmmaker what it was like to have a production like The Batman unexpectedly halted by a pandemic.
"The whole thing is quite surreal," he admits. "As much as we wanted to proceed, we wanted to make sure we were safe. We didn’t want anyone on our crew to get sick. But there was a crew member who actually got it, an incredible dialect coach named Andrew Jack, and he passed away.
"We were all in utter shock and heartbroken. It’s been weeks since we shut down," Reeves continued, "so I don’t think it was passed among the crew. But it’s very, very upsetting."
As for whether he's able to contemplate returning to work on The Batman given what's happening in the world, Reeves was quite to point out that he wants to "come back when the time is right."
"I’ve worked on a few things where, for various reasons, you have to stop for a moment — a cast member gets sick, and you have to shut down for a week. You can take stock of what you’ve done and prepare for what’s coming. I don’t think it’s a moment where I’m going, 'Why aren’t we shooting?' I’m thinking, 'There are bigger things.'"
It's possible The Batman will no longer meet its planned June 2021 release date unless things change sooner rather than later, but the goal right now is to stay home, protect hospitals so they don't become overwhelmed, and save lives. With that in mind, Reeves definitely has the right attitude.
Stay tuned for more on The Batman a little later today!