We have lots to discuss after watching the Creature Commandos finale (you can find our recap here), but a seemingly throwaway line includes a major revelation about the DCU's Batman. Does it close the door on The Batman's Robert Pattinson ever joining this franchise? Yes and no.
In the penultimate episode of the animated series, we learn that Doctor Phosphorus was created after a run-in with Gotham City mobster Rupert Thorn.
Hellbent on revenge, Phosphorus went on a rampage, killing Thorn and the men who murdered his wife and child. With that, he took over the villain's criminal empire before being captured by Batman (a confrontation which, unfortunately, didn't play out on screen).
Phosphorus' time in charge surely can't have lasted long; perhaps weeks, months, or a year or two at most. However, he'd have gotten on Batman's radar pretty quickly following that killing spree and quite clearly murdered Thorn hours after he was turned into a monster.
So, when Phosphorus mentions in the finale that it's been fifteen years since his transformation, we can safely assume it's been more than a decade since Batman captured the villain and put him in Belle Reve.
The Batman takes place in "Year Two" of the Caped Crusader's vigilante career, so the only way Pattinson can now join the DCU is if he's significantly aged up. Then again, Matt Reeves' movies can explore Batman's formative years before Gunn has the actor play an older version of the hero in the DCU.
While it would be easy enough for DC Studios to retcon a throwaway line in an animated TV show, it makes sense for the DCU's Batman to be in his 40s or 50s, especially if he has a child. However, while he looks a lot younger than that, Pattinson is 38 and easily old enough to be the father of 10-year-old Damian Wayne. So, for now, that door remains ajar.
"As everyone knows, the Batman featured in The Brave and the Bold will belong to the new DC universe," The Brave and the Bold director Andy Muschietti said in a recent interview. "It’s quite obvious that Matt Reeves’ Batman is not part of this new universe."
"However, DC and Warner Bros. are moving forward with the second part of Reeves’ Batman series, which, as widely reported, is expected to release around 2027. This means the next Batman movie will take some time before it sees the light of day.... Releasing two Batman films simultaneously would be counterproductive," the director added. "What DC is doing is creating a strategy to ensure these two films don’t conflict with each other."
Neither James Gunn nor Matt Reeves have denied that Pattinson will be the DCU's Batman, and what they decide is likely to overrule the hopes of a filmmaker who delivered a dud like The Flash.
All episodes of Creature Commandos are now streaming on Max.