The Batman: What should we get from the next reboot?

Battinson could give us a lot of new stories for The Caped Crusader

We are over a year from the release of The Batman and very little is known about the plot. All we know about the reboot is that the story will be following The Dark Knight in his second year of crime fighting as he tries to uncover the mystery behind a murder – that brings him into contact with a variety of members from his rogues gallery, such as Catwoman/Selina Kyle, The Riddler/Edward Nashton and The Penguin/Oswald “Oz” Cobblepot.

But the question is, what new threads could director Matt Reeves bring to the Batman tapestry? With the man behind Dawn of the Planet of the Apes promising a character-driven noir story, we are already getting hints at a new direction for the hero and his supporting characters. What else can we be hoping for though? We at ScreenHeads have brainstormed and come up with some points that would be great to see, and that have maybe been hinted at.

A Batman who makes mistakes

This is a Bruce Wayne in his early days. Although Batman ’89 and Batman Begins show him starting out as a vigilante, those versions seem to show him being perfect at the job from the off. With Matt Reeves wanting the story to be told mainly from Batman’s perspective, could we see him making some slip ups along the way? Reeves had this to say to THR when asked for details on his remake of the character for Warner Bros.:

It’s very much a point of view-driven, noir Batman tale. It’s told very squarely on his shoulders, and I hope it’s going to be a story that will be thrilling but also emotional.

“point of view-driven” and “emotional”. Could it be possible that we’ll see a young Caped Crusader have a major set back in his investigation before cleaning up his mess and getting back on track?

A disapproving Alfred Pennyworth

Something that was only touched upon in Christopher Nolan’s trilogy is the idea of Bruce Wayne’s loyal butler not being fully on board with his nocturnal activities. The story thread of Alfred not personally assisting his employer in his fight against Gotham’s underworld would be an interesting twist for the character. Sure enough, by the film’s end Pennyworth would begin to help out but we’d see Bruce very much trying to figure out his duel identity on his own. Alfred’s new actor for the film, motion capture legend Andy Serkis, did have this to say when he was asked by LADbible if fans can expect a ‘darker, broodier’ tone from the new instalment:

I would say that’s not far from the truth. It’s very much about the emotional connection between Alfred and Bruce. That’s really at the centre of it. And it is a really exquisite script that Matt has written.

The emotional connection for the pair could be explored perfectly with Bruce pining for assistance but not wanting to ask for help, whilst his loyal servant wants to help but can’t condone the danger surrounding the situation.

Less focus on the Wayne murders

Though it is a key part of the origin story, is it maybe time to rest the scene in Crime Alley. the story thread concerning the murder of Bruce Wayne’s parents has been rested before: once in 1992’s Batman Returns, again in 1997’s Batman & Robin, and also in both The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises. However, with all of the times the event has been shown, more recently in TV show Gotham and 2016’s Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, the scene has gotten old and doesn’t have the same emotional effect as the first gazillion times it has been explored.

If Battinson maybe gazes at a family portrait once or twice or mentions some pearls of wisdom from his father, thats a nice enough reminder of what has happened. We also can’t forget that the newly-designed bat symbol on the suit may come from the night of the Wayne Murders directly.

Of course, filmmakers can’t always just assume that everyone is familiar with the backstory, but look at the MCU’s handling of Spider-Man’s origins. The slight nod here and there seems to have done the trick just fine.

Related Article: Matt Reeves Reveals First Look at New Batman Costume

A Penguin with a duel identity

Batman Returns gave us Danny DeVito’s Penguin who ended up running for mayor whilst plotting against Gotham. However, this version didn’t really lay the ground work long-term to cement any kind of persona that lessened the chances of being a villain.

If The Batman gave us the Oswald from the comics – a sleazy club owner who is looked down on by everyone, whilst secretly being behind heists and gang violence in Gotham – it would be something fun for the audience. Not only is Bruce Wayne leading a double life, so is one of his enemies.

Having said that, we may not get much chance for full exploration in this first outing for Colin Farrell’s take on the character. When discussing playing the character with GMA News Online, the Dumbo star was quoted as saying:

…And I haven’t got that much to do. I have a certain amount in the film. I am not all over it by any means. But there are a couple of some tasty scenes I have in it and my creation and I can’t wait to get back.

So, in actual fact, could The Batman merely be setting up Cobblepot’s place in this version of Gotham City before seeing him in full force during the second outing of the film series?

An untrustworthy Catwoman

One of the best traits about Selina Kyle’s cat burglar is her consistency in double-crossing our hero. It’s a common theme throughout the comics, some TV depictions and in 2012’s The Dark Knight Rises. It’s fun for the story not knowing if she’ll help out until the bitter end or if she’ll reveal what’s in it for her and make a run for it once she has what she needed.

Big Little Lies‘ Zoë Kravitz has been cast in the coveted role, and though the actress is yet to speak freely about her take on the character, we should be okay to expect her to bring the edge we need for the character to work.

A Batman-hating Jim Gordon

Something else that has only been touched upon minimally in previous screen adaptions – Commissioner James Gordon’s locking of horns with the winged vigilante himself.

Batman ’89 and 2005’s Batman Begins gave us a quick look at the law enforcer seeing Batman as a threat to Gotham, but not as much as we should have seen. Look at the likes of Paul Blackthorne’s Detective Quentin Lance in CW’s Arrow – the character was not in full, long-term support of Stephen Amell’s Green Arrow until Season Four of the show’s run, having the character trust his gut and not believe in blurring the lines of the law.

To feature Gordon not being in cahoots with Pattinson’s Caped Crusader until at least the sequel, you would not only be tackling the emotional element of the film further (in that Bruce also has to deal with dodging the police alone to get the job done). You would also be strengthening the character development of the man who will go on to light up the Bat Signal on a nightly basis…probably to his wife’s annoyance.

Westworld‘s Jeffrey Wright fills the shoes of Gordon in this version, so surely that gruff voice won’t be wasted on shouting police jargon as opposed to cursing our Dark Knight.

An introduction to Harvey Dent

Yes, there is absolutely no genuine leads to this, but it would be something else that could add layers to later films. Every time District Attorney Harvey Dent features on the big screen, he is either fully developed as a villain from the off like in 1995’s Batman Forever, or introduced and turned into a villain within the film’s runtime – of course I reference The Dark Knight here.

Nevertheless, for people not familiar with this world or fans wanting to get a bit more depth from the story, wouldn’t there be a benefit from introducing Harvey Dent simply as a hard working, soul to the Earth attorney? It sets up a more emotional arc for the characters downfall further down the line and it means not packing too many villains into one feature film.

Reeves has said he wants The Batman to be thrilling yet also Emotional. what could be more perfect from a villain’s perspective for this kind of take on the DC Universe?

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Whatever Reeves has in store for us, it is sure to bring forth a new and exciting take on Bruce Wayne and his alter ego. All we need to do now is hope filming goes back to normal soon in light of the situation surrounding the Coronavirus pandemic.

The Batman is due to hit cinemas on 1 October, 2021.