Batman’s Most Questionable Villain Getting A Spinoff Movie
A new rumor suggests that Matt Reeves' The Batman might be getting a spinoff centered around one of the upcoming film's main antagonists.
Despite only being a few weeks into shooting The Batman, Matt Reeves was able to compose a fascinating teaser that made it clear The Riddler was going to be a formidable presence in the new film. While we haven’t gotten a clear look at Paul Dano as The Riddler, Reeves has praised Dano’s performance in The Batman. Yet a new rumor suggests that this is just the beginning for The Riddler, as the villain might be getting his own spinoff.
We Got This Covered is saying that “unnamed sources” have told them a Riddler spinoff is in the works, since Paul Dano’s performance is supposedly a revelation. However, We Got This Covered also mentions there are rumors Barry Keoghan might be the true Riddler, so it’s unclear if the spinoff would feature Dano, Keoghan, or potentially both. This spinoff would follow The Riddler after the events of The Batman.
Since DC has already stated that The Batman doesn’t tie to any of their other universes, be it the DC Extended Universe or Todd Phillips’ Joker universe, it does make sense that the studio would want to build out Matt Reeves’ vision. The Batman trailer already showed just how passionate audiences are about this new take on the character, and the studio seems ready to completely support this series going forward.
Following The Batman, HBO Max will be releasing a spin-off series that focuses on Batman’s first year of crime-fighting. It’s unclear who from the film will be appearing in this prequel series, and it’s also unsure what the status of this series is, considering Terence Winter, writer for The Sopranos and creator of Boardwalk Empire has recently left the project. The Batman is also planned to be the first in a new Batman trilogy, with many assuming that the lack of Joker in this initial film means the villain will be coming in a later installment.
Also adding to the possibility of a darker Riddler spinoff is DC’s recent penchant for R-rated films in their universe. One of DC’s biggest films ever was 2019’s Joker, which earned over a billion dollars worldwide, and was the rare film based on a comic book to get nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards. DC seems interested in continuing this trend, releasing such R-rated projects as this year’s Birds of Prey, and 2021’s The Suicide Squad. DC seems to have no problem allowing Batman characters to get a little darker in their films.
There have also been plenty of rumors that DC might be interested in giving their roster of villains their own films for a while now. Most notably, Todd Phillips, director of Joker, has said he has ideas for more films centered around other DC villains. DC has made it clear that, for example, Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker won’t go against Robert Pattinson’s Bruce Wayne from The Batman, but there’s nothing to say that Phillips couldn’t have a hand in expanding DC’s lineup of villain-focused films.
DC does seem to have a lot of confidence in The Batman, which is scheduled for release on March 4, 2022, considering they’re already building out this world with a spinoff prequel series and multiple sequels. Whether or not DC’s plan includes a Riddler spinoff is yet to be seen, and there frankly isn’t a lot of evidence to support this is in the worlds. Yet if Paul Dano’s The Riddler is as great as Matt Reeves is saying it is, anything is possible.
