Robert Pattinson’s Batman Coming To The DC Universe?
Robert Pattinson was once best known for his work in the Twilight Saga franchise, but these days the British actor has been taking big swings in his career by working with talented directors like Bong Joon-ho and Christopher Nolan. Robert Pattinson’s work earlier this year with director Matt Reeves produced The Batman, where Pattinson took on the titular role and his alter ego, Bruce Wayne. Now, Variety reports that The Batman might be one of the movies that could be incorporated into the DC Universe by new co-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran, although Gunn himself has denied this fact.
Taking to Twitter this morning, former Marvel Cinematic Universe director turned DC Studios head James Gunn denied Variety’s notion that Robertson Pattinson’s Batman character would be part of the DC Universe in the future. Stating unequivocally in his social media post, Gunn showed admiration for Variety reporter Adam Vary’s work but noted that in this instance, the reporter might want to go back to the drawing board. He remarked that Vary might want to “get a new source as this is entirely untrue,” which should put the idea to rest for the time being that Pattinson will appear in the DC Universe.
Even if James Gunn has chosen not to include Robert Pattinson’s Batman as part of the wider expansion of the DC Universe, the actor’s take on the character has been met with positive reviews from critics and audiences alike. The Batman was released theatrically in March 2022 and ended up grossing over $770 million at the box office against a budget of nearly $200 million. Rotten Tomatoes currently ranks the standalone Batman film as Certified Fresh with a rating of 85% on its Tomatometer based on 503 critics’ reviews, as well as an Audience Score of 87% from over 10,000 verified ratings from users to the site.
Warner Bros. Discovery, the company that owns the DC Universe and various DC-related entities, has been purging much of its catalog in recent months. HBO Max and Discovery+, two streaming platforms under the Warner Bros. Discovery umbrella, will see a merger soon into one subscription streaming service. While Robert Pattinson’s The Batman is currently available to stream on HBO Max, other high-profile titles like Minx, The Nevers, Westworld, Love Life, About Last Night, and The Witches have been removed from being available to consumers via the streamer.
When Robert Pattinson was cast as the new Batman, there was a significant amount of skepticism thrown the actor’s way, but by the time The Batman debuted to record box office numbers post-pandemic, that skepticism seemed to lose steam. Due to the high box office return, The Batman will most likely see a sequel under the direction of Matt Reeves, but it appears that the character may not appear as part of the DC Universe for now. After James Gunn and Peter Safran meet with Warner Bros. Discovery chief David Zaslav soon to discuss the future of DC Studios, audiences might see Pattinson show up in the DC Universe after all, but currently, it seems to be a waiting game to see how the DC Universe rolls out its newest content.
