Equalizer Director Making A Batman Movie?
Acclaimed action director Antoine Fuqua, best known for his work on films such as Olympus Has Fallen, Training Day, and the Equalizer trilogy starring Denzel Washington, has expressed interest in helming a Batman film. According to a recent write-up in CBR, the renowned director would actually be perfect for another masked vigilante in the DC universe, namely Red Hood. The filmmaker’s high-octane bonafides have been well established, though he has yet to venture into the field of superhero films, meaning now may be the perfect time to start.
Antoine Fuqua, known for working with Denzel Washington on Training Day and the Equalizer films, wants to direct a Batman movie.
For Antoine Fuqua to helm a Batman movie, he would first have to get hired by DC creative head and Guardians of the Galaxy visionary James Gunn. Gunn was appointed to helm the future of the DCU and its extended franchise installments back in November of 2022, following a successful foray into DC with his 2021 film The Suicide Squad. Though details regarding the upcoming slate of DCU films under Gunn’s management are being kept tightly under wraps, it does seem as though there will not be room for Fuqua to take the lead on an official canon Batman film for at least the next few years.
Of course, DC has begun to expand into a wide array of mixed canon, mostly connected through the multiverse as seen in recent installments such as The Flash. Furthermore, Warner Brothers recently announced plans to produce a trilogy of animated Justice League films adapting the Crisis On Infinite Earths comic book storyline, potentially creating a lane for Antoine Fuqua to direct a Batman movie within the animated DC Elseworlds canon.
Antoine Fuqua will have to wait a few years if he wants to direct a Batman movie, with the next two coming from Matt Reeves and Andy Muschietti.
Of course, this seems a bit unlikely as well, considering Antoine Fuqua’s specialty seems to be well choreographed and delivered with a sense of crushing realism, making him a perfect fit for a brutal and bloody Batman tale. With Matt Reeves continuing his The Batman franchise starring Robert Pattinson and Flash director Andy Muschietti recently hired to direct Batman: The Brave and the Bold, there doesn’t appear to be much room left for yet another live-action Batman in the near future.
Whether Antoine Fuqua gets the opportunity to direct a Batman film or not, fans can rest assured the director’s next action-packed masterpiece will bring the same blend of high-octane energy and dramatic tension we’ve all come to expect from a Fuqua film.
If Antoine Fuqua has his heart set on helming a Batman feature, perhaps he would be best advised to wait a few years and check back with Warner Brothers once they’ve greenlit sequels or reboots to the existing vigilante franchise, or even take on the task of picking another gritty Gotham-based character. As it currently stands, the DC comic book adaptations have already begun to spiral into a nigh unfollowable web of differing canon, making James Gunn’s decision to end the Snyderverse for good and reboot the DCU from scratch an excellent place for Fuqua to begin.
Whether Antoine Fuqua gets the opportunity to direct a Batman film or not, fans can rest assured the director’s next action-packed masterpiece will bring the same blend of high-octane energy and dramatic tension we’ve all come to expect from a Fuqua film. For now, all fans can do is wait for James Gunn to release more information regarding the future of the DCU.
