UPDATE: As I wrote this, news broke that Jonah Hill is also being looked at to portray a villain in The Batman. The obvious character for Hill to play is The Penguin based on his…well, everything. Yet no role has been revealed for the two-time Oscar nominee. I don’t know about you but I could definitely see Hill sinking his teeth into a meaty bad guy role. Someone break it to Josh Gad gently.

More casting news is emerging from the Bat-Cave…and it’s very good news indeed.

The Hollywood Reporter has revealed that Jeffrey Wright is in negotiations to star as Commissioner Jim Gordon in The Batman. Matt Reeves is directing the feature and Robert Pattinson will of course don the cape and cowl. Wright is the first major casting news since it was reported that Pattinson was going to play the Dark Knight.

We all Know Jim Gordon, the beleaguered and often exhausted Gotham City police commissioner who believes in Batman and supports him, despite many thinking Bats is as crazy as the villains he fights. Gordon is a staple in the series and you can’t imagine a Batman movie without him. A big name like Wright suggests that Commissioner Gordon will be a major part of the new film.

This is one of those perfect casting choices that makes you wonder why you didn’t think of it first. Wright is a supremely talented actor, one who has proven himself again and again in various work like Casino Royale, Westworld, Boardwalk Empire, The Ides of March and much more. His screen presence — and that wonderfully gravely voice — is exceptional and unique. He brings an atmosphere of intelligence and gravity to all his roles and that’ll perfectly suit Jim Gordon.

Gordon was last played by J.K. Simmons in Justice League and before that Gary Oldman really developed the character substantially for Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy. I’m curious to see where Matt Reeves wants to take the character and I can’t wait to behold the life Wright breathes into the role.

If Matt Reeves continues to make amazing casting choices like this then it’ll be hard for anyone to not be wildly enthusiastic about The Batman. Rumor has it that there are many roles to fill so we will be hearing more and more news regarding the film as production nears. So far the director is two-for-two with casting and I’m ready to see what other brilliant selections he has up his sleeve.