There are a few things Hollywood never tires of: Dwayne Johnson movies, giving Tom Hooper chances and witnessing the origins of Batman. Seriously, I feel that we have seen Bruce Wayne’s parents gunned down in Crime Alley about two-dozen times. I feel for the kid, it can’t be easy to see your parents shot to death. But, good golly, I think I have more PTSD than Wayne does because the number of times I’ve lived through that tragedy.
Well, fear not, because Matt Reeves says his upcoming The Batman will not be an origin story. Well, kinda. Here is a quote from Reeves speaking with Nerdist about his Bat-flick:
"I wanted to do not an origin tale, but a tale that would still acknowledge his origins, in that it formed who he is. Like this guy, he’s majorly struggling, and this is how he’s trying to rise above that struggle. But that doesn’t mean that he even fully understands, you know. It’s that whole idea of the shadow self and what’s driving you, and how much of that you can incorporate, and how much of it you’re doing that you’re unaware of."
So it’s not an origin story but it does “acknowledge” his origins. What’s the difference between an origin story and a story that acknowledges the origin? Hell if I know. I just hope the amount of flashbacks are minimal.
I really do like what Reeves says about Batman struggling. The man has survived some serious trauma and, at the end of the day, dressing up like a giant Bat is his way of dealing with said trauma. And the fact that Reeves says his Batman doesn’t even fully understand why he does what he does is fascinating to me. It suggests a Batman who isn’t completely put-together and polished, a Batman who is haunted by the very thing that drives him. I like what Reeves is envisioning for the character. It’s not something radically different from previous iterations of Batman but it is something that will give audiences — and Robert Pattinson — something to chew on.
One other piece from Reeves really got me salivating and it’s regarding exploring the corruption of Gotham in light of the modern corruption and has infected much of industry and politics:
“There’s something in there that feels very psychological, very emotional, and it felt like there was a way of exploring that along with the corruption in this place, Gotham. That feels very current. I think it always does. There’s almost no time when you can’t do a story about corruption. But today, it still seems incredibly resonant and maybe, from my perspective, maybe more so than maybe at other time.”
Oh yeah, straight into my veins please.
The Batman is tentatively scheduled to open June 2021.