The upcoming, long-awaited, and slightly awkwardly titled ‘The Batman’ has reportedly now had a screenplay turned in by its writer-director Matt Reeves, coming in at a whopping 160 pages, though he is now editing down this first draft through what is to be a number of revisions over the next few months.
It’s no wonder this first draft of the screenplay has come out so long, given that Reeves claim this detective noir version of Batman will feature “Rogues Gallery” of villains, not to mention he appears to have a healthy amount of creative freedom with the writing, having knocked back initial screenplays by Ben Affleck and ‘Argo’ co-writer Chris Terrio.
It is unknown which villains are noted to make an appearance, but rumors have persisted over a select few, namely The Penguin, which Josh Gad has stoked the rumor flames of by periodically tweeting images of this villain. Gad claimed in May 2017 he was just having fun riling up the internet, but also said he said he “would absolutely be open to play The Penguin in the ‘Batman’ movie”.
Although then he said he and Reeves never met each other, now Reeves has said, “I love Josh Gad. We’re good friends,” which is the most the casting in this film been discussed so far.
READ MORE: Matt Reeves Says “Noir Batman” Coming 2021 With “Rogues Gallery” Of Multiple Villains
This is promising news for this film that has been in a kind of development hell for a few years, especially since Reeves and co. are hoping to breathe new life into this continuation within the DCEU, eschewing the maligned CG explosiveness of the previous Zack Snyder Batman iterations for a more character-driven experience that Reeves says is inspired by Alfred Hitchcock.
It’s scheduled for filming this Spring, though still no further talks about who will replace Ben Affleck as the caped crusader – Affleck was originally set to star in the lead, direct, write, and produce, but stepped down from directing responsibilities in January 2017, his screenplay will no longer be used, and also recently stepped down from continuing to reprise the Batman role (but he remains on board as the film’s producer).
‘The Batman’ is scheduled for release on June 25, 2021.