The lights slowly darkened, and hurried conversations finished in whispers as the move trailers began their procession across the giant screen. The time had finally come. After years of waiting, The Batman was released on March 4, 2022, and Matt Reeves’ crime noir vision for the caped crusader was unveiled to breathless audiences worldwide. The story was dark, the characters gritty, and Batman was something he hadn’t been in years. Batman was a detective. Audiences everywhere agreed on one thing - - The Batman was good. In fact, it was really good. You could almost hear the collective sigh of relief echo throughout the theater.
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Here we are, several months later, and recent announcements have made it clear that Matt Reeves and his vision of the Batman universe are here to stay. Along with The Penguin, Reeves will also be developing a series highlighting the many dark textures and characters of Arkham Asylum. More exciting yet, Reeves is gearing up to pen the script for The Batman 2 with an assist from Mattson Tomlin, who helped write the third act of The Batman.
What kind of story are we likely to see as a follow-up to the $710 million success machine that was The Batman? While there is currently no sure word on what the plot will focus on, there is an abundance of theories as to what existing stories might be used as source material – The Court of Owls and Arkham Asylum, to name just a few. While we wait to see what the plot actually holds, there’s one potential narrative thread Matt Reeves and company should absolutely avoid.
Robin Should Not Play a Role in the Batman 2
20th Century Fox
Robin, the Boy Wonder, has seen his fair share of iterations and story arcs throughout the years. From Dick Grayson to Damien Wayne, each character to take on the role of the Dark Knight’s sidekick has brought varying degrees of youthful ignorance and hot-headedness to the role. The question, of course, is whether this is the right time for Reeves’ Batman universe to broaden out to include focus on an additional central character. Simply put, the answer is no.
Batman Is Still Learning How to Be Batman
Warner Bros. Pictures
An obvious starting point for why Robin shouldn’t join the ranks is that Batman is just getting started. This isn’t the business casual Bruce Wayne of the Tim Burton era or the silver fox phase delivered with Ben Affleck’s performance. In his opening monologue, Batman states, “Two years of nights have turned me into a nocturnal animal.” One of the most satisfying elements of the film was watching an early Batman get knocked down, beat up, and struggle with finding his place within Gotham’s grimy darkness.
When forced to jump from the rooftop of the Gotham City Police Department, Batman shows visible fear and apprehension at taking the leap. Further, he makes a terrible landing using what can only be called an early draft of the suit’s gliding capabilities. Later, Batman grapnels up and through a building window where he awkwardly struggles to right himself and find his footing.
All of this completely works within the chronology of Reeves’ Batman universe. After all, he’s relatively new to this. Assuming the events of the next film don’t take place a decade into the future, Bruce Wayne is still adjusting to the demands of being Batman and incapable of mentoring a young boy in the ways of crime fighting.
Batman Hasn’t Learned to Be Bruce Wayne
Reeves’ choice to tell a story early in Batman’s evolution allows for real depth in Bruce’s character that many other Batman properties chose to leave on the shelf. While all other film versions of Batman have featured a mature, mostly stable character, Robert Pattinson portrayed a young, angry, and slightly childish Bruce Wayne. Early interactions between himself and Alfred show Bruce to be dismissive, bordering on spiteful of his paternal butler and closest confidante. Bruce even gives Alred the “You’re not my father” treatment when Alfred dares to show concern for his wellbeing.
At this stage, he is more Batman than he is Bruce Wayne. He prefers to live in the shadows and trade blows with Gotham’s criminal element rather than wearing fancy suits and attending ‘meaningless’ committee meetings. I suspect much of the next film will be devoted to merging these two aspects of the character. Bruce needs to learn to utilize his wealth and notoriety to achieve the same ends as Batman, just with fewer bruises given and received along the way.
That said, if Bruce Wayne isn’t comfortable in his own skin, how can he possibly hope to shape the actions and mindset of a traumatized child? Batman taking on an underage sidekick has always been questionable. Choosing to accept the responsibility while Bruce hasn’t yet grown up himself would be downright unhinged.
Introducing Robin Would Continue DC’s Trend of Rushing Storylines
Warner Bros.
Much of DC’s attempt at building successful superhero properties has unfortunately been thwarted by a seemingly obsessive mission to keep up with the Joneses, or in this case, match Marvel’s ability to deliver compelling, universe-building stories. This rush to the big screen has been true of properties (Justice League) as well as plot points, including Superman’s death at the hands of a watered-down version of Doomsday. The last thing DC films needs is another rushed character inside a rushed universe.
Based on a recent comment by Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav, this seems like one trend they are committed to ending:
Thankfully, Matt Reeves’ vision for Batman seems to be one of quality over quantity. His approach to the Dark Knight feels measured and moderated by a hand that knows how to tell a good story first and doles out fan service second. Inserting Robin at this stage would severely diminish Bruce Wayne’s personal growth and journey toward becoming the indomitable force Batman will become later in his career. The sudden introduction of an adolescent sidekick would almost certainly feel rushed – like a big moment that wasn’t really earned and therefore carries little weight.
In the end, Robin simply doesn’t feel like he currently fits in with where Matt Reeves’ carefully curated Batman is trying to go.
