The Batman (2021)

Of course it would!

 

For a comic book version it has to be Adam West, but for a more serious graphic novel, as a film it has to be Bale as The Dark Knight. The others are somewhere in between.

 

Zoe Kravitz is our new/old Catwoman. She previously voiced the same role in The Lego Batman Movie.

https://variety.com/2019/film/news/the-batman-zoe-kravitz-catwoman-1203302757/

 

Jonah Hill is no longer involved in the movie.

https://deadline.com/2019/10/jonah-hill-no-longer-circling-the-batman-1202760771/

 

Paul Dano cast as Riddler:

https://ew.com/movies/2019/10/17/paul-dano-riddler-batman/

 

Well, OK then! I like the sound of that.

 

I can see it now: "This is a great choice, because I've wanted to see someone like Batman beat the shit out of Paul Dano long before this movie was even conceived."

 

Dano’s already the recipient of one of the screen’s all time best beatings. You could have given Daniel Day Lewis the Oscar just for that.

 

Jeffrey Wright has officially been cast as Commissioner Jim Gordon:

https://twitter.com/mattreevesLA/status/1189668589726584832?s=20

 

Nice. I like him a lot.

 

Wright was in talks a while back. After Hill's talks fell through, it's good to hear that Wright's closed.

Also, two new people are in talks now:

Colin Farrell as The Penguin - https://deadline.com/2019/11/colin-farrell-the-penguin-batman-movie-cast-1202766532/
Andy Serkis as Alfred - https://www.thewrap.com/andy-serkis-alfred-pennyworth-batman/

 

mo-cap Alfred

 

All joking aside, I think Serkis will enjoy not having to be in the mo-cap suit for a change; although he's obviously the master doing that, this is an opportunity for him to show us another side of his talent. Black Panther (plus the minor part in Age of Ultron as the same character) is really his only major role to date where he wasn't in mo-cap, and that is a very different role than Alfred. And though he's not a name I would have predicted for Alfred, I have no trouble believing he's going to do a great job with that character. Matt Reeves wanting to use him makes sense because of course they worked very well together on two Planet of the Apes films before this. I'm all good with that choice.

Weird connections: Colin Farrell's last movie was the remake of Dumbo. This was directed by Tim Burton and also starred both Michael Keaton and Farrell's immediate cinematic predecessor in the Penguin role, Danny DeVito.

And if a deal closes, Farrell would be playing a superhero movie villain for what I'm pretty sure is the first time since Daredevil, which of course had him fight Ben Affleck.

Aside from Daredevil, which would have been bad whether he was in it or not, I've liked Farrell in everything I've seen him in. He takes interesting roles and makes interesting and dynamic acting choices. So I'm good with this choice too and think he is an upgrade over Jonah Hill, who i don't like as consistently. I'm also glad to see that Farrell is not a "Jonah Hill type," so Reeves seems to have gone back to the drawing board in how to conceive that character after Hill's departure from talks, which is exactly what I would have done. Finding an actor to do a Jonah Hill impression after talks with the real one dissolved would have been a bad idea, and Reeves is smart not to do that.

Although Farrell's casting in this likely precludes a return to the Fantastic Beasts franchise which I was hoping for, since both will be shooting next year. But that's fine. Given the state of the second Fantastic Beasts film, which he was not in, he's probably better off with Batman anyway.

 

The Prestige.

 

You are absolutely right. I haven't seen that in a long, long time and forgot about him being in it. I should watch that again soon. But my larger point still stands even though I was incorrect about that detail; I think he'll enjoy getting to do a major role like this outside of the mo-cap suit, because he hasn't had that with as much frequency as he has the mo-cap.

 

He’s managed to make a nice little career with that specialty, which has also opened doors for him as a feature director. As far as unconventional careers go, I think he’s got one of the coolest ones out there. But I always enjoy seeing him act with his own face.

 

One of my favourite movies, and Bowie playing Tesla was awesome. I too had forgotten that Serkis was in it.

 

According to Justin Kroll from Variety, WB was looking at an actor (since revealed by The Wrap to be Jeremy Strong) to play Harvey Dent, only Strong passed. However, it sounds like Dent might be in the movie too.

https://www.superherohype.com/movies/471227-report-successions-jeremy-strong-passed-on-a-role-in-the-batman/

 

Jayme Lawson has joined the cast as Bella, "a grassroots political candidate running for office in Gotham."

https://batman-on-film.com/9627/the-batman-jayme-lawson-joins-the-cast/