Director Matt Reeves’ “The Batman” released in 2021 starring Robert Pattinson as the caped crusader and Zoë Kravitz as Catwoman, to critical and commercial success, spawning a new Batman universe with a unique vision. To keep the momentum going, the world of the film was expanded through “The Penguin”, which was released on Max in November of 2024. Fan excitement is sparking up again following the release of the first teaser trailer for James Gunn’s “Superman”, which will begin a new DC Universe continually separate from Reeves’ Batman. The delay of “The Batman: Part ll” from Oct. 2, 2026, to Oct. 1, 2027, which will mark a whole five years in between Batman films. With a lot of uncertainty surrounding the plot and a lot of changes happening with DC, it’s fun to discuss where this universe will go next.
James Gunn, the face of the DCU, recently stated that he pondered bringing Robert Pattinsons’ Batman into his new universe, but decided against it. However, following the announcements of delays for Pattinson’s sequel and director Andy Muschietti’s “Batman: The Brave and the Bold” coming at the same time, it makes fans wonder if Matt Reeves’ universe and the DCU will be merging. Fans are divided on this topic, with many wanting to retain Reeves’ vision for the character and his world. However, the thought of seeing Pattinson’s Batman alongside heroes like Superman and Wonder Woman is very enticing. Some question if Pattinson’s Batman would fit in a story where instead of facing serial killers and gangsters he would be opposing gods and monsters. Many fans want more of a classic crusader Batman, something akin to a modernized version of Adam West’s portrayal of the character. Where the dark knight isn’t so dark, donning a blue and yellow batsuit while cracking one-liners. If we’re going to be seeing two Batmen on the big screen at the same time, it would be best for them to be differentiated. Which brings us well to what “The Penguin” did for Matt Reeves’ Batman universe.
“The Penguin” took this new Batman universe to new heights, creating a prestige television series out of a comic book mythos, worthy of the HBO brand. The character of The Penguin, Oz Cobb, feels more like Tony Soprano, Walter White, Tony Montana, and Henry Hill than he does the usual cackling villain we’ve seen in other iterations. It took a character like Sofia Falcone and gave her loads of emotional depth and complexities. Her feud with Oz feels like Walter White taking on Gus Fring in “Breaking Bad”, two mastermind criminals who prey on each other’s weaknesses and vulnerabilities. While creating a character like Vic Aguilar who becomes a new-age Jesse Pinkman and Christopher Moltisanti. “The Penguin” allows us to get up close and personal with Gotham and those who Batman swears to protect. The series crafts a despicable, true Batman villain in Oz Cobb, but beyond hoping for the dark knight to bring him to justice in a potential movie sequel, a second season of “The Penguin” would be interesting to explore in its own right. A turf war between Oz and a character like Black Mask, who’s perfect for this series, could make for more epic television.
“The Penguin” is as mature as it is tragic, and returns on fans’ investment for what this new Batman universe can do: take these characters and create nuanced stories with them. It makes fans excited about what the universe could do with characters like Mr. Freeze, Poison Ivy, Clayface and many more.
Batman’s greatest strength as a character is his ability to be so adaptable. He can be a superhero just as easily as he can be a vigilante detective. He can fight gods, but struggle with common street thugs. He’ll always be cinema’s favorite hero because auteur filmmakers can depict him in so many different ways. If DC decided to have two caped crusaders on the big screen at the same time, they could have their cake and eat it too with Batman. So fans can see the versatility of the character in full and see what they prefer.
