Geekery: Jonah Hill and Jeffrey Wright in Talks for ‘The Batman’
The casting process is in full swing for the next Batman movie, and I’m liking it. Robert Pattison as Bruce Wayne/Batman was confirmed over the summer. Now Deadline is reporting that Hill is in talks to play an unnamed villain, and Wright is possibly playing Commissioner Gordon. Andy Serkis’ name has also been dropped in association with Matt Reeve’s film, but the sources are thinner and he’s going to be pretty busy directing Venom 2 for Sony.
I’m all for all three being cast. Hill has the potential to play an unstable villain. There’s some guessing on the net that he’ll put a new spin on the Penguin or the Riddler. Something new would be better, though – maybe Clayface because of the character’s multiple appearances in Detective Comics. I think Jeffrey Wright would make a good Gordon in the movie director Matt Reeves is talking about making.
The movie won’t be another origin story, thankfully, and it sounds like it’s going to be separate from the any of the of current DC movies (casting points to this, as well). The writer/director has stated it’s not based on a particular storyline from the comics, but it will be taking influences from the entire run of the books. It will be more of a detective take and less of the super-hero we’re used to seeing on the big screen. According to Reeves:
“It’s very much a point of view-driven, noir Batman tale. It’s told very squarely on his shoulders, and I hope it’s going to be a story that will be thrilling but also emotional. It’s more Batman in his detective mode than we’ve seen in the films. The comics have a history of that. He’s supposed to be the world’s greatest detective, and that’s not necessarily been a part of what the movies have been. I’d love this to be one where when we go on that journey of tracking down the criminals and trying to solve a crime, it’s going to allow his character to have an arc so that he can go through a transformation.”
I’m curious to see how far away from the super-hero movie tropes Warner Brothers’ will let this go – especially given the arthouse feel of the Todd Phillips’ The Joker that’s coming out next month ( despite its win at the Venice Film Festival the reviews have been mixed). I’m all for changing the formula and shaking things up a bit.
The Batman is set to hit theaters June 25th, 2021.
