Shortly before Zack Snyder's Man of Steel was released, screenwriter David Goyer told us that it was likely that the Batman of their new universe was probably just getting started and would even possibly be inspired by Superman to put on the cape. Said the writer in an interview, "We’re implying there are other superheroes in this world. But I don’t know that they’ve come forward yet. The idea is that Superman is the first one. There might be people helping people, but not in costumes, and that Superman comes forward and announces himself to the world. In him announcing himself, he’s the one that changes things."
That idea went out the door, however, when it was announced that Ben Affleck would be taking on the part of the Dark Knight in the upcoming Man of Steel sequel. With a 41-year-old actor in the role it was clear that the movie would not be featuring a fresh-faced version of the Caped Crusader. In fact, it's just the opposite. Speaking at the Bank of America Merrill Lynch Media, Communications and Entertainment Conference, Warner Bros. CEO Kevin Tsujihara has described the new version of Batman as "tired and weary and seasoned and been doing it for awhile."
This should come as good news for Batman comic book readers who have long wanted a full-on live-action version of Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns. At San Diego Comic-Con back in July in was a quote from Miller's book that Man of Steel star Harry Lennix read to announce the Batman vs. Superman movie, and having a Batman described like he is above is a good start. Even if that's not the plan for the Man of Steel sequel it still opens the door for it in the future. In the meantime we'll have to make due with the kick-ass animated version:
Yes, overall this is simply confirmation of a fact that we all pretty much figured out already just by thinking logically, but it's still nice to get some real information about the project. We've been fielding an endless number of rumors and unverifiable stories about it for months now, so a bit of confirmation and official news is nice. For now all that we officially know about the movie is that Snyder is directing, Goyer is writing, Affleck, Henry Cavill, Amy Adams, Laurence Fishburne, and Diane Lane are staring, and that filming will take place in Detroit next year. It's all very non-detail oriented, but hopefully we'll be able to learn a few more details about the plot as we hear more casting announcements in the next few months.
The film will be in theaters on July 17, 2015.
(Image via DeviantArt)
