The DC live-action universe has been making some major steps forward over the past few years, pivoting after the box office disappointment of Justice League. There's some very exciting blockbusters coming down the pipeline over the next years, following the release of Birds of Prey. Chief among them is Matt Reeves' The Batman, which is about to finally kick up production. Reeves assembled a killer cast to occupy Gotham City, including Zoe Kravitz as Catwoman. Although she recently explained why she's a bit nervous for the role.
Zoe Kravitz' star power has been steadily growing over the past few years, and she's had roles in major productions like Mad Max: Fury Road and Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald in addition to her work on HBO's Big Little Lies. She recently opened up about her highly anticipated debut as Selina Kyle/Catwoman in The Batman, and was honest about her trepidation. When asked if she was nervous to join the DCEU, Kravitz said:
Definitely, I was excited when I got the role, and usually when you get a job the people who are excited about it are you, your parents, your agent, your friends and that’s kind of it. But when the press release came, I got more text messages and calls than I’ve gotten on my birthday, on my wedding day. All of a sudden, the reality began to sink in about what this means not only to me, but to everybody else culturally — and the fans of this universe are so dedicated and opinionated.
Well, that was honest. The comic book genre comes with a ton of pressure, as the characters mean a great deal to the rabid fanbase. This type of pressure is especially prevalent when it comes to Batman, as the Dark Knight is arguably the most popular superhero of all time.
Zoe Kravitz might have gotten some big gigs before, but it looks like the attention she got from being cast in The Batman eclipsed those, as well as any birthdays she'd had over the past few years. News of Kravitz taking on Catwoman's whip and claws broke the internet, which may have triggered her nerves about the role.
Selina Kyle/Catwoman has been adapted from the page of DC comics a number of times throughout the years. As such, plenty of actresses have played the role before, including Julie Newmar and Eartha Kitt during the Adam West Batman show, Michelle Pfeiffer in Batman Returns and Anne Hathaway in The Dark Knight Rises.
Later in her conversation with Variety, Zoe Kravitz went on to explain that the "scary" part of landing her role in The Batman may actually end up being a good thing. As she put it,
It was a little scary, but also whenever I get nervous about something, I feel it pushes me to a better place anyway, so I welcome the nerves. If you start focusing too much on what people are going to think you’re doing yourself a disservice, it’s almost like you’re putting your energy in the wrong place. Of course, I want to honor the fans and hope they like what I do with the role, but in order to do what I think I need to do with Catwoman I have to go internal and forget about the rest of the world.
That's certainly a good perspective on it. The nerves about playing Catwoman may actually end up helping Zoe Kravitz' performance in The Batman. She's got big leather boots to step into, and the 31 year-old actress will no doubt put her all into bringing Selina Kyle to life. In fact, she's already begun training with Robert Pattinson, and it looks like there will be plenty of exciting action sequences in the long gestating blockbuster.
This will be the first time we've seen Zoe Kravitz in fight sequences, although she was apart of some thrilling scenes in Mad Max: Fury Road. Hopefully her version of Catwoman ends up having long legs in the DCEU, preferably appearing in a Gotham City Sirens movie.
The Batman is currently expected to arrive in theaters on June 25th, 2021. In the meantime, check out our 2020 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
