Two weeks ago The Batman, which had only just resumed production, had to shut down again following a positive COVID-19 test on the set. While the person who tested positive has never been confirmed, reports indicated that it was actually star Robert Pattinson who had contracted the virus. Luckily, he seems to be fine now, as it seems The Batman has now resumed filming, which helps explain why Pattinson was recently seen out in public.
Pictures surfaced over the last couple days of Robert Pattinson out in public with his girlfriend, which, considering the apparent positive COVID test, certainly got a reaction on social media. But if production is back underway, as Variety reports is the case, then that would indicate that the actor is now in the clear. Two weeks has become the standard period of time for waiting out the virus. The fact that production on Batman is restarting exactly two weeks after the shutdown would seem to indicate that there was little to no virus spread on the set, which is certainly good news, and potentially an indication that the safety protocols on the set that are in place worked as planned.
The Batman is the highest-profile film to see a production shut down because of an actual positive test on the set, and the fact that it was reportedly star Robert Pattinson who had the positive test, made the news that much bigger. While movie productions are getting back underway in many different places, the situation with The Batman makes it clear how things truly are not back to normal and that everybody working on movies and television is dealing with some amount of risk.
Even Warner Bros. has admitted as much. The studio's response to the film having to pause production again was essentially that there was an expectation that this sort of thing was going to happen until there's a "medical solution" to the virus. The studio isn't planning for future shutdowns to not happen, but rather planning for how to handle it when they do.
The Batman still has about three-quarters of the movie left to film. With the production shut down for an additional two weeks beyond what the film had already dealt with, it's unclear if an additional release date delay will be necessary. The Batman was originally set to release in June 2021 before being pushed to October 1, 2021, following the initial pandemic related shutdown.
Certainly, the return to filming is great news for fans who only recently got really excited for The Batman following the first trailer. The new movie looks to be the dark and brooding Batman that so many people love, but also one who actually solves crimes like a detective, potentially adding a little something new to the story that we don't often see from Batman on screen.
