It’s no secret that comic book movies are everywhere. And given just how popular Gotham City lore is, there have been a steady stream of Batman movies over the years. The latest of these is Matt Reeves’ The Batman, which is set outside of the main DCEU. Since Todd Phillips’ Joker also operated similarly, fans are wondering if there might be a potential crossover. And now Reeves has shared his thoughts on this possibility.
Joker was a massive success when it hit theaters back in 2019, with Joaquin Phoenix earning an Academy Award for his portrayal of Arthur Fleck. Since then fans have been hoping for a sequel, and The Batman’s release seemingly made the way for an awesome crossover event. Director Matt Reeves was recently asked about the potential of that pairing, responding honestly with:
I was finishing the Planet of the Apes movies when I first came on board [Batman], in 2017. It's been five years in the making. When I was working on the script, and got deep into the script, Joker hadn't come out yet. I didn't know what Joker was or what it was going to be.
While there seems to be a connection between the two DC movies for fans, that’s not necessarily the case for the filmmakers behind The Batman and Joker. Matt Reeves has been attached to his project about the Caped Crusader for years before Joker became a reality, so it was just never in the cards. But could this change in the future?
Matt Reeves’ comments to Total Film might be somewhat disappointing for moviegoers who are eager to see the two non-DCEU blockbusters collide. While The Batman has the potential to be the start of a burgeoning film franchise, he doesn’t seem interested in bringing Joaquin Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck to the equation. Although perhaps we could see another form of The Joker in a potential sequel. Fingers crossed.
While Marvel Studios is a stickler for serialized storytelling, Warner Bros. is allowing filmmakers to work with DC stories that aren’t connected to the shared universe. This allows filmmakers like Todd Phillips and Matt Reeves to make bold narrative choices, without worrying about how it might affect the greater DCEU. In the same interview, the latter filmmaker further explained why a crossover is unlikely, saying:
I became aware of [Joker] once we were very deep into [The Batman], and the fact that they were grounding things in a way that was reminiscent of things that we were doing, that wasn't planned. Joker was always meant to be a very specific standalone that Joaquin and Todd were doing. There was never really any discussion of crossover.
While Matt Reeves seemingly has a ton of ideas for his vision of Gotham City after The Batman, it doesn’t seem to include a crossover with Joker. Instead, he’ll be expanding the franchise with a spinoff series for HBO Max. As for The Batman’s future on the big screen, that’ll likely depend on how the movie performs at the box office now that it’s in theaters. Fans are already theorizing about what a sequel might contain, and which villains might pop up.
The Batman is in theaters now. Be sure to check out the 2022 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience.
