After years of anticipation, The Batman finally opens to the public tonight in theaters (and costs more at AMC locations), giving us our first taste of Robert Pattinson in the cape and cowl. The movie sees Bruce Wayne allying himself with Catwoman and clashing with Riddler and Penguin, with all three of these characters having previously been adapted for film. However, with a sequel to The Batman likely to happen within the next five years, Pattinson has shared his take on a group of villains that could be used who haven’t been seen on the big screen yet: the Court of Owls.
Robert Pattinson’s addressed this idea during a video he recorded with costars Zoë Kravitz, Paul Dano and Jeffrey Wright for Vanity Fair responding to The Batman fan theories. When someone shared that Thomas and Martha Wayne, Bruce Wayne’s parents, could have been leaders of the Court of Owls in this universe, Pattinson responded:
I like that one… If they disappear when kind of they’re secretly running it, that would really, really be a very, very difficult thing for Bruce to handle. It would be a nightmare… I was definitely kind of thinking Court of Owls is probably gonna be in the sequel… I mean, I’m literally just guessing, I just keep saying it.
Created by writer Scott Snyder and artist Greg Capullo, the Court of Owls is a secret society made up of wealthy and elite Gotham citizens that have used their influence and power to pull the city’s strings from the shadows since the 1600s. The Court’s will is carried out by the Talons, assassins that can be brought back to life and made nearly invulnerable when injected with a special serum. Batman learned of the Court’s existence in the opening arc of the New 52 era’s Batman series, and the group has since evolved into the Parliament of Owls in the comics. Outside of the printed page, the Court has appeared in projects like the TV series Gotham, the animated movie Batman vs. Robin and the upcoming video game Gotham Knights.
Keep in mind that Robert Pattinson is just speculating that the Court of Owls could appear in The Batman 2, it’s not like writer/director Matt Reeves has already clued him in on who the sequel’s antagonists will be. At least Pattinson’s not the only The Batman actor who’s keen on the Court of Owls being used, as Paul Dano, whom plays Riddler, said that would be “dope.” Jeffrey Wright, a.k.a. this continuity’s James Gordon, on the other hand, had never heard of the Court, prompting Pattinson and Dano to recommend that he read Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo’s original story.
A decade has passed since the Court of Owls’ introduction, and the group has cemented itself as a popular addition to Batman’s rogues gallery among fans. Many average moviegoers, on the other hand, likely haven’t heard of the Court, so The Batman 2 would be a good way to put them on a lot of radars. Even though Matt Reeves is going for a more grounded take on the Batman mythos, it’s easy enough to envision an appropriately-adapted version of the Court having existed in this world for centuries.
Rest assured, if it’s announced that The Batman 2 will include the Court of Owls, we’ll let you know. In the meantime, you can read CinemaBlend’s review of The Batman now and judge the movie for yourself starting this weekend. You’ll also be able to watch the movie starting April 19 on HBO Max, the same streaming service where spinoff shows focused on the Gotham City Police Department and Colin Farrell’s Penguin, respectively, will be available.
