As soon as they got their first look at Robert Pattinson’s Dark Knight, fans not only had not only coined the phrase “Battinson”, they started calling the upcoming take on the hero “Emo Batman,” too thanks to a scene where Bruce Wayne rocks messy eyeliner as he takes off his cape and cowl. With The Batman’s release now getting very close, writer/director Matt Reeves is giving us an idea about how exactly this grungy version of the hero came about.
Matt Reeves, who previously started the Cloverfield franchise and brought back the Planet of the Apes, has finally responded to Batman going full emo (eyeliner and all) in the next upcoming DC movie while speaking to Esquire. And it sounds like he's really put some thought into this. In his words:
You can’t wear a cowl and not wear that. All of the Batmen wear that. I just loved the idea of taking off [the mask] and under that there’s the sweating and the dripping and the whole theatricality of becoming this character.
If you look closely at the live-action Batman movies (except for the Adam West feature), you’ll notice that previous Batmen have black makeup around their eyes when they wear the cape and cowl. And yet there’s never been a moment in any of them where you see Bruce Wayne take off his costume and he has eyeliner all over his face. Matt Reeves is finally showcasing this element of the Caped Crusader, and it’s a seriously inspired idea.
While we’re still waiting to see the movie (which is reportedly set to be nearly three hours), it’s exciting to have a sense of what to expect from Robert Pattinson’s vigilante. The emo eyeliner moment says a lot about what kind of take is headed our way, and it seems a lot more grounded in the grimy details of being the hero.
We know that the Twilight alum will portray a younger version of the hero than we’ve ever seen before and showcase his title in the comics as the “world’s greatest detective.” While speaking to the news outlet, Matt Reeves shared more about his vision of The Batman. For instance, in the same interview, he went on to discuss details about the Batmobile, which he says will differ from Christopher Nolan's interpretation of the iconic ride. Reeves acknowledged that Nolan's was more of a tank, and his will be fashioned as more of a muscle car.
Robert Pattinson has previously teased that The Batman is unlike any other version of the character and his director's comments seem to express this too. The filmmaker has also shared that his take on the DC hero was influenced by listening to Nirvana and deciding to make Bruce Wayne more of a “recluse” than the playboy he’s been characterized like before. It's going to be intriguing to see the character in all of his emo glory when the movie finally hits theaters on March 4.
