It was recently announced that therelease date for director Matt Reeves' Batman reboothas been pushed back to October, 2021. Fans were disappointed, but the delay is understandable considering the current precarious position of movie theaters. Writer forThe Batman, Mattson Tomlin, took to Twitter with an interesting reaction to the change in date.
The writer simply wrote the words ‘October. Suits the mood’, alongside a gif of Batman from Bruce Timm’s animated series narrowing his eyes. Regular audiences might be wondering what the cryptic message could mean for the movie. IsThe Batmanset in slightly chilly weathers and has characters complaining about forgetting to bring their coats outside?
For fans who have been following the progress of the movie, however, Tomlin’s message will immediatelybring to mind The Long Halloween, aBatmancomic series widely regarded as one of the definitive tales about The Dark knight, which was also set in late October.
It has been repeatedly asserted that the upcoming movie is an adaption of that comic series, even thoughMatt Reeves has maintained their story is original, with inspirations from multipleBatmancomics. Tomlin’s words only serve to confirm thatThe Batmanwill be borrowing heavily from the pages ofThe Long Halloween.
From what we know so far, the newBatmanmovie places the crime fighter at the early stages of his career. It is not an origin film but will draw on thetrauma from Bruce Wayne’s childhoodto inform the character. Reeves has spoken about taking a more humanist approach to Batman and showing him in the light of a cerebral detective instead of just as a brawler.
The movie is set tofeature multiple Batman villains, just likeThe Long Halloween. From what we know of the plot, the story centers on a series of crimes that Batman is investigating, where he has to consult with various foes in order to move forward with the case. Riddler, Catwoman, Penguin, and Carmine Falcone are all confirmed to appear in the film, while Two-Face may also be a part of the proceedings.
The new date forThe Batmanplaces it near the same release date as 2019’s breakout hitJoker. Perhaps Warner Bros. is hoping the Dark Knight will be able to follow a similar trajectory as his archenemy and clean up more than a billion dollars at the box office.
It is unclear at this point whetherThe Batmanwill followJokerin having an R-rating. That would make it the firstBatmanmovie to do so. Robert Pattinson, who plays the new Batman, has already expressed his hope for an R-rated film which would free the story up to dig deeper into the darker corners of theBatmanmythology.
While waiting, fans and casual audiences alike would do well by brushing up onThe Long Halloween, which remains not just a greatBatmanstory, but a great comics series in general.
