For what seems like the umpteenth time, a new actor will play the Batman in a major Hollywood film. In the last decade or so, actors Christian Bale and Ben Affleck have portrayed the caped crusader in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Trilogy and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League, respectively.
Now, Robert Pattinson will reportedly play the Batman in an upcoming movie. The news comes from Variety, whose exclusive sources say the Twilight actor is the frontrunner to play The Batman for director Matt Reeves in a film that is expected to be released in 2021. The media site adds, however, that everything is still in negotiations but they maintained that Pattinson is currently the top choice.
Affleck will stay on as producer for The Batman. In January, the actor tweeted his excitement for the upcoming movie with an attached link to an article about him having "passed the torch to the next generation of Bruce Wayne."
Many other news sites have said there is another contender for the role. The shortlist reportedly includes Nicholas Hoult, who stars in Tolkien and X-Men: First Class film Dark Phoenix.
The plot for the upcoming film has been kept tightly under wraps but, rumor has it, the movie, which will be set in the '90s, will focus on a younger version of Batman. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Reeves says:
It’s very much a point of view-driven, noir Batman tale. It’s told very squarely on his shoulders, and I hope it’s going to be a story that will be thrilling but also emotional. It’s more Batman in his detective mode than we’ve seen in the films. The comics have a history of that. He’s supposed to be the world’s greatest detective, and that’s not necessarily been a part of what the movies have been. I’d love this to be one where when we go on that journey of tracking down the criminals and trying to solve a crime, it’s going to allow his character to have an arc so that he can go through a transformation.
Source: Variety
