Well, holy unwritten movies, Batman! The Caped Crusader is the most bankable DC character to this day and yet not one, but both of his next cinematic adventures are on hold.
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DC Studios executive and Superman director James Gunn let it slip in recent Q&As that neither tentpole film in development featuring The Dark Knight is any closer to ready since he ascended the ranks of overseeing production.
One of the Bat Family movies in the pipeline is intended as proper DCU canon that connects to Superman and Creature Commandos, and that’s The Brave And The Bold. Even though Andy Muschietti is attached to direct it, it can be considered Gunn’s pet project as it was announced in the rollout of his division of Warner Bros. Discovery almost two years ago.
However, throughout all that time, Gunn has yet to see a script that he prefers. “There’s no set timeline for anything,” he told Collider. “The one thing that I’ve tried to make clear to people from the beginning, in the way that I hope we’re different, is that everything in DC is going to be based on the writers.”
Gunn praised the Supergirl script by Ana Nogueira for its “wow” factor, and the Lanterns scripts turned in by Damon Lindelof, Tom King, and showrunner Chris Mundy. He then teased unnamed pitches nearing the green light and stressed the importance of story, which BATB apparently hasn’t met standards for.
Says the co-president, “But it’s going to be based always on that, on the story, because at the end of the day if we’re happy with the story that we’re telling, that’s what matters most. And once The Brave and the Bold gets to that point, then we’ll make the movie.”
Meanwhile, over in the Matt Reeves camp, which Gunn has full jurisdiction over, there is no progress on the script for The Batman – Part 2 either. Even though reports have said otherwise, Gunn shot those down recently as greatly exaggerated.
“I think that report was well-intentioned but it was mistaken. We are very much looking forward to it,” he responded on Threads to an inquisitive follower as he often does, and has had to frequently. Gunn is the boss and the onus is on him to clear up the confusion he bears some blame for.
Many months – almost a year – have passed since Jim Gordon actor Jeffrey Wright revealed he was “waiting patiently” on Part 2’s script. “I have not read the script. I have not received the script. I’m waiting patiently,” he told Variety in March.
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“But I’ll tell you what? As soon as I get it, I’ll call you. I’ll send a copy right over to you. On the off chance that Matt Reeves hears this, the hairs on the back of his neck are going to stand up,” Wright added. Not much has changed behind the scenes although 2025 is nearing.
“I’m excited about getting back there, but you probably know as much as I know,” Wright recently said to Inverse. “I haven’t read anything. I haven’t talked to Matt for a while. He’s been off doing his thing, I’ve been off doing mine. But I look forward to getting back there.”
The clock is ticking. The Penguin’s ending teed up the sequel, which has an October 2026 release window – a result of further delays – two years away. Reeves should have figured something out by now.
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