‘The Batman: Part II’ Was Absent from the DC Studios Presentation at CinemaCon
It’s bad enough that no one can figure out what to call the film, but fans of the “Epic Crime Saga” that is the Bat-verse got a cold shower at CinemaCon this year. Despite being one of the most anticipated sequels they have right now, and with its scheduled release just a year away, The Batman: Part II/The Batman 2 was omitted from DC Studios’s main-stage presentation at the closed-door event last week.
Bosses James Gunn and Peter Safran, and Warner Bros., likewise, offered zero updates, footage, or casting confirmations during their dedicated block. This is according to trades such as The Hollywood Reporter and stunned social media respondents. There was a lot of hype for Clayface and Man of Tomorrow, though.
Sidelining The Batman is particularly striking when it’s expected to begin production in London soon. Still, it is consistent with Gunn’s allegedly ambivalent attitude toward Matt Reeves’s projects, oft-reported by insiders. The silence speaks volumes about the DC Studio President’s attitude as much as it highlights the friction between the main DCU and everything Elseworlds, which wasn’t much to begin with.
The DCU might be Gunn’s problem child, but even though it’s something he takes ownership of and some pride in, it’s weird not to feature a Batman that raked in $770 million and keeps on adding to its cast. The casting of Sebastian Stan and Scarlett Johansson was big news, and they just added Charles Dance. Why treat the production like a secondary priority? Is Clayface enough of Gotham for one event?
Maybe Gunn is showing a gesture of faith in a roundabout way, taking a generous hands-off approach so Matt Reeves can work in peace without dreaded studio interference. Or Gunn could be worried about the marketability of his next Superman outing, given how disputed the “success” of his 2025 summer blockbuster is.
The situation is a head-scratcher, but it looks more than ever like there is some kind of struggle internally for creative dominance. What’s more, as long as nothing “Brave” or so much as “Bold” is on the horizon, it’s clear Reeves is winning that struggle for the moment, albeit in Pyrrhic fashion.
