10 Characters Who Could Feature In DC’s Nightwing Movie

Hold onto your cowls, Bat-fans, as we've recently had a surprise announcement from Warner Bros. Out of nowhere, it was revealed that DC are working on a Nightwing film, to be directed by The LEGO Batman Movie's Chris McKay and written by The Accountant's Bill Dubuque. This is hugely exciting news for fans, as many have been eagerly awaiting the day when the character would make it to the big screen. For those unfamiliar with him, Nightwing is the second superhero identity of Dick Grayson, the first Robin. When Grayson grows out of his red, green and yellow costume, he goes solo in the vigilante business. Typically, he moves out of Gotham and sets himself up as the protector of neighbouring city Bludhaven. Part of the reason this is such big news is that there's a ton of potential for a Nightwing film. In particular, it offers an opportunity to explore the Bat-family, Bruce Wayne's cadre of proteges and crime-fighting partners. Additionally, it could also feature other sidekicks from the DC universe, and here are 10 such characters that we hope to see once the Nightwing movie eventually takes flight. 10) The Outsiders From the movies that are lined up on the slate, the DCEU looks to be trying to introduce many of the superhero teams from the comics - for instance, the Justice League, Suicide Squad, Birds of Prey, etc. If they want to insert yet another team, however, then they may want to look towards the Outsiders. Traditionally, the Outsiders are a team of ostracized superhumans who are formed into a group by Batman. They've had a wide roster over the years, but some of their members include Green Arrow, Martian Manhunter and Black Lightning. In one iteration, Nightwing headed the group, which is an idea which could be utilized in the movie. There,s some crossover between the Outsiders and the similarly anti-hero team the Suicide Squad, too - Katana and Captain Boomerang are also members in the comics - but the group would still be a good way of introducing some fan favourites into the DCEU. In particular, Green Arrow and Martian Manhunter - two major characters who don't seem to be on the menu anywhere else. 9) Conner Kent (Superboy) The DCEU has just squared Batman off against Superman in, well, Batman V Superman, so why not form a junior version of the duo by pairing Nightwing off with Superboy? Conner Kent AKA Kon-El AKA Superboy is a half-human, half-Kryptonian clone of Superman's and has teamed up with Dick Grayson on a number of occasions. Fans will probably know him most from his starring role in Young Justice, where Grayson and Kent both served on the team of former sidekicks. In that show, Conner's hot-headedness often contrasted with Dick's cool temperament and quick wit. By pairing these two up, the Nightwing movie could cast the spotlight on the sidekicks and look at what it's like for the character who's always in the shadow of the hero. The villains have already had their chance in the spotlight in Suicide Squad, so why can't it be the sidekicks' turn next? 8) Bette Kane (Flamebird) Grayson may have been Batman's sidekick when he was Robin, but when he becomes Nightwing he gets a sidekick of his own - Flamebird AKA Bette Kane (the original Bat-Girl back in the early 1960s). In truth, Bette Kane could be a slightly difficult character to adapt, but if they could nail the execution, the results could be pretty exciting. In the comics, Bette has a lifelong crush on Grayson and becomes the hero Flamebird to impress him. That's not really the sort of independent female hero DC are probably looking for, though. If this version of the character is not an option, however, then how The New 52 iteration? That recent reboot cast Bette as a slightly tougher her. Here, she becomes Hawkfire, under the tutelage of Batwoman (more on her in a moment). Ms. Kane isn't the number one character we want to see in the movie, but she is important to Nightwing's story. The Nightwing mantle has passed through many heroes over the years - the title actually originated as an alternate identity for Superman - but they've all had a Flamebird by their side. As such, it would be a shame if the movie completely left out his crime-fighting partner. 7) Kate Kane (Batwoman) Someone we would be much more interested in seeing on the big screen is Kate Kane AKA Batwoman. Though she's been around in some form since 1961, Kate has really taken off since she was rebooted in the last ten years or so. A kickass hero in her own right - she even briefly took over from Batman as the hero of Gotham City - Kate is one of the highest-profile LGBT characters in DC comics. That's an area of representation that the DCEU isn't doing too well in so far, so Batwoman deserves an appearance somewhere for that reason alone. More than that, though, surely the point of a Nightwing movie is to introduce the wider Bat-family to the viewing public for the first time, right? Batwoman is a character with so much popularity right now that it would be short-sighted of DC not to put her in the movies soon. There could be an interesting dynamic to explore between Grayson and Kane as well, with Kate as his surrogate Batman figure. 6) Tim Drake (Robin/Red Robin) Grayson might have been the first Robin, but he was definitely not the last. Since he vacated the position, Batman has recruited numerous orphan children to become his students in the subtle art of ass-kicking while wearing tights. One of the most popular and prominent is Tim Drake, the third Robin. Assuming that the comic book chronology is still the same in the DCEU, then Drake could be the current Robin by the point the movie is set (that is, if Batman picks up a new sidekick sometime in between this and Justice League). It could be fun, then, to pair up the angsty, hardened ex-Robin with the younger, more naive current Robin. Fans of The New Batman Adventures animated series will be familiar with how well Nightwing and Drake's Robin bounce off each other. Alternatively, Drake grows up to take on his own breakaway vigilante in the comics - Red Robin. The Nightwing movie could bring both of Batman's ex-sidekicks together and possibly examine the lasting effect that being trained by the Dark Knight has on a young boy. 5) Damian Wayne (Robin) On the other hand, it could be more effective to set up Nightwing with a different Robin - Damian Wayne, the actual son of Batman. In the comics, Damian is raised by his mother Talia Al Ghul before finally being put in his father's care at around ten years old. Being brought up by a supervillainess doesn't tend to give you great manners, and Damian turns out to be a destructive, arrogant and ambitious young boy. It would make for an interesting movie to pair up Batman's two sons. In particular, there would be a lot of jealousy between the two. Nightwing sees Bruce as a father figure and yet he isn't his actual son like Damian. Meanwhile, Damian would resent the extra years and better rapport that Dick has with his father. The duo have history in the comics, as well; when Bruce Wayne appeared to have died, Grayson became Batman with Damian as his Robin. 4) Teen Titans Considering how major a part of the DC universe the team is, it's strange that there have been no plans so far to adapt the Teen Titans for the DCEU. Maybe it's because the team have had a lot of exposure already on TV, or that the youthful heroes aren't perceived to be a good fit for the darker movie universe. Whatever the excuse is, the Titans deserve to put into the movies ASAP. Even with one of their star players, Cyborg, being upgraded into the Justice League. The Nightwing movie would be a fantastic place for the Titans to appear as Dick Grayson is usually their leader. The team has expanded over the years, but the core members tend to include Kid Flash, Aqualad, Beast Boy, Starfire and Raven. The difficulty with inserting them though is that the team would surely swamp the solo character and it would become a Teen Titans movie - not that there's anything wrong with that, but the project is clearly focused on Grayson on his own. Still, there's too much potential in the Titans to leave them out of the DCEU for too much longer. 3) Deathstroke Sure, Deathstroke is already set to appear in The Batman, as played by Joe Manganiello, but the character should really make some sort of appearance in the Nightwing movie as well. Either in a major antagonistic role or just a small cameo. The reason is that he's pretty much Grayson's nemesis, with Nightwing having a lot more reason to hate him than Batman has. Deathstroke originated in the comics as the arch-enemy of the Teen Titans and, as such, has brought Grayson a lot of strife over the years. He's planted a mole within their ranks, killed one of his close friends, taken over the Titans and corrupted the team. He even played a part in destroying Bludhaven, the city Grayson had sworn to protect. Seeing as he's in The Batman, we likely won't see Deathstroke as the main villain of the Nightwing movie - that is, unless he becomes the Loki of the DCEU - but the characters' shared history means he still has to make some sort of appearance. 2) Barbara Gordon (Oracle) Dick Grayson and Barbara Gordon are intertwined in so many ways that it would be very unlikely for the Nightwing movie to not feature her in any capacity. As we've said, this project is a terrific opportunity to introduce the whole Bat-family into the DCEU, and after Grayson, the next biggest name is easily Barbara Gordon. Traditionally, the pair share an on-off romance, in particular during their days as Robin and Batgirl. These two former students of Batman sharing a complicated love life would make a good emotional through-line for the movie and the idea of seeing Nightwing and Batgirl together in action - but not in a Batman & Robin way - is an exciting one. On the other hand, the movie could feature Babs after her tragic paralysis at the hands of the Joker. After losing the use of her legs, Barbara becomes Oracle, the invaluable tech support of the Bat-family. In particular, she aided Nightwing in his duties protecting Bludhaven. 1) Jason Todd (Red Hood) Ever since a Robin costume with Joker graffiti all over it appeared in Batman V Superman, fans have been waiting to see Jason Todd introduced into the movies. You see, Todd was the second Robin in the comics and was brutally murdered by the Joker. Years later, however, he returned from the dead as ultra-violent vigilante Red Hood, looking to get revenge on the Clown Prince of Crime. Oddly, despite this clear set-up for the character, The Batman doesn't look to be using him in any capacity. What could happen instead, then, is that the Red Hood appears in the Nightwing movie. Thinking about it, it could be an even better move than featuring the character in The Batman. By focusing on both Grayson and Todd, we could see how differently Batman's two proteges have turned out. With the hero trying to talk a former friend back from the dark side, it could even be DC's answer to the highly-successful Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Any of these characters would be fun to see, but the inclusion of Jason Todd in the Nightwing film would surely make for the best version of it. Make it happen, DC.