Armie Hammer (Bruce Wayne/Batman)
Yes, the rumor mill has gone into overdrive about who Armie Hammer will portray in a superhero film, but he’s the only logical choice for a younger Bruce Wayne/Batman right now. In fact, Warner Bros. thought so, too, as he was originally cast as the Caped Crusader in George Miller’s failed Justice League Mortal project back in the late 2000s.
Now that we’ve seen the hulking Ben Affleck as Batman, chances are we don’t want another smaller man to portray the Dark Knight ever again. Standing at 1.96m, Hammer is four centimeters taller than Affleck and will look absolutely menacing in a Batsuit. Throw in his strong jaw line and natural good looks and he’s pitch-perfect for the billionaire playboy part of the role as well.
Look, there’s still a good chance that Hammer will be Hal Jordan/Green Lantern or Shazam in the DCEU, but it would be a shame to not cast him as the Bat if the opportunity presents itself. There are not that many young actors in Hollywood who have the natural charisma and look that he does to portray this iconic hero. The only question is, though, can the always smiling Hammer be brooding enough for the part?
Joe Keery (Jason Todd/Robin)
One of the biggest points that The Batman needs to address is the murder of Jason Todd/Robin. While we all know what happened to him (spoiler alert: Joker and Harley brutally murdered him), it would suck if the film didn’t at least show us how the incident broke Batman’s spirit. Furthermore, we’d actually like to meet the second Robin at some point since we already know that Dick Grayson will be popping up, too.
Todd’s personality is meant to be aggressive and violent, but still demanding of the love and approval of his mentor. In many ways, Joe Keery showed several sides of this character in his portrayal of Stranger Things‘ Steve Harrington. It’s pretty easy to see him pulling off the-kid-from-the-wrong-side-of-the-tracks role, which is exactly what Todd is.
While he’s 25 years old, Keery still looks youthful enough to play the teenage Todd. Whether this is the direction that Matt Reeves will take is a whole different story; however, it would make sense to cast an actor who could also portray the older Red Hood. Doing so could ensure that it the role doesn’t need to be recast further down the line.
