The Batman To Enter Production This December

The Caped Crusader is ready to take flight once more.

A new listing over on Production Weekly (h/t ComicBook.com) suggests the Matt Reeves-directed Batman movie – simply titled The Batman for now – will begin filming in earnest December 2019, giving it ample time to prepare for that summer 2021 release date.

This is by no means the first time that we’ve reported on a potential start date for The Batman. Long before Ben Affleck hung up his cape and cowl, it seemed a new (and often conflicting) Bat-shaped rumor was emerging every other week, leading to much confusion and bemusement among DC fans.

But now, after a prolonged spell in pre-production, The Batman is finally – finally! – ready to emerge from the shadows. And it’ll do so in “early December,” according to this intel from Production Weekly.

Angled as a brooding detective tale of Bruce Wayne’s alter-ego, we’ve caught wind that The Batman will follow in the footsteps of Captain Marvel and the Todd Phillips-directed Joker movie and take place in the 1990s. It makes sense, too, as it would allow Matt Reeves and Co. to focus on a younger Dark Knight while quietly avoiding the messy continuity surrounding Justice League and Warner’s DC Extended Universe – a universe that is becoming more loosely connected by the minute.

Here’s the official word from Matt Reeves on his Batman solo movie:

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.

Look for The Batman to swoop into theaters June 25th, 2021 – just a few short weeks before the arrival of The Suicide Squad, which still has James Gunn on board to direct, despite the fact that he has been reinstated at the helm of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Can the filmmaker really pull off two superhero ensemble movies in quick succession? Time will tell.