After months of hearsay, speculation and reports, Robert Pattinson was finally confirmed yesterday as the star of Matt Reeves’ The Batman, and as you’d expect, a lot of people have something to say on the matter.
Though Edward Cullen from the Twilight series may still be Pattinson’s most famous role, the star has spent the last seven years garnering indie cred and critical acclaim with his work on films like Good Time, Cosmopolis and High Life. The actor is even set to star in Christopher Nolan’s next feature, Tenet, which is scheduled for release in 2020.
If you’ve been keeping track of Pattinson’s recent work, then you might feel that the actor has shown himself to be more than worthy of donning the cape and cowl. For others, however, it seems that the performer has yet to shake his reputation as the guy from Twilight. So when the news officially broke that Pattinson will be the next Dark Knight, Twitter flooded with an array of conflicting responses:
Robert Pattinson wouldn't have even been on my radar for #Batman, but I'm willing to wait and see. He’s a solid actor with demonstrated range who fits the general physical parameters of the role. And hey, if Matt Reeves says he's the guy, that's good enough for me.
— Zaki Hasan (@zakiscorner) May 31, 2019
https://twitter.com/rolo143/status/1134499419770908672
Apologies to Robert Pattinson for making him return to Comic-Con and deal with nerd bullshit for the next six years
— Justin Carter (@GigawattConduit) May 31, 2019
Dafoe talking about Robert Pattinson as a Batman.
"he’s got a strong chin, That’s a part of it. Can you imagine anyone with a weak chin ever playing Batman? I don’t think so.” – Willem Dafoe pic.twitter.com/UF445M2wSk— Sunny (@saiprasadd_511) May 23, 2019
https://twitter.com/tobyysteele/status/1134540522616381440
I wanna start a petition asking HBO not to remake the final season of GoT, asking Disney not to remake Last Jedi, and asking WB to cast Robert Pattinson as Batman. Because it's OK if a work of art isn't everything to everyone. We survived the Clooney nipple suit. It's cool.
— Joe Hill (@joe_hill) May 22, 2019
I've never seen Robert Pattinson act, so I'm not passing judgement on the Batman decision yet. Visually he comes across as a bit less grizzled than preferred, but I can be persuaded–Michael Keaton didn't have the physique or look and was a fantastic Batman nevertheless.
— Peter Levi (@eyeonrpgs) May 31, 2019
I think Robert Pattinson will be a great Batman. It's unfair to reduce him to Edward Cullen, he has shown profusely in these last years his talent and I'm sure he'll be able to give to Bruce Wayne that level of complexity that characterizes him. https://t.co/gP7Au0R5It
— Ele 🎀 (@wittysunflower) May 31, 2019
#RobertPattinson's jaw has been cast as Batman. Asked for comment, his jaw said "It's the part I was carved to play." 👤🦇
— Devra Maza 🌻🎗️ (@DevraMaza) May 31, 2019
Robert Pattinson as Batman. Really?… pic.twitter.com/6WESrlhWDd
— RegencyEmma (@AStoryOfDreams) May 31, 2019
As you can see, quite a few fans are at least open to giving Pattinson a chance as the next Bruce Wayne, though we still have a couple more years before we can see the results. If recent reports are anything to go by, then the movie is set to begin filming in the UK this fall, by which point, we’ll hopefully have a much better idea of the cast that Pattinson is working with.
In particular, fans are very curious to find out who’s playing the film’s various villains, from Catwoman to the Riddler to the Penguin. You can expect plenty more updates in the coming months, but we won’t know if The Batman is as good or as bad as people are anticipating until the flick hits theaters on June 25th, 2021.