Jack Huston Was In Talks To Play Batman But Matt Reeves Passed

It’s sounding like DC might finally be making some headway on the long delayed and ever-changing Batman solo movie. Over the course of the project, it’s developed from a film exploring Ben Affleck’s grizzled Dark Knight Returns-style take on the character, through to a slightly younger version of the hero played by Jake Gyllenhaal with minimal impact on other DC movies. But now, we’re hearing that director Matt Reeves had someone else in mind for the role: Jack Huston.

That’s according to Revenge of the Fans, whose sources have told them that Huston has been in meetings with Reeves and Warner Bros. about donning the cape and cowl. Apparently, his is a star on the rise in Hollywood, having previously been linked to several high profile projects, including the doomed remake of The Crow. It certainly sounds like he fits the role Reeves had in mind for Jake Gyllenhaal, too, with the actors being of similar ages, heights, builds and, apparently, the ability to act their socks off.

There’s just one problem, though, and that’s that the director’s now changed his mind on how he wants to portray the Caped Crusader in the film.

Apparently, the latest draft of Reeves’ script calls for a 25-30-year-old Batman, with inspiration reportedly being taken from Frank Miller’s iconic Batman: Year One comic. If this turns out to be true, the pic runs the risk of being rather familiar to seasoned Batfans.

After all, Christopher Nolan drew inspiration from it in his tale of the first days of the Caped Crusader in Gotham in Batman Begins, and there was also a DC Animated Film that adapted the story directly (though, to be honest, it wasn’t that great). Going back even further, the 1992 animated movie Batman: Mask of the Phantasm featured many Year One elements as well.

Either way, with Huston now seemingly out of the running, Revenge of the Fans notes that the studio still wants him involved and could cast him as Harvey Dent in The Batman instead. Again, though, we’d advise taking this all with a grain of salt. ROTF is usually pretty accurate with their scoops, but until Warner Bros. makes an official announcement, all we can do is speculate.