Aside from the casting of the Dark Knight himself, one of the biggest talking points surrounding any movie headlined by the Batman is which villains are set to appear. Though the Joker is pretty much always guaranteed to boost ticket sales, there’s appreciation the world over for various other Arkham Asylum inmates.
If you’ll recall, this flick is slated to feature at least a handful of rogues, though Warner Bros. have remained mum on who’ll next terrorize Gotham City. Much industry chatter has pointed toward the Penguin and the Riddler showing up, so I’m inclined to believe they’re a lock at this point. Furthermore, there have also been whispers regarding Catwoman, Scarecrow and Bane, each a crowd-pleaser in their own right. Well, I’d argue that Catwoman doesn’t count as a villain, but that’s a discussion for another day.
As it turns out, our source is telling us that none other than Two-Face will be added to the mix, too. Now, it’s important to note that the size of his role remains a mystery, so it’s hard to determine if he’ll be a major force to be reckoned with or merely a bit player. Hey, as long as the script balances these baddies well, the narrative could work. Christopher Nolan and his team pulled it off nicely in The Dark Knight Trilogy, so let’s not scoff at the idea of having something comparable to The Long Halloween‘s roster in live action.
At the moment, you may be thinking the same thing as I: that being we’ve seen Two-Face a couple times before. In my view, though, we’ve still yet to see the dichotomous gangster known to comic book and animation enthusiasts. Tommy Lee Jones’ rendition in Batman Forever was downright farcical and poorly written, whereas Aaron Eckhart’s take in The Dark Knight, beautiful as it was, could more so be described as a man who’d simply been pushed too far and traveled the darker path. This time, though, Matt Reeves has his chance to adhere closer to the source material.
Again, this could be construed as playing it safe, so I’m hoping that someone like Scarecrow or Bane will be removed in favor of other villains in need of exposure. I don’t see Joker showing up just yet in this new universe because he’s just too prevalent elsewhere of late, but Hugo Strange is ripe for the picking. Also, odds are I’m not the only one dying to see Hush, though he’s best reserved for a movie of his own.
The Batman opens in theaters on June 25th, 2021.
