‘The Batman’ Is Not In DCU Shared Universe, Says Director Matt Reeves

Director Matt Reeves reasserted that his upcoming film The Batman: Part II is an “Elseworld” story and not in the newly established DCU shared cinematic world.

The Batman and The DCU

The statements came in a red carpet interview with Josh Horowitz at the Emmy Awards (at which The Penguin’s Cristin Milioti won a well-deserved award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie, and received a large number of additional nominations), where Matt Reeves spoke with Horowitz at length and noted the rebooted Batman franchise is still under the overarching umbrella of DC Studios and co-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran, even while the director’s films remain in their own standalone bat-world.

The DCU shared cinematic world started with last year’s [HBO] Max animated streaming series Creature Commandoes, but the live-action big-screen launch of this newly minted DC cinematic universe took place this summer with writer-director Gunn’s own Superman starring David Corenswet as the new Man of Steel.

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The DCU plans its own totally different, new version of Batman within their shared world of superheroes, with the +project Brave and the Bold still in development and director Andy Muschietti announced. A script is still being rewritten, no casting has started, and there’s no set start-date or release-date. This, while other projects have leapfrogged it into production, notably Clayface. from director James Watkins and a screenplay from Mike Flanagan and Hossein Amini.

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Rumors have swirled that the studio was considering merging Reeves’ Batman into the DCU, and apparently it was discussed at least once between the filmmaker and the studio heads. Fans have debated the merits and likelihood of such a move endlessly, with multiple moments of seeming “final word” coming and going without the rumors and debate – or sense of uncertainty – abating.

Gunn has repeatedly said The Batman is an Elseworld movie (meaning it is set in its own alternate world without any connection to the other DC superhero movies) and says the delays are because the script still needed a lot of rewrites. Reeves has also previously confirmed the independent nature of his films, and director Muschietti reiterated his involvement in Brave and the Bold while attributing the delays in part to the studio’s plans to avoid both Batman franchises overlapping too much in release.

However, at some point the studio and filmmaker began to speak more hedgingly and suggesting the door wasn’t closed on a potential crossover. Never say never, they said. With studio plans changing, it looked reasonable to think that they wanted to keep their options open. Meanwhile, The Batman: Part II faced several delays, as did Brave and the Bold, which fed the rumors a merger might take place.

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The Flash proved nothing is 100% certain in terms of Batman’s instant brand power to put butts in seats, so it made sense that the studio would want to hedge their bets and not overcommit as the situation while it was still fluid and some dust was still settling, and while the DCU project was still struggling to find its own footing.

But historically, Batman tends to shrug off his cinematic baggage pretty fast. The failure of 1997’s Batman & Robin didn’t prevent Christopher Nolan’s rebooted The Dark Knight Trilogy from become a blockbuster success, and the ultimate failure of the DCEU didn’t stop The Batman from immediately reminding audiences why they love the character and scoring blockbuster results. And The Flash was an exception to the rule even in the DCEU, with Batman v Superman, Suicide Squad, and Justice League all performed at blockbuster box office levels, even if the latter was deemed a failure due to potential and the context of that film’s production and release.

So in the aftermath of Superman’s $615 million blockbuster success topping all Marvel Studios challengers this year (a sort-of sequel is already announced and scripted), DC Studios might feel that they’ve got the momentum and audience investment to roll the dice on another new Batman, since Batman movies are as close to risk-free as a studio investment probably gets.

This could be why we are once again seeing Gunn and Reeves circle back toward more definitive statements about the Elseworld nature of The Batman, and the ongoing development of The Brave and the Bold. Gunn apparently even has an actor in mind who is interested in the role, although he’s suggested that doesn’t mean the actor is necessarily the one who would get the job. The script seems closer to completion now as well, and Gunn seems to feel more comfortable talking about it as it becomes a more likely project (the DC Studios position being no project moves forward unless and until it has a finished screenplay Gunn thinks is totally ready for the big screen).

The payoff of protecting The Batman series from any risks of a merger attempt (since it’s already a proven commodity), while establishing an additional cinematic Batman to boost the shared-world DCU films alongside a second profit-printing Batman solo series featuring a wider array of the fantastical characters excluded from The Batman world, would be enormous if successful.

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Consider that besides the DCU itself being a shared world with its own Batman in The Brave and the Bold, The Batman could be allowed to continue in perpetuity and eventually include its own versions of Robin and Nightwing, Batgirl, and then even introduce certain other DC heroes who fit into the more grounded approach such as Green Arrow. With films and miniseries spinoffs on HBO Max, it’s possible that DC Studios could wind up with two different blockbuster universes capable of coexisting just fine. As long as audiences enjoy the films, they’ll quickly grasp the concept and go right along for the ride.

There are factors that could change the eventual reality of the DCU and Batman’s place in it, including the upcoming likely sale of WBD to the highest bidder. But that’s another much bigger discussion I’ll address this week in a separate article. The official position now remains that The Batman is Elseworld, The Brave and the Bold is still moving forward, and anything else depends on what happens in the next year.