I'm Reading Your Stuff: General News and Discussion Thread

[TheGDBatman]

Here’s a stupid thought: is there a world where Matt Reeves is writing The Brave & the Bold with Gunn?

This is based on nothing except that Matt seems to be positioned as the gatekeeper for the character. That, and Gunn’s quote about the writer not being disclosed because they don’t want the pressure.

Before I walk myself back with rational thought, I wonder if this is a plausible situation. Sorta like “hey Matt, I love your work but we can’t let you finish the trilogy. We need to get our universe off the ground, and you want to keep Rob and your universe separate. What do you think about working with me on a new Batman movie?”

Again, prefacing this with disclaimers about stupidity, but it would at least explain the writing delays

 

[Boom]

Here’s a stupid thought: is there a world where Matt Reeves is writing The Brave & the Bold with Gunn?

This is based on nothing except that Matt seems to be positioned as the gatekeeper for the character. That, and Gunn’s quote about the writer not being disclosed because they don’t want the pressure.

Before I walk myself back with rational thought, I wonder if this is a plausible situation. Sorta like “hey Matt, I love your work but we can’t let you finish the trilogy. We need to get our universe off the ground, and you want to keep Rob and your universe separate. What do you think about working with me on a new Batman movie?”

Again, prefacing this with disclaimers about stupidity, but it would at least explain the writing delays

The rage I would experience over this would be unprecedented in all of recorded human history.

 

[SwordOfMorning]

Maybe its cope but there is a world where Reeves has had enough warning of this - if it is true - that Part II can be a really tight, dense everything and the kitchen sink story with nothing held back for future installments. It'd be sad not to have a whole trilogy but as long as there's a complete story ultimately it's all good.

Either way, the atmosphere being so consistently depressing around this project due to the delays and the DCU has been super unfun. I'm not mad at the delays, only the last one really stung, but cumulatively it's been an unfortunate vibe.

 

[SwordOfMorning]

I'm trying really hard to just focus on the most immediate thing, which is The Batman Part II. Doing my best not to worry about anything beyond that.

With that said, I'm fairly convinced that Part II will be a wrap on Reeves' stuff. Who knows? Maybe Part II explodes at the box office and WBD (or Gunn and Safran more specifically) would be insane to say "No" to a third one. I certainly hope so! But given the difficulty Reeves has had in getting these movies made, coupled with Gunn and Safran trying to get their DCU universe on solid footing, I just think the writing's on the wall that all parties will mutually agree to move on after Part II.

By the time Part II comes out, Reeves will have worked on Batman for nearly eight years - with only 2 movies and 1 limited series to show for it. That's after burdening a generational pandemic, a writer's strike, an actor's strike, and undisclosed personal issues at home. Does he really have another 4-5 years in the tank for Part III? When all is said and done, he'd be wrapping up in 2031/2032 - almost twelve to thirteen years in total.

I know this is extremely assumptive of Reeves' feelings, but that's where my gut's at right now. Once you start looking at the sheer amount of time involved, amongst other factors, I'm frankly going to be shocked if this continues beyond Part II.

This is the right idea. The least fun thing fans of these movies can do right now is make the journey to Part II - which is extremely likely to happen - unfun because of Broader Franchise Concerns.

 

[emielaen]

Lol on a dime. The Batman movie coming out in 2027 is Part II. I'm really not getting the "warning" or ultimatum-y intentions of Safran's quote. One is practically a secret. One has been confirmed by the writer/director/producer and lead to be shooting this year. If Part II does well, it ain't gonna go away. And I honestly don't see it failing, even if DCU Batman is in Clayface a year before, or BatB comes out a year later and Gunn is directing, etc etc.

Every time Reeves talks about this stuff, he talks about it like he could do it forever, even as he also talks about his own personal situation. When he says he's tired of it, then that'll be that. But he keeps taking jobs with these guys and still sounds into it. So idk.

I do think Gunn may get a co-writer or story credit on BatB, but directing? Who knows. Not super exciting, but it's still in the air. I think that would be better suited for him than Superman in some ways, but to do both (even after Snyder did it) is crazy, especially when you're also co-CEO. But I also don't think it means we've lost different voices in this world. They have some great names on board. Could use more though.

 

[SwordOfMorning]

Safran is a bootlicking dogman (citation: his comments about Batgirl, made in supplication to his sugar daddy Zaslav) but yeah I can't imagine them making a hint hint wink wink towards an intimidation based ultimatum in a press conference lol

 

[BatsAndNights]

Ultimately, we're not gonna find out about the future of the Reevesverse until the box office comes in. If it's making those big dollars, DC are just gonna keep sending heavier and heavier money trucks to Reeves' house. Until then? We're not gonna know for sure. TB1's script was finished far earlier than this if I recall, so honestly we may be vastly underestimating just how demanding these personal issues are for Matt. Hopefully if Part 3 is gonna be more smooth sailing after Matt takes a break, it'll still be possible. Who knows, though

 

[solidsnake86]

If Superman hits big, Gunn should be focusing on a sequel and not taking on BATB. He would be pushing his luck truthfully.

Part of the reason Reeves is taking so long is that a lot of stuff has already been done with batman on the big screen. It's not that easy to make it that fresh. Gunn's ego would have to be massive to think he can whip up a script that quickly, all due respect to him. The Damian idea is different but is it that good?

Their DCU announcements regarding batman amounted to a rinse and repeat of what they have been saying this whole time, i.e. the plan is to have a DCU batman.

 

[TheGDBatman]

Ultimately, we're not gonna find out about the future of the Reevesverse until the box office comes in. If it's making those big dollars, DC are just gonna keep sending heavier and heavier money trucks to Reeves' house. Until then? We're not gonna know for sure. TB1's script was finished far earlier than this if I recall, so honestly we may be vastly underestimating just how demanding these personal issues are for Matt. Hopefully if Part 3 is gonna be more smooth sailing after Matt takes a break, it'll still be possible. Who knows, though

I honestly don't think that's the case. The longer this thing goes, the more convinced I am that Part II is it. Gunn/Safran, didddd refer to it as The Batman trilogy in their presser, but that might not accurately reflect whatever plans are in place.

 

[flickchick85]

Mmm. That quote from Safran that all he can say is a Batman movie will come out in October, 2027 is... interesting. Curious if that's getting taken out of context to make it sound more suspicious.

My totally left field theory based on Gunn’s coyness about the next thing he’s writing, a Superman sequel being not exactly it but connected, how Batman “might show up in something else before” BatB, and how his favorite project in the DCU is one “nobody knows about” yet, is that he’s currently writing a World’s Finest movie that will come out before Brave and the Bold, to be announced after Superman, and that’s the 2027 movie Safran’s referring to. And if The Batman Part II makes its date, then there will be two Batman movies that year. And if The Batman Part II actually starts filming this year, it might even get bumped UP to end of 2026. I think they put its release date where they did because they just don’t know when Reeves will turn it in and wanted to give themselves plenty of leeway, but that quote from Safran suggested to me that they’ve got something else in the fire for 2027 regardless.

 

[Black Narcissus]

My totally left field theory based on Gunn’s coyness about the next thing he’s writing, a Superman sequel being not exactly it but connected, how Batman “might show up in something else before” BatB, and how his favorite project in the DCU is one “nobody knows about” yet, is that he’s currently writing a World’s Finest movie that will come out before Brave and the Bold, to be announced after Superman, and that’s the 2027 movie Safran’s referring to. And if The Batman Part II makes its date, then there will be two Batman movies that year. And if The Batman Part II actually starts filming this year, it might even get bumped UP to end of 2026. I think they put its release date where they did because they just don’t know when Reeves will turn it in and wanted to give themselves plenty of leeway, but that quote from Safran suggested to me that they’ve got something else in the fire for 2027 regardless.

Yup. I’ve long believed, he {Gunn} is working on a Supes/Batman movie for a while now. It just makes too much sense and a team up that he could not resist. I nod at more folks around here coming around to Reeves only doing part II.

 

[SwordOfMorning]

Smugness is truly the most becoming of traits.

 

[Black Narcissus]

Smugness is truly the most becoming of traits.

Goes well with the sn.

 

[SwordOfMorning]

My totally left field theory based on Gunn’s coyness about the next thing he’s writing, a Superman sequel being not exactly it but connected, how Batman “might show up in something else before” BatB, and how his favorite project in the DCU is one “nobody knows about” yet, is that he’s currently writing a World’s Finest movie that will come out before Brave and the Bold, to be announced after Superman, and that’s the 2027 movie Safran’s referring to. And if The Batman Part II makes its date, then there will be two Batman movies that year. And if The Batman Part II actually starts filming this year, it might even get bumped UP to end of 2026. I think they put its release date where they did because they just don’t know when Reeves will turn it in and wanted to give themselves plenty of leeway, but that quote from Safran suggested to me that they’ve got something else in the fire for 2027 regardless.

The Superman sequel being a Batman crossover again would be wild.

 

[Boom]

The Superman sequel being a Batman crossover again would be wild.

Twitter will be insufferable.

But yeah, Gunn doing The World's Finest to introduce the DCU Batman before The Brave and the Bold makes a ton of sense.

He's one of Gunn's favorite characters. A part of me always felt he wouldn't be able to help himself and end up tackling Batman. And I do wonder how much of that has to do with the success of Reeves' stuff.

 

[emielaen]

 

[flickchick85]

The Superman sequel being a Batman crossover again would be wild.

Whether Superman is a hit or a disappointment, I genuinely believe that if Gunn gets to continue his plans, no matter what, he's handing the reins of Superman to someone else. It may be wishful thinking on my part because y'all know how I feel about the guy, but like, he's just doing this one as a tribute to his father. We all know this character is not gonna inspire long-term commitment from him when he's got the whole DC sandbox to play in. So IF Supes is a big enough hit to warrant a solo sequel at all, he's passing the baton to someone else, meaning it could go into development right alongside whatever Gunn's next project is. I think if Superman lands, David Corenswet is gonna be a very, very busy guy over the next several years, and that's what he signed up for. If it doesn't land but Gunn gets to keep his job, he'll be doing all those guest appearances Cavill refused to do for a while 'til he wanted his job back.

 

[TheGDBatman]

My totally left field theory based on Gunn’s coyness about the next thing he’s writing, a Superman sequel being not exactly it but connected, how Batman “might show up in something else before” BatB, and how his favorite project in the DCU is one “nobody knows about” yet, is that he’s currently writing a World’s Finest movie that will come out before Brave and the Bold, to be announced after Superman, and that’s the 2027 movie Safran’s referring to. And if The Batman Part II makes its date, then there will be two Batman movies that year. And if The Batman Part II actually starts filming this year, it might even get bumped UP to end of 2026. I think they put its release date where they did because they just don’t know when Reeves will turn it in and wanted to give themselves plenty of leeway, but that quote from Safran suggested to me that they’ve got something else in the fire for 2027 regardless.

If it’s modelled in any way after the animated movie then I’m soooooo on board.

 

[flickchick85]

If it’s modelled in any way after the animated movie then I’m soooooo on board.

Yeah, the way I see it, we now have BvS as the perfect example of what NOT to do when those characters meet, so the likelihood of it being a solid crossover between the two is much higher than it was a decade ago. I'd be cautiously optimistic this time lol.

 

[Boom]

“The only thing that’s [Elseworlds] is… [Matt Reeves’] world,” Safran continued. “His crime saga that he’s telling. The Batman trilogy, The Penguin series. That’s what’s in that lane. So still under DC Studios. Still under us. We have an incredible relationship with Matt. But those are the only things. It was important that Clayface be part of the DCU. It’s an origin story for, you know, a classic Batman villain.”

Catching Up with James Gunn and Peter Safran of DC Studios, Part II

Yesterday, we unveiled to all of you hardcore DC fans that we had a chance to chat with James Gunn and Peter Safran at an exclusive, intimate press conference recently, in which they discussed the …

thenerdsofcolor.org

 

[The Shape]

IMO, this whole situation has entered into "worst case scenario" territory in terms of having two concurrent Batman franchises. It'd be one thing if The Batman II was coming out later this year, and then maybe Reeves could wrap up a trilogy with a "Part III" coming out in 2027 or 2028 just as the DCU was gearing up to introduce their own version of Batman...but unfortunately, for whatever reason, things did not work out that way.

Instead, The Batman II is supposedly coming out in 2027 -- 5 years after the original (which already sucks) -- and we're almost certainly going to have the DCU Batman coming into the fold somewhere soon whether it be in his own movie or a Worlds Finest or a Superman sequel or whatever...smack dab in the middle of the Reeves Batman trilogy. There's just no way to time this well or stagger this in a way that makes sense to me any more, outside of fully waiting for the Reeves-verse to conclude before introducing a DCU Batman. As a diehard fan, I'm always down for more Batman and will see everything, but for the general public? I could be wrong but it seems confusing and I have to imagine one of these Batman versions - or even both - will be hurt by this in some way over time. It's not really fair for the DCU Batman to be getting introduced amongst this. That version deserves it's own hype, fanfare, buildup, etc and the ability to stand on its own....but alternatively, this will also take some buzz away from Reeves' Batman

There's not even a sound comparison for anything like this happening before to this extent, is there? Imagine a separate James Bond series debuting or running concurrently to the Daniel Craig Bond films, or a live action Batman film with a different actor releasing nearly simultaneously to the Nolan Batman movies/appearances or during that trilogy's release schedule. Would that be fair to Nolan's Batman? Or vice versa?

 

[TheGDBatman]

IMO, this whole situation has entered into "worst case scenario" territory in terms of having two concurrent Batman franchises. It'd be one thing if The Batman II was coming out later this year, and then maybe Reeves could wrap up a trilogy with a "Part III" coming out in 2027 or 2028 just as the DCU was gearing up to introduce their own version of Batman...but unfortunately, for whatever reason, things did not work out that way.

Instead, The Batman II is supposedly coming out in 2027 -- 5 years after the original (which already sucks) -- and we're almost certainly going to have the DCU Batman coming into the fold somewhere soon whether it be in his own movie or a Worlds Finest or a Superman sequel or whatever...smack dab in the middle of the Reeves Batman trilogy. There's just no way to time this well or stagger this in a way that makes sense to me any more, outside of fully waiting for the Reeves-verse to conclude before introducing a DCU Batman. As a diehard fan, I'm always down for more Batman and will see everything, but for the general public? I could be wrong but it seems confusing and I have to imagine one of these Batman versions - or even both - will be hurt by this in some way over time. It's not really fair for the DCU Batman to be getting introduced amongst this. That version deserves it's own hype, fanfare, buildup, etc and the ability to stand on its own....but alternatively, this will also take some buzz away from Reeves' Batman

There's not even a sound comparison for anything like this happening before to this extent, is there? Imagine a separate James Bond series debuting or running concurrently to the Daniel Craig Bond films, or a live action Batman film with a different actor releasing nearly simultaneously to the Nolan Batman movies/appearances or during that trilogy's release schedule. Would that be fair to Nolan's Batman? Or vice versa?

See, this is why @flickchick85 ’s theory about a World’s Finest movie makes a ton of sense. What better way to differentiate two Batmen than by having one in a movie with David Corenswet, who you’ve been marketing as a new Superman in a new universe. Not saying it’s ideal, but I could totally see this being the thought process.

 

[BobJM]

I'd be so gagged if the next movie after Superman is World's Finest. Just pull the DCAU script out of the drawers at WB and shoot that.

Or look to some of the recent Mark Waid run for inspiration--it'd be great to see Batman & Dick Grayson Robin teaming with Superman & Supergirl.

The DCEU strategy to expand the universe with a Batman/Superman film wasn't the issue, it was the execution. It worked for Cap 2 and 3 that were basically Avengers films in disguise.

 

[donuts]

I'd be so gagged if the next movie after Superman is World's Finest. Just pull the DCAU script out of the drawers at WB and shoot that.

That would be terribly lazy. We've already got the DCAU World's Finest. Animated.

 

[BobJM]

Lazy, sure? But it's a good story with all the favorites included. I don't actually expect WB to start basing their films on old DCAU episodes/movies, was just being flippant.