After months of secrecy, Warner Bros. has begun to flood the internet with Batman V Superman details - including the divisive reveal of Doomsday in the film's most recent theatrical trailer. In the process, it's become increasingly easy to chart the basic Dawn of Justice plot - as recent videos make what fans already knew apparent to everyone - the movie might be called Batman V Superman but the pair won't be at odds the entire story. Still, even though several Dawn of Justice secrets have been prematurely revealed, thanks to production leaks, retail merchandise, and an over-eager marketing campaign, there is still a lot moviegoers do not about about the project. As director Zack Snyder has suggested on multiple occasions, just because Warner Bros. has revealed a lot, doesn't mean there isn't still a lot left to reveal.
Roles for several supporting cast members remain unconfirmed - suggesting that even if viewers can guess the broad strokes of Batman V Superman, there's still some fan service that has been reserved for big screen unveiling. Yet, with the film only two months away from release, few were expecting to hear new casting information, but ahead of Batman V Superman's March premiere, we're getting further confirmation of a key role.
The report comes from IMDB who, in an unprecedented move, actually tweeted out news that Walking Dead star Lauren Cohan (who plays fan-favorite Maggie on the zombie drama series) will appear in Dawn of Justice - as Bruce Wayne's mother, Martha, who was tragically killed by criminals in front of her son when he was a young boy, setting the future-vigilante on a path to caped crusading.
It's worth noting that IMDB is not normally considered a reliable news source - since pretty much anyone with an IMDB account can alter casting information. The movie database has taken steps, much like Wikipedia, to prevent "vandalism," through which fans would update pages with inaccurate information (especially fan-casting); however, it's important to be clear that IMDB is still updated and maintained by users - not verified insiders. For that reason, IMDB listings are not, alone, confirmation - since fan edits (malicious and non-malicious alike) still go unnoticed alongside official info.
That all said, what makes this IMDB posting different is that the casting of Lauren Cohan as Martha Wayne was announced as "BREAKING" news through IMDB's official Twitter account - a tweet that Cohan herself retweeted - suggesting that there is something more to the report (which, itself, only further confirmed what Batman V Superman set photos had previously suggested: Cohan is portraying Martha Wayne).
Check out the Tweet below (followed by a "Thanku" from Cohan afterward):
BREAKING! @LaurenCohan has been added to the cast list of #BatmanvSuperman https://t.co/rGvUS6xyHV #CastingNews pic.twitter.com/mBKVSrASjf— IMDb (@IMDb) January 22, 2016
thanku!— Lauren Cohan (@LaurenCohan) January 22, 2016
After all, IMDB is well-aware that a significant chunk of its content can be manipulated by mischievous users, so the website has previously been extremely careful about what they tweet - meaning it's highly unlikely that managers of the IMDB Twitter account simply saw that someone had added Lauren Cohan to the Batman V Superman cast and decided to broadcast the edit to their 2 million followers. Instead, it makes more sense that the website might be stepping outside of its normal database role to report semi-exclusive info.
That's all to say, it's worth taking IMDB's tweet with a tiny grain of salt - until word of Cohan's casting is confirmed by more traditional sources but, paired with Cohan's retweet and "Thanku," it's a safe bet the actress is going to appear in Batman V Superman after all.
Assuming the information is true, Walking Dead fans still shouldn't expect too much of Cohan in Dawn of Justice, since the actress is portraying a character that, in a film already packed with iconic characters, would only be seen in flashback. It might seem strange to cast a familiar actress in a minor role but Cohan is definitely a fitting pick for Martha Wayne - especially if Warner Bros. might want to utilize the talented actress again down the line (for further exploration in the Batman solo movie). In most Batman stories, Bruce Wayne was eight-years-old when his parents were murdered and depending on how old this version of Martha will be at the time of her death, the 34 year-old actress could be a solid choice for Bruce's beautiful and elegant mother - a role that hasn't been developed too often beyond how Martha's death sets the stage for Bruce as a crime fighter.
Flashbacks to Clark Kent's upbringing in Smallville laid a rich foundation during Man of Steel, both in terms of developing Clark as a person and as an thematic icon, so there's reason to think that future Batman movies could bring Martha back to explore Bruce's life before the tragic events of Crime Alley. We already know that several of DC's Justice League movies feature roles for parents of the starring superhero team (Wonder Woman challenges her mother's passive rule of Themyscira, Aquaman is the lost son of a lighthouse keeper and the queen of Atlantis, The Flash's father is framed for the murder of his mother, and Cyborg's father saves his life using cybernetic augmentation), so it's possible that Warner Bros. could decide there's room revisit Bruce Wayne's relationship with his mother as more than just a turning point in Batman mythology.
To that end, when the well-known actress appears in Dawn of Justice, Batman V Superman might not be the last time that we see Cohan's Martha Wayne. The casting, which could appear out-of-place for such a small part, is likely an indication of seeds that DC is slyly planting for future movies (and Batman character development).
MORE: Justice League Team Concept Artwork Revealed
Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice will hit theaters on March 25th, 2016, followed by Suicide Squad on August 5th, 2016, Wonder Woman on June 23rd, 2017, Justice League on November 17th, 2017, The Flash on March 23rd, 2018, Aquaman on July 27th, 2018, Shazam on April 5th, 2019, Justice League 2 on June 14th, 2019, Cyborg on April 3rd, 2020, and Green Lantern Corps on June 19th, 2020.
Source: IMDB