Christopher Nolan Likely Done Making Superhero Films

Screen Rant

Christopher Nolan Is Probably Done Making Superhero Films

The Dark Knight trilogy director Christopher Nolan says he probably won't make another superhero film, though he's still a fan of them.

Christopher Nolan spent years ushering in the modern superhero genre with The Dark Knight Trilogy, and it looks like he has no inclination to return for another go-around. It's no secret that Joel Schumacher's critically maligned movie, Batman & Robin, effectively killed the Batman franchise, which began with Tim Burton's groundbreaking 1989 film, Batman. Several filmmakers - from Darren Aronofsky to Joss Whedon - attempted to revive the franchise in the years after, but it wasn't until Nolan came onto the scene with his take on the character that Warner Bros. decided to give the Caped Crusader another shot.

Nolan co-wrote and directed Batman Begins, starring Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne, aka Batman. Rather than continue the campiness established by Schumacher's previous films, the filmmaker sought to ground the character in reality, and like Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns before it, the movie ushered in a new era of filmmaking, going as far as to impact non-superhero movies such as Casino Royale and Sherlock Holmes. Nolan continued to produce that level of quality in the next two installments in his trilogy: The Dark Knight (which is heralded as one of the greatest superhero movies ever made) and The Dark Knight Rises.

Despite having such an impact on the modern superhero genre, Nolan has no interest in returning for another Batman installment, nor for a superhero movie of any kind. It's not that he doesn't like those types of movies, because he does. In fact, he said he recently saw Patty Jenkins' Wonder Woman and he loved it. However, he told Yahoo! Movies he thinks it's time for other people to carry that torch.

Christian Bale and Christopher Nolan On A Skyscraper

“I mean, I watch the films. I enjoy films very much as a moviegoer these days. I spent 10 years of my life dealing with one of the greatest characters in popular fiction. It was a great honor and a privilege to work with that, but there’s a time to pass it on to new people.”

It's understandable for Nolan to want to leave superhero movies behind him and continue to pursue original stories - such as Inception and Interstellar - as well as more passionate projects, like his upcoming film, Dunkirk, something that he's been trying to make since the start of his career. Aside from those types of movies, Nolan has expressed interest in taking on another iconic fictional character: James Bond. Of course, he has continually said that he would only make a Bond film if he were allowed to reinvent the franchise.

No matter what type of film Nolan chooses to make going forward, virtually every major comic book movie in the foreseeable future will be compared to his Dark Knight trilogy. And although he isn't involved in shaping the burgeoning DC Extended Universe - which not only gave audiences the first ever live-action Wonder Woman movie, but will also give people the first live-action films for Flash, Aquaman, Cyborg, and the Justice League - he did have a hand in launching it. People may remember that the filmmaker served as an executive producer on Zack Snyder's Man of Steel, which was based on a story that he and David S. Goyer came up with together.