The Batman director Matt Reeves says he wouldn't have signed onto the DC film if he didn't have creative freedom. When it comes to big Hollywood tentpoles, there have been many instances of directors being hesitant to work on a film because of too much studio interference. Disney is especially notorious for this, as they are fiercely protective of their Marvel and Star Wars brands. Both franchises have seen directors exit due to the often-cited "creative differences," with the most recent being Scott Derrickson's departure from Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

Reeves joined The Batman as the writer and director following Ben Affleck's exit from the DCEU. This newest take on the Caped Crusader will star Robert Pattinson and reportedly isn't an origin story. Reeves has been mum on the actual plot details, but he has been willing to share additional teases. Fans were thrilled when Reeves posted an official look at Pattinson in his Batsuit, and that excitement has only been growing. Unfortunately, production on the film is currently on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic, but that hasn't stopped Reeves from talking about it.

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During an interview with The New York Times, Reeves spoke about the occasional difficulty with directing a big-budget film. As Reeves said, studios approach certain properties in a way that they think will make them money, and it's never clear if studio executives will be open to a new director's vision. However, when it came to The Batman, creative control was important to Reeves. He explained:

You never know whether the people in charge of those I.P.s [intellectual properties] are going to be open to your vision. But if they weren’t, I wouldn’t have done “Batman.” I was like, look, there have been some great “Batman” films and I don’t want to just make a “Batman” film. I want to do something that has some emotional stakes. My ambition is for it to be incredibly personal using the metaphors of that world.

Robert Pattinson and Batmobile in The Batman

Reeves then went on to say that The Batman feels like "this really odd throwback to the movies I came up on from the ’70s." He cited films like Klute and Chinatown has inspiration, which seems to back up his previous comments about delving into the detective side of Batman. It definitely seems like Reeves is trying to put a unique spin on a character that has been depicted numerous times. Luckily, what he's said so far has seemed to inspire great confidence among fans.

For every horror story about a director not gaining creative freedom over a project, there are plenty showing the other side. For example, The New Mutants director Josh Boone has insisted the final cut of his film is exactly what he set out to make, and James Gunn recently said Marvel had very few notes for him when it came to Guardians of the Galaxy, save for one major inclusion. Reeves seems to have lucked out with The Batman, and odds are, the movie will be stronger for it.

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Source: The New York Times

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