A meticulously crafted new statue depicting Robert Pattinson in The Batman reveals hidden details of the Batsuit. The Caped Crusader recently returned to screens thanks to HBO Max’s release of the Justice League Zack Snyder cut. But the Batman featured in that movie is of course not the one who will carry the character into the future for the DCEU.
Indeed the next incarnation of Batman comes not from Snyder and Ben Affleck but Matt Reeves and Pattinson. Reeves’ The Batman figures to return the character to something of a more traditional form, as it depicts Gotham’s defender at an early stage in his career as a vigilante and detective (with Superman nowhere to be found). And because he’s early on in his run as Batman, Bruce Wayne sports some equipment that takes on a decidedly rough and home-made look. This includes the Batsuit, glimpses of which fans have gotten thanks to a combination of officially released trailers and leaked images.
The latest leak related to The Batman and specifically the Batsuit isn’t in fact an image or a piece of video but rather a sculptured rendering. Created by Prime 1 Studio, the statue was inspired by promo art done by Jim Lee for last year’s DC FanDome showing Batman all armored up and posing on top of a gargoyle. Debuted as part of Prime 1 Studio’s Next Level Showcase 2 event, the statue can be seen at around the 2:12:00 mark of the video in the space below:
Indeed the statue is an amazing piece of art, crafted with meticulous attention to every tiny detail. The more interesting aspects of the new Batsuit of course include the cowl, which is made of leather and appears crudely stitched together, in keeping with the home-made aesthetic that appears to dominate in Reeves’ vision of Gotham. There’s also the Batman insignia worked into the chest plate that appears to have been crafted from a gun, leading to speculation that Batman himself made the insignia out of the weapon used by Joe Chill to kill his parents (something similar indeed happened in the comics). It’s of course also been noted that the new Batsuit is heavily armored compared to previous iterations of the costume, and that comes across strongly in the new Prime 1 Studio statue. Batman obviously can’t go into battle without plenty of weapons so the statue shows him sporting dart throwers on his gauntlets as well as loads of equipment on his utility belt. And in his right hand he holds his trusty grappling hook gun.
The design of the Batsuit is of course of supreme interest to Batman fans as they try to judge the direction the series may be going as Reeves and Pattinson take over. Indeed, the suit design is usually a direct reflection of the tone of each given Batman movie. Christopher Nolan’s Batman movies for instance featured a more tactical Batsuit, in keeping with those films' generally more realistic feel. On the other side of the spectrum, the over-the-top Batman & Robin Batsuit with its infamous visible nipples gave away that movie’s lack of seriousness. From every glimpse so far of the Batsuit in The Batman, including the very good look afforded by the statue featured above, it’s clear the new movie will be dark and gritty and grounded in a believable depiction of what a young, relatively inexperienced Bruce Wayne would be able to put together by himself. This should give the movie a very unique and interesting angle as it takes Batman into a new, post-Snyder era.
Source: Prime 1 Studio/YouTube
