Catwoman (Zoe Kravitz), is set to play a role in 2021 DC film The Batman, but Selina Kyle needs to be more than Bruce's love interest this time. Catwoman debuted on the pages of DC Comics way back in 1940, and is one of the most iconic members of the Gotham City rogues' gallery. She's also the only Bat-villain who often finds herself on Batman's side, both in costumes and outside of them. Batman and Catwoman have had a flirtatious relationship almost since the beginning, and in more recent years that's been taken to the next level.
Batman actually proposed to Catwoman in 2017, in the comics, although Bruce would get stood up at the alter. Still, Selina Kyle has since made it clear that she loves Bruce Wayne, and the lives of the Bat and the Cat will forever be closely entwined. This idea of making Batman and Catwoman's romantic relationship more serious has also been reflected onscreen, in both Batman movies and Batman TV series.
Batman and Catwoman being significant others has become so common in DC lore that even the FOX series Gotham, which depicted teenage versions of Bruce and Selina for most of its run, made their budding love a large plot point. While the romantic element between the two characters will probably never go away, Catwoman needs to be allowed to do something different in her next movie appearance.
The Batman: Catwoman Shouldn't Just Be Bruce Wayne's Love Interest Again
So far, not much is known about the role Zoe Kravitz's Catwoman will play in The Batman. She's seen in the trailer practicing her cat burglar skills, and clearly hasn't evolved into her true self yet. However, one thing she really, really doesn't need to be focused on, at least not immediately, is a relationship with Bruce Wayne. A tumultuous attraction and eventual love affair with Batman was arguably the defining character trait of both Michelle Pfieffer's Catwoman in Batman Returns and Anne Hathaway's Catwoman in The Dark Knight Rises. At the center of her story, was her love/hate relationship with Bruce.
To be clear, there's nothing wrong with keeping that element alive to an extent. The script should feel free to hint at a mutual attraction, and have Catwoman use her seductive skills to catch Batman off guard. Fans would probably expect nothing less. But first and foremost, Catwoman needs to be who she originally was, a villain. She can be a tragic villain, a likable villain, or lots of other things, but Catwoman should not end up aligned with Batman over the course of one film, and her story arc should not center on her will they/won't they tension with him. Selina Kyle deserves to be a character with worth outside of being Bruce Wayne's lover.
