Matt Reeves, the director of The Batman, addresses Bruce Wayne's billionaire status in today's context. The Batman is the upcoming DC superhero movie starring Robert Pattinson. Pattinson will be replacing Ben Affleck, who portrayed the titular role in Justice League in 2017. The film will serve as a reboot to the film franchise about the caped crusader. The cast includes Zoë Kravitz as Selina Kyle/Catwoman, Paul Dano as Edward Nashton/Riddler, Jeffrey Wright as James Gordon, and Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth. The movie will be a part of the DC Extended Universe.
Batman is one of the most recognized and iconic comic book heroes of all time. The masked crime fighter made his debut in Detective Comics #27 in 1939. Since then, the hero has been portrayed by a long list of actors through different mediums. Before Pattinson, the character was most recently played by Ben Affleck and Christian Bale. Batman's alter ego is, of course, Bruce Wayne, a wealthy playboy-billionaire and philanthropist who owns Wayne Enterprises. His wealth and resources assist him in his crime-fighting mission, providing him the necessary tools, weapons, and gadgets to bring down the criminal underworld. Wayne wasn't always a billionaire. It wasn't until 1994's Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #61 when he first received the billionaire status in a story. Despite his place in the top 0.0001% of society, fans have still been able to relate to the character and follow his stories.
During an interview with The Daily Beast, director Matt Reeves discussed the upcoming movie and talked about how a billionaire superhero still works today. Reeves was asked about Batman being rooted in sociopolitical issues, and whether or not it is difficult to make a billionaire superhero work. Reeves responded, "To me, that’s the joy of working with it. You use those surface elements of it, and you explore them in a way that, I feel, they haven’t been explored yet." Reeves mentioned that every director who helmed a Batman movie had their particular take on it. He did not want to do just another Batman movie, but rather, do one where he is allowed to explore ideas that matter to him.
Reeves followed by stating that The Batman will be made in the context of today. "It’s like any great tale that you can keep revisiting though the context of the times, and also through the context of human experience, and find new ways to come at the character that illuminates something that’s meaningful to you, and hopefully meaningful to an audience."
While fans are undoubtedly eager to see what sort of choices Reeves ultimately makes with the movie, they may have to wait a bit longer. While The Batman was initially scheduled for a June 25, 2021 release date, production on the film has been shut down indefinitely due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The movie may fall victim to a complete overhaul, in terms of when it finally hits theaters. However, there is still the chance that the film is released on time, depending on how the current worldwide crisis pans out.
Source: The Daily Beast
