It’s official, Robert Pattinson is not going to be Batman in the DCU, as once and for all Matt Reeves has said explicitly that his universe is an “Elseworlds” project not connected to the new, shared universe. And of course, that raises the question about who will actually play Bruce Wayne in the DCU.
DCU head James Gunn has been 5,000% more open than his Marvel and DCEU counterparts, giving constant interviews, posting on social media, doing podcasts, everything. Now, in a new interview with The Ringer-Verse (currently with just 5,000 views?) Gunn was asked about Batman casting:
“I have guys I like. I have guys that are at the top of the list. One actor in particular… a pretty big star, wants to be Batman. We’ve talked about it, but I don’t think that’s the case.”
This has set off a flurry of speculation about who “the guys” are and there are a few things we do know.
One, easily the most common fancast Bruce Wayne actor, Brandon Sklenar, is at least under consideration as Gunn has reiterated a few times he’d been watching 1923 recently, a show in which Sklenar stars.
Second, the “big star” Gunn is mentioning here is likely not Reacher’s Alan Ritchson, who has previously campaigned to be Batman. Ritchson confirmed he’s spoken to Gunn about the role: “Words have been exchanged about Batman. But I strongly don’t think that Batman is in my future. I do think there is something in my future with DC. And I would like that to remain true.” Now, fans are casting him in other DC roles like Booster Gold or Captain Atom (Ritchson says he isn’t trying to reprise his role as Aquaman, which he played in Smallville two decades ago).
Who Gunn considers a “big star” is unknown. I’d say the most commonly thrown-around “big star” name is Jake Gyllenhaal, but this would run counter to what Gunn did with Superman, casting the nearly-unknown David Corenswet in the part. Interestingly, Gyllenhaal almost played Batman in The Dark Knight trilogy, as he had a conversation about it with Christopher Nolan (his sister, Maggie, went on to star in The Dark Knight).
Current evidence would suggest that Gunn will steer away from a big name, as that’s effectively what he’s saying with that quote, at least in one specific instance. Ritchson is out, Sklenar does not seem to be off the table, if he’s not under heavy consideration at present. The DCU is also a place where fancast dreams can come true, as seen recently with Aaron Pierre as John Stewart. But Gunn obviously does a whole lot of auditioning and screen testing, so it’s not as if these things happen through popular vote. But it’s nice, and rare, to see such transparency in this process.
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