Welcome to this year’s Thanksgiving edition of the BOF Mailbag! If you missed the previous installment, CLICK HERE to check it out.
Thanks for all of your questions and it’s time to get to ’em! – Bill “Jett” Ramey
How does Alfred from THE BATMAN cook the turkey for Thanksgiving dinner?
JETT SAYS: Cajun-fried.
Is the new [THE BATMAN] spinoff series project stuck?
JETT SAYS: I’m guessing you’re asking about the Gotham PD/Arkham series on HBO Max that’s part of THE BATMAN-verse, right? If so, I’m not sure what the status of it is other than they have a showrunner and a production team, and I assume it’s moving along just fine. If I had to guess, it’s something that will come out sometime between THE BATMAN and its first sequel which will likely hit theaters in 2025 or so. Thus, there’s really not a rush to get it out right now.
Favorite live-action Batman trailer?
JETT SAYS: The first trailer for BATMAN ’89…
…and the new trailer for THE BATMAN that was revealed at DC FanDome ’21 a few weeks back.
Jett, Do you think THE SUICIDE SQUAD will get a sequel?
JETT SAYS: I do. Warner Bros. wants to be in the DC business with James Gunn and regardless of the box office, TSS was one of the best DC live-action films in the last several years.
Hopefully, the general audience embraces the “detective” aspect of Batman enough to be explored in future movies. Do you think Reeves will tackle different genres with potential sequels — i.e. THE BATMAN is noir, sequel 1 is horror, and sequel 2 is adventure, etc.?
JETT SAYS: I’m not sure if Matt Reeves will do different genres for each of his Batman films like Chris Nolan did with THE DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY. However, I’m sure that he’ll mix and match a bit over the course of his Batman on film story. In fact, I think he’s doing that already with THE BATMAN even though it clearly has a noir vibe.
ALSO READ | The Halloween 2021 BOF Mailbag by Bill “Jett” Ramey
Hey Jett, I know how much you love Snyder Cut questions 🤣: you once said the Bruce Wayne/Batman we got in JL 2017 was the worst live action take since 1997, would you say the same about the Batman stuff in the Snyder Cut? Happy Turkey Day to you and your family.
— Jamesy Man (@Jamzarm) November 23, 2021
JETT SAYS: #TheBatmanIsComing.
Do you think we will ever see a live-action Robin done properly? If so, do you think it should be done in the form of his/her own solo film or in a Batman lead film?
JETT SAYS: Hopefully not!
All kidding aside (sorta), what does “done properly” mean when it comes to a live-action depiction of Robin?
If it’s a 12 or 13-year-old kid running around fighting crime with Batman, no, I don’t think that’s going to happen. I’m sorry, I know that’s how it is in the comics — and I love Batman comics and have been reading them for over 50 years — but a live-action film is a totally different medium aimed at a totally different audience.
I’d argue that a live-action Robin has been done properly in the 1960s BATMAN TV series and film and in BATMAN FOREVER. In both cases, Dick Grayson/Robin was supposed to be around 17ish and that’s much more plausible than a pre-teen child Boy Wonder.
Frankly, Robin is a tricky character to pull off without looking silly. However, the character is important to the Batman mythos and probably should be included in a big-screen Batman story. Hell, even Chris Nolan knew that Robin was important enough that he included his version of “Robin” in his final film of THE DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY.
Hey Jett. I’m a big fan of the Ventriloquist & Scarface and think they could be a great part of a grounded Batman story like Reeves is making. Do you think there could be a place for him in a sequel? Since he’s a gangster, I think it could work.
— Patrick Johnson (@pattythebat) November 24, 2021
JETT SAYS: I could see it…but you’d have to find a way to do the character without it coming off goofy. I’m of the belief that the villains used in Reeves’ Batman films should be included organically and fit the story and not simply be shoehorned in. If The Ventriloquist/Scarface makes sense in terms of the film’s narrative, then use him.
Could we see The Joker have a smaller role in Matt Reeve’s [THE BATMAN] universe (if at all) akin to THE LONG HALLOWEEN or David Ayer’s SUICIDE SQUAD where he was just a chaotic disturbance rather than the big villain?
JETT SAYS: Oh for sure it could be done that way in THE BATMAN-verse. In fact, that might be the way to go with the character in Reeves’ films. We’ve already had two big “Batman vs. The Joker” movies in BATMAN ’89 and THE DARK KNIGHT, so I figure that Reeves will want to do something different with the Batman/Joker relationship.
With that said, The Joker is too important not to include in any live-action, big-screen Batman story. So you gotta figure Reeves will include the character in one of his Bat-Films at some point, right?
So, Matt Reeves and J.J. Abrams worked on FELICITY together way back when. Now, Reeves is doing THE BATMAN while Abrams is a producer on the Black Superman film project. Also, Reeves and Abrams are also working together with Bruce Timm on BATMAN: CAPED CRUSADER.
My question is…do you think Reeves and Abrams are actually planning their own DC Universe on film and actually do a “World’s Finest” film one day where Battinson meets the Coates-Abrams Superman? I mean, surely there’s a story to be told when you put Reeves and Abrams together.
JETT SAYS: No, I do not. It appears that Reeves is totally focused on THE BATMAN-verse and not cross-pollinating with other DC characters such as Superman. Also, I personally don’t think the J.J. Abrams-produced/Ta-Nehisi Coates-written Superman project is going to come to fruition. I believe the Val Zod Superman project in development at HBO Max and being guided by Michael B. Jordan is more likely to happen than the former.
Lots going around about Henry Cavill and Superman…what’s your take? Think there is any truth to the rumors?
JETT SAYS: I haven’t heard any “rumors” about Cavill and Superman so I can’t speak to that. I will say that I believe Cavill’s run as Superman is over. I’d personally like for them to do a soft-reboot MAN OF STEEL 2 movie, but I do not think that’s going to happen.
Why if there is such a huge demand for more Cavill as Superman, Affleck as Batman, and basically a huge demand for Snyder to continue, why would Warner Bros. actually go out of their way to try stopping ZSJL from being successful?! Wouldn’t any other studio take something that has become a hit and run with it instead of trying to stop it from becoming a huge hit that fans want as well as the artists involved? After all, the only reason the theatrical release of JL and SS sucked so much was because of the studio’s meddling, not the filmmaker’s fault!
JETT SAYS: There isn’t a “huge demand” for Cavill and Affleck to return and for the “Snyderverse” to continue. Do not equate something trending on Twitter to what the general audience/mainstream thinks or wants. This “huge demand” is actually being driven by a very small — but “social media loud”, if you will — number of fans.
How is WB “stopping” ZSJL from being successful? Keep in mind that ZSJL was an HBO Max production, not one by Warner Bros. Pictures. In fact, WB signed off on it and if they hadn’t, ZSJL would not have happened. And let’s be real honest here, OK? The #1 reason ZSJL happened was due to AT&T buying Warner Media and wanting something to help prop up the new HBO Max streaming service. Combined with the COVID-19 pandemic shutting down production in Hollywood, it was a relatively inexpensive investment for AT&T and allowed them to have something “new” for HBO Max. Period.
The bottom line is that MAN OF STEEL and BATMAN v SUPERMAN underwhelmed at the box office and were not well received by critics and — more importantly — the general audience. That is what led to the “meddling” by WB with JUSTICE LEAGUE and THE SUICIDE SQUAD — not some desire to screw over Mr. Snyder, Mr. Ayer, or Snyderverse fans.
It’s ALL about money, sir. If Warner Media believed that there was lots of cash to be made by making a new Superman film with Cavill, Ben Affleck’s THE BATMAN, or giving Mr. Snyder creative control over DC on film, they’d do it in a second.
Stop with the conspiracy theories and the belief that a few thousand people making something trend on Twitter is indicative of this “huge demand” for something to happen.
Anything known yet about whether Michael Keaton’s Batman in THE BATMAN is the same Batman as Kilmer/Clooney? Or are we assuming there is a separate Burton Earth and a separate Schumacher Earth?
JETT SAYS: I believe that for THE FLASH, they are ignoring BATMAN FOREVER and BATMAN & ROBIN. So yeah, if we want to think of them as separate universes/Earths, that’s probably a good way of looking at it.
Any guesses as to when we could expect a sequel to gear up? Do you think Reeves will take a page out of Nolan’s book and work on another film first, or is he all-in on Batman?
— Andrew (@mylifedotnet) November 24, 2021
JETT SAYS: I’m sure Matt Reeves knows where he wants to go in a sequel already. I don’t know if he’ll do another film in between Bat-Films, but it’ll be at least 2025 before his next Batman movie after THE BATMAN, so he’ll at least be able to take a break. Keep in mind that he’s been working on this project since late 2017/early 2018.
Do you think that “Come As You Are” are will be featured in the film [THE BATMAN] itself? Or any other song of Nirvana for that matter?
JETT SAYS: Well, the Nirvana song featured in both trailers (especially the first one back in 2020) was “Something in the Way”, not “Come As You Are”, and I’m sure Reeves chose it for a reason. While that song may end up in the film at some point, I don’t think Nirvana will be providing the soundtrack for THE BATMAN.
Favorite animated Joker origin?
JETT SAYS: I don’t have one. When it comes to the “origin” of The Joker, I prefer it to be ambiguous as hell or totally unknown.
Hi Bill! How important do you think the no killing rule is to the character of batman and what’s your opinion on its despiction in the different live action movies we had so far?
— Lucas Wayne (@lucas_wayne1) November 23, 2021
JETT SAYS: I prefer Batman not to be a murderer and/or an executioner. As far as the never-ending debate of Batman killing in the live-action films, I’ve discussed that to death (no pun intended) for years and I’m kinda talked-out on that topic.
Four characters:
1. Bats/Bruce 🦇
2. Joker 🃏
3. Dent 🪙
4. Selina 🐈⬛Which Elvis song would serve as a good “theme” for each character?
Cheers, Bill. Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours. 🙏🏻#TheBatmanIsComing
— Daniel Kisala (@DanielKisala) November 24, 2021
JETT SAYS: Well…
Batman/Bruce Wayne: “Lonely Man”
The Joker: “Jailhouse Rock”
Harvey Dent: “Moody Blue”
Selina Kyle: “Devil in Disguise”
