Happy New Year 2024!
Sorry that I’m tardy on this mailbag since the original plan was to do this before the end of 2023 as the December ’23 BOF Mailbag #2 (you can check out Dec ’23 BOFMB #1 HERE), but life — well, the holidays/vacation — got in the way. The family and I road-tripped up to the lovely town of Pequot Lakes, Minnesota for a week, leaving just after Xmas and staying through the new year. Announcer Rachel is from Minnesota (though she’s lost most of her accent having lived in Texas now for 23 years — she throws out “y’alls” like a native Texan!), so we’ve been visiting the state and that area in particular for years. We have an acre of land next door to Pequot Lakes in Breezy Point, and one of these days, there will be a cabin built up there and we’ll split our time during the year between Minnesota and Texas.
Also, I should note that the Announcer and I celebrated our wedding anniversary and 23 years of her putting up with me!
Shoutout to Lucky’s Tavern in Pequot Lakes and The Commander/JJ’s Pub in Breezy Point — good times were had by all there!
Now, on to the mailbag. – Bill “Jett” Ramey
What BOF things are you looking forward to in the new year?
JETT SAYS: THE PENGUIN and being able to cover THE BATMAN: PART II — those are definitely at the top of the list!
As far as comics, hoping to get some more Batman BLACK LABEL stuff.
Gunn’s response to the recent rumors debunks that Hush, Scarecrow or Clayface will be in the sequel, so when do you think we’ll find out who the sequel’s villain will be?
— Erik (@erikmts123) January 5, 2024
JETT SAYS: Filming is going to begin around May-ish, so we’ll be getting some news about casting here soon.
Is there some truth about Hush being the main villain in THE BATMAN: PART II?
JETT SAYS: No idea. I have never heard anything about Hush being in the film, so take that for what you will.
With news of Reeves’ Arkham show being set within the DCU, do you think these villain films (Flanaghan’s Clayface + Scarecrow + Pyg) are also set in the DCU? RPK claims they’re all under Reeves’ company.
Penguin + Catwoman are likely the shows that bridge The Batman trilogy.
— Shauner (@Shauner111) December 25, 2023
JETT SAYS: I believe that Matt Reeves has a lot of say when it comes to Batman (and all things related) on film at Warner Bros. and DC Studios. Perhaps all things Batman run through him be it THE BATMAN SAGA or the new DCU? Clearly, WB as well as DC Studios (Gunn and Safran), want to be in the Matt Reeves business and vice versa.
As far as villains, I think the more fantastical ones will be part of the DCU and the grounded versions will/could be included in THE BATMAN SAGA. Remember, the latter is an “Epic. Crime. Saga.” per Reeves — so I believe we should keep that in mind when it comes to the characters he uses.
If, and this is a big if, Snyder had been able to complete his planned run, and WB had not intervened at all at any point, do you think the public would have ever come around to his overall story, or would people have given up? Ignore the box office for this one.
JETT SAYS: Nope. I mean, we saw the response to BATMAN v SUPERMAN…and the stuff that would’ve come after was even crazier. It simply didn’t jibe with the general audience…and a lot of the fanbase too.
As busy as it must be to run BOF, would you ever consider starting a “Stretchy Guy-On-Film” website?
JETT SAYS: That’s the plan!
JETT SAYS: Well…
1) I’m sure there will be a female lead — though I do not think that Reeves is going down the road of the 90s Batman films with a different big “love interest” in each movie.
2) Heard nothing.
3) Heard nothing.
4) He should — it’s one of the best things that WB/DC does.
Do you think that there’s a chance that Matt Reeves might opt to introduce Dick Grayson in THE BATMAN: PART II, but hold off on showing him becoming Robin and instead focus more on the father-son bond between him and Bruce?
JETT SAYS: Matt Reeves is a huge Batman fan and I believe there’s a reason that the new DCU’s Robin is Damien. I suspect that we’ll eventually see Reeves’ version of “Robin” in THE BATMAN SAGA.
Do you think the 2023 DCEU films might have fared better IF Gunn and Safran hold out on announcing their DCU slate till say Summer 2024 instead of January 2023?
JETT SAYS: Probably not. I think those films paid the price for the previous DCEU movies. They were all doomed from the start.
AQUAMAN 2 marks the fifth consecutive box office bomb for DC on film. How long can WB keep taking a bath on these movies? I’m wondering if even JOKER 2 is a safe bet, as the musical element may or may not go over well with the general public. If SUPERMAN: LEGACY flops, will the new DCU be ruled DOA by WBD? It wouldn’t make financial sense to commit to five or so movies, lest we forget Universal pulling the plug on a shared universe when Tom Cruise’s THE MUMMY flopped.
JETT SAYS: I hear ya. I believe that they should simply make the best DC films possible and not worry about a connected universe. If SUPERMAN: LEGACY performs poorly (I am not optimistic about this film), then this new DCU is in trouble. Hell, it may already be in trouble — this isn’t the best time to start up a shared comic book/superhero universe (especially when you’ve tried it before and failed spectacularly).
Did you hear anything regarding Flanagan’s clayface project ? Is it a real thing in development? Dcu or the Batman-verse?
— L_wayne (@lob67_) December 26, 2023
JETT SAYS: I’ve only heard about his pitch to Gunn and Safran and that it’s not part of Reeves’ THE BATMAN SAGA. Maybe Reeves has plans for ‘ol Basil Karlo (and the original version of Clayface) himself?
What graphic novels are going to be used as inspiration for THE PENGUIN?
JETT SAYS: The ones that are EPIC. CRIME. SAGAS.
Will there be a review of REBEL MOON on BOF?
JETT SAYS: 
