'The Batman' is getting a sequel, with Robert Pattinson back as the Bat

Matt Reeves’ The Batman is coming back, and Robert Pattinson will once again be wearing the cape and cowl. 

The news broke during CinemaCon ​​(via Variety) — the annual convention for theater owners — with Reeves himself making the announcement and confirming that he will also be back to write and direct the second film. 

The announcement of a sequel isn’t that surprising given the critical and commercial success of The Batman, which to date has garnered almost $760 million worldwide. The three-hour film was a darker cinematic take on the iconic DC character that Reeves has said got some of its inspirations from the movie Se7en. 

The movie, which started streaming on HBO Max on April 18, is also the first Warner Bros. movie to move away from the HBO Max and theater simultaneous release approach the studio took on during the pandemic. The move appears to have been a smart one, and Warner Bros. is now looking to build up The Batman universe not only with this sequel but with an HBO Max series focused on Colin Farrell’s Penguin and at least two other potential spinoffs in the works,​​ one focused on the Gotham PD (though that project is currently on hold) and one on Arkham Asylum. 

We don’t have any news yet on what the plot of The Batman sequel will cover, though given that Reeves has said that the first movie was essentially the origin story for every Dark Knight villain, and that even villains like the more-out-there Mr. Freeze might find a home in his more grounded universe. And then, of course, there’s Barry Koeghan’s Joker, who we saw briefly in The Batman and got an additional glimpse of in a released deleted scene. One can’t help but wonder whether he’ll show up in a sequel, though we’ll have to wait to find out if so, and how.

The Batman is currently streaming on HBO Max. You can also check out the movie Fatman on Peacock, a film that shares many letters but is actually about Santa Claus and assassins.