Skip to main content
Join The Community
- Join our community
11
Premium Benefits
24/7
Access Available
21K+
Active Members
Commenting
Join the discussion
Exclusive Articles Coming Soon
Member-only articles
Weekly Newsletters
Weekly gaming & entertainment news
Member Badges
Earn badges as you go
Exclusive Competitions
Members-only prize draws
Curated Deals Coming Soon
Tech and gaming deals worth grabbing
GET COMMUNITY ACCESS QUICK
For the quickest way to join, simply enter your email below and get access. We will send a confirmation and sign you up to our newsletter to keep you updated on all your gaming news.
By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.
FIND OUT ABOUT OUR MAGAZINE
Want to subscribe to the magazine? Click the button below to find out more information.
Find out more
GET Community ACCESS QUICK

Join the GamesRadar community for quick access. Enter your email below and we'll send confirmation, and sign you up to our newsletter.

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

Background
Welcome to GamesRADAR+ Community !
Hi ,

Your membership journey starts here.

Keep exploring and earning more as a member.

MY ACCOUNT

Badge picture
Earn your first badge
Read 1 article to unlock your first badge.
Keep earning badges
Explore ways to get more involved as a member.
Latest Games News

Latest Games News

Breaking gaming news and updates

Read Now
Latest Games Reviews

Latest Games Reviews

Expert verdicts on the newest releases

Read Now

See what you’ve unlocked.

Explore your membership benefits.

Explore
Member Exclusives

Stay Ahead with GamesRadar+

Get the biggest gaming news, reviews, and releases straight to your inbox.

Explore

Sign Out
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+
US EditionUS CA EditionCanada UK EditionUK AU EditionAustralia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Games
    • Game Insights
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • Big in 2026
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Indie Spotlight
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
    • Genres
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
    • Franchises
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Hardware
    • Insights
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
    • Computing
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
    • Accessories & Tech
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • Game Deals
    • Tech Deals
    • TV Deals
    • Buying Guides
  • Video
    • Video
    • GR+ Replay - Submit Your Clips
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Total Film
  • home
  • Games
    • View Games
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • Big in 2026
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Indie Spotlight
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • View Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • View Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • View TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • View Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • View Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • View Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Hardware
    • View Hardware
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • View Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • View Deals
    • Game Deals
    • Tech Deals
    • TV Deals
    • Buying Guides
  • Video
    • View Video
    • Video
    • GR+ Replay - Submit Your Clips
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Total Film
Trending
  • Best Netflix Movies
  • Movie Release Dates
  • Best movies on Disney Plus
  • Best Netflix Shows
Don't miss these
David Corenswet as Superman
Superhero Movies How to watch DC movies in order (release date and chronological)
Best Batman games: Batman getting ready to punch someone with Gotham in the background.
Action Games Ranking the best Batman games
Robert Pattinson in The Batman
Superhero Movies Upcoming DC movies and TV shows: Every DCU title coming soon
Robert Pattinson as Scytale in Dune 3
Sci-Fi Movies Who is Scytale: Robert Pattinson's Dune 3 character explained
Billie Roy in Lee Cronin's The Mummy
Horror Movies Evil Dead Rise director says he turned down a sequel in order to take a "risk" on new installment in the Mummy franchise
A young girl swaddled in rags awakening from death
Horror Movies The Mummy director defends its "domestic setting" as he suggests the franchise shouldn't "be limited to tourists in Cairo"
Twilight
Fantasy Movies Robert Pattinson jokes "no one" was Team Jacob at the height of Twilight's success: "That was just a marketing thing"
Jaz Sinclair as Marie and Erin Moriarty as Annie in Gen V season 2
Superhero Shows The Boys' Eric Kripke ensures you don't have to do "homework" to watch season 5
Robert Pattinson as Bruce Wayne during The Batman
DC Movies The Batman 2 release date, cast, plot, and everything else you need to know about the upcoming DC movie
Spider-Noir aiming his webshooter
Marvel TV Shows Spider-Noir is the "same character, different version": "It's not a continuation of Into The Spider-Verse"
Cillian Murphy as Tommy Shelby riding a horse in Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man
Crime Shows Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man director explains how the Netflix movie differs from the show
Superman kisses Lois Lane in James Gunn's Superman
Movies The 20 best movies on HBO Max to watch right now
David Corenswet as Superman
DC Movies All-Star Superman writer Grant Morrison has some issues with James Gunn’s take on the character
Spider-Noir aiming his webshooter
Marvel TV Shows Spider-Noir TV creators explain why Nicolas Cage's Spider-Man is "jaded" Ben Reilly instead of "boyish" Peter Parker
Matthew Lillard at Five Nights at Freddy's
Marvel TV Shows Daredevil: Born Again season 2 star Matthew Lillard says there's "Cheshire Cat" energy to his new villain
  1. Entertainment
  2. Movies
  3. Action Movies
  4. DC Movies
  5. The Batman

The Batman director reveals why he’s not doing another Bruce Wayne origin story

News
By Bradley Russell published 9 April 2020

Matt Reeves says The Batman will "still acknowledge his origins" though

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

(Image credit: Warner Bros.)
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Pinterest
  • Flipboard
  • Email
Share this article
Join the conversation
Follow us
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Sign up for the Total Film Newsletter

Bringing all the latest movie news, features, and reviews to your inbox


By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

You are now subscribed

Your newsletter sign-up was successful


Join the club

Get full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards.


An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
Subscribe to our newsletter

The Batman (probably) won’t be going to Crime Alley to relive Bruce Wayne’s darkest day. There’s a reason for that. Director Matt Reeves has revealed that he’s approaching the iconic character slightly differently and eschewing the traditional origin story despite Robert Pattinson playing a younger version of The Dark Knight.

In an interview with Nerdist, Reeves said, “I wanted to do not an origin tale, but a tale that would still acknowledge his origins, in that it formed who he is.”

Instead of showing Martha and Thomas Wayne being gunned down after a screening of Zorro, it sounds like Reeves will be going in a different direction by instead showing how that moment shaped him in his early years donning the cape and cowl.

You may like
  • Ben Affleck as Batman in Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice Zack Snyder explains why Ben Affleck is the best big-screen Batman we ever had: “Of anybody who’s played Batman, Ben is the best Bruce Wayne.”
  • Robert Pattinson as Bruce Wayne during The Batman The Batman 2 writer says the story is "new and dangerous": "The bar couldn't be higher"
  • Robert Pattinson as Bruce Wayne during The Batman The Batman 2 release date, cast, plot, and everything else you need to know about the upcoming DC movie

“Like this guy, he’s majorly struggling, and this is how he’s trying to rise above that struggle,” Reeves said. “But that doesn’t mean that he even fully understands, you know. It’s that whole idea of the shadow self and what’s driving you, and how much of that you can incorporate, and how much of it you’re doing that you’re unaware of.”

While Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins touched upon Bruce Wayne’s early crimefighting career, it didn’t expand at length on how the character grew from Ra’s-Al-Ghul’s defeat to The Dark Knight. Instead of arriving into Gotham fully formed, R-Patz’s version will seemingly struggle to fill those heavy Bat-Boots.

This new take is one that drives Reeves as he wants to stand out from the lineage of Batman’s cinematic history: “I thought, ‘Well, there’s been some terrific Batman movies,’ and I don’t want to be part of a long line of Batman movies where this is just another one. I feel like they’ve been really distinctive,” Reeves explained.

So, expect something new from The Batman. No origin re-telling, but a man who will continue to be shaped by that unseen story for as long as he’s protecting Gotham.

Sign up for the Total Film Newsletter

Bringing all the latest movie news, features, and reviews to your inbox

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

Fancy some super binges this weekend? Check out the list below:

  • The best superhero movies
  • The 30 best sci-fi movies
  • All the new Netflix movies and shows you should be watch
CATEGORIES
Netflix Amazon Prime Video Streaming Services
Bradley Russell
Bradley Russell
Social Links Navigation
Senior Entertainment Writer

I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.

Read more
Ben Affleck as Batman in Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice
DC Movies Zack Snyder explains why Ben Affleck is the best big-screen Batman we ever had: “Of anybody who’s played Batman, Ben is the best Bruce Wayne.”
 
 
Robert Pattinson as Bruce Wayne during The Batman
DC Movies The Batman 2 writer says the story is "new and dangerous": "The bar couldn't be higher"
 
 
Robert Pattinson as Bruce Wayne during The Batman
DC Movies The Batman 2 release date, cast, plot, and everything else you need to know about the upcoming DC movie
 
 
James Gunn
DC Movies James Gunn says "the universe is rife" with false Batman: Brave and the Bold information
 
 
Batman: The Brave and the Bold #1
DC Movies James Gunn says there won't be two Batman movies in the same year, so we won't see The Brave and the Bold before 2028
 
 
Batman
DC Movies James Gunn gives disappointing update on the DCU Batman movie: "Screenplay isn't finished"
 
 
Latest in DC Movies
Milly Alcock as Supergirl
DC Movies Supergirl director says the movie will "thoroughly investigate" Krypton and Kara's home Argo City
 
 
Milly Alcock as Supergirl
DC Movies Supergirl director says there are 9 distinct worlds in the new DC movie, with 5 "original" languages spoken
 
 
Ezra Miller as Barry Allen in The Flash
DC Movies Over 10 years later, Spider-Verse's Phil Lord and Chris Miller still want to make their "very elaborate" Flash movie
 
 
Baby Krypto in Supergirl
DC Movies New Supergirl teaser reveals how Kara and Krypto meet and, yes, Krypto is an adorable puppy
 
 
Milly Alcock as Supergirl
DC Movies James Gunn confirms that Supergirl is set between the events of Superman and Man of Tomorrow
 
 
Aaron Pierre as John Stewart in Lanterns
DC Movies Green Lantern John Stewart is joining the cast of Man of Tomorrow as Aaron Pierre signs on for the Superman sequel
 
 
Latest in News
Mario riding Yoshi through space with Luigi and Peach flying along beside him
Animated Movies First reactions to The Super Mario Galaxy Movie are overwhelmingly positive, calling the sequel a "100-min sugar rush"
 
 
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Steel Ball Run
Anime Shows JoJo's fans are responding to Steel Ball Run's disastrous release by trying to curse Netflix
 
 
Cropped key art for Arc Raiders' Flashpoint update.
Third Person Shooters Arc Raiders Flashpoint change sees folks with custom loadouts "more likely to join fresh servers"
 
 
Jack Quaid as Hughie in The Boys season 5
Superhero Shows Jack Quaid says The Boys season 5 isn't going to be a "fairytale ending in any regard"
 
 
Neil Newbon in Dead Take and Astarion from Baldur's Gate 3
Third Person Shooters Baldur's Gate 3 actor Neil Newbon gives Arc Raiders dev "props" for replacing AI voices with humans
 
 
A screenshot from the Palworld April Fools dating sim trailer, showing a few Pals and humans dressed in school uniforms.
Survival Games Palworld's Bucky threatens more April Fool's jokes, but I'm not joking when I say we need that Palworld dating sim
 
 
LATEST ARTICLES
  1. JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Steel Ball Run
    1
    JoJo's fans are responding to Steel Ball Run's disastrous release by trying to curse Netflix
  2. 2
    This is the best Warhammer model of the year so far, if you ask me
  3. 3
    Jack Quaid says The Boys season 5 isn't going to be a "fairytale ending in any regard"
  4. 4
    Baldur's Gate 3 actor Neil Newbon gives Arc Raiders dev "props" for replacing AI voices with humans
  5. 5
    Palworld's Bucky threatens more April Fool's jokes, but I'm not joking when I say we need that Palworld dating sim

GamesRadar+ is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google
  • Terms and conditions
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Accessibility statement
  • Careers
  • About us
  • Advertise with us
  • Review guidelines
  • Write for us
  • Accessibility Statement

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...