LOS ANGELES — The next film in the Batman franchise will be a grounded take that features Bruce Wayne deciding to not use his billions to help anyone, sources confirm.
“We looked at the world and thought, a billionaire thinking of others? No one is gonna buy that,” said Matt Reeves, writer/director of 2022’s The Batman and its upcoming sequel. “I realized early on that a crocodile man or a guy with a freeze ray are things that an audience can suspend their belief about. Bruce Wayne not spending his time hoarding wealth at the expense of the most vulnerable Gotham citizens however was never going to fly.”
The movie’s new direction, while realistic, has alienated some fans.
“It’s not really a Batman movie if he’s not Batman,” said Bob Shepard, who much preferred when Batman’s wealth was a fun element rather than a grim reminder of the iron grip of capitalism upon our throats. “I get it, it’s weird to see a billionaire thinking of others, but that’s the escapism of cinema. For two hours we can pretend that the world wouldn’t be a better place if we lined all the billionaires up and shot them, and instead make believe that they could be capable of altruism or even empathy.”
Warner Bros. Pictures, the studio behind the new movie, issued a statement through their Twitter account.
“Warner Bros. can sympathize with audiences,” read the statement. “As a studio run by an unscrupulous aspiring billionaire who seems more likely to delete a movie at the behest of the shareholders than release anything, we can see why audiences would rather help others than, say, buy a social media site, fill it with Nazis, then tweet cringe 60 times a day.”
As a counterpoint to the more grounded Batman, Warner Bros. are also looking to make a Lex Luthor movie spotlighting the importance of rich people in society and their fight against illegal aliens.
