Reports are circulating that the poor reception to last year’s The Flash have ended Andy Muschietti’s time directing Batman: The Brave And The Bold.
We don’t know a lot about the Batman in James Gunn’s all-new DC Universe, but we do know a couple of things.
Firstly, the Dark Knight that inhabits the new cinematic universe will be accompanied by Robin, the Boy Wonder. The teen sidekick behind the mask is said to be Damian Wayne, Batman’s own son. Apart from a few easter eggs sometimes, the character of Robin hasn’t really featured in Batman’s cinematic adventures, with the exception of 1997’s Batman & Robin, a film which wasn’t received especially well.
However, Gunn is aiming to successfully return the Dynamic Duo to the big screen in Batman: The Brave And The Bold, but according to reports, he may be looking for a new director to realise his ambitions. Andy Muschietti was previously announced as its director, but given that last year’s The Flash (which was directed by Muschietti) suffered from a critical and commercial drubbing, it looks like Gunn may be opting to look elsewhere for a creative voice to shepherd the project through development.
As you’ll already know, The Flash featured a very prominent appearance by Micheal Keaton’s version of Batman, so the film’s dismal reception had already soured Muschietti’s connection to the character for some fans. It seems that Gunn has recognised that, and is looking for a different creative voice to lead the project – at least according to The Hot Mic's John Rocha.
Read more: How The Flash went from ‘one of the best superhero movies ever’ to financial disappointment
Warner Bros already has one successful cinematic iteration of the Batman character up and running, in the form of Robert Pattinson’s take on the character. Matt Reeves helmed 2022’s The Batman which was well received by fans. Another film featuring Pattinson is set to arrive next year. But having two takes on the character in the DC stable (even if Pattinson’ stake on the character won’t exist in the DCU continuity) means that comparisons between them are inevitable, and Gunn will be keenly aware of that.
Should the story prove to be true (and we suspect it will), Mushietti’s removal from the project does call into question Gunn’s original decision to hand the It director the job in the first place. Gunn made the announcement before audiences had seen The Flash and clearly didn’t anticipate just how negative the backlash would be.
When we do hear an official confirmation on this story, we’ll let you know.
