Robert Pattinson Teased The Batman Part II's 'Big Swings,' And I've Got Some Ideas About Where It Could Go

Even though it seems like fans will forever be at least 18-24 months away from ever experiencing Matt Reeves’ The Batman Part II, the highly anticipated sequel is coming together slowly but surely. And we’re at the point in the pre-production process where star Robert Pattinson is letting some teasy enthusiasm out while promoting his upcoming A24 movie The Drama, and it sounds like he really digs the script.

Speaking with Deadline in a clip shared on TikTok, Pattinson was asked what he could share about returning to the cape and cowl, and whether or not it the production was currently ongoing. Sharing that it’s expected to kick off in a couple of months, the Die My Love star also shared some carefully crafted thoughts about the script from Reeves and co-screenwriter Mattson Tomlin, and how this upcoming superhero movies will stand apart from everything else. In his words:

Obviously, Matt Reeves & Co. wouldn't take a years-long break between movies just to come back and serve up a warmed-over story that hits all the same beats we've seen before. But it still gets me pretty pumped to hear Pattinson share that praise regardless.

What could some of those big swings be that he's talking about? Let's go through some guesses, from the most likely to the least likely.

• The Batman Part II will be an entirely faithful adaptation of Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale's The Long Halloween miniseries, with Sebastian Stan and Scarlett Johansson as Harvey and Gilda Dent.

This idea is aligned with a lot of recent rumors and assumptions related to Scarlett Johansson's surprising casting, which preceded Stan joining the franchise by a month, and is based on previous reports that Reeves' sequel would dig into the all-time classic comic book arc.

The storyline includes Harvey going from a friend of Bruce Wayne's to a disfigured and vindictive foe, with his dutiful wife Gilda at his side. It's the likeliest arc adaptation of any, especially when tied into news of A-listers turning down the role of Christopher Dent, Harvey's father.

• The Batman Part II will introduce Dick Grayson and /or the entire Flying Graysons family.

Within Batman's long comic history, The Long Halloween is technically viewed through the prism of it being one of the biggest cases from his early days as a vigilante, which would obviously match up with how long he's been donning the Bat suit in live-action. As such, it's a bit too early for our brooding hero to become a suitable guardian for an orphaned ward. But answer me this: who's swinging bigger than a family of trapeze artists?

Live-action Robins are few and far between, and it might make sense for Reeves to want to give such an important mythos character as much time on the screen as possible for development purposes. I don't necessarily expect this one, given the myriad other new characters reportedly being introduced. But I do expect more of those particular breadcrumbs to be dished out.

• Barry Keoghan's Joker will hit Gotham City's streets as a sub-antagonist.

Within any Batman story, the Joker always looms as the largest and most potentially devious and deadly of everyone in Bats' rogues gallery. So in theory, what bigger swing might there be than introducing the Joker proper, but only having him take on a minor antagonist role, instead of being the big bad? That kind of storyline doesn't happen much in any DC media, so I wouldn't expect this movie to be the exception. But it could be a good way to build the villain's legacy up without turning him into a full-on monster from the jump.

• A multiverse is introduced that allows James Gunn to finally cast his own Batman.

Given that James Gunn wants to let Matt Reeves' Batman-fueled trilogy finish before introducing another Batman into the DCU proper, is it possible that Reeves' sequel could introduce its own multiverse concept that would allow Gunn to get his own Dark Knight cast without it being a confusing situation for fans? It seems less likely than other options, but maybe not as unlikely as "the DCU existing for 4+ years without a Batman reference.

Surely, The Batman Part II will astound audiences in ways I couldn't even hope to predict, so you know I'll be there with bat-bells on when it hits theaters on October 1, 2027.