The superhero genre continues to be wildly popular, and fans were recently treated to a new DC Universe thanks to co-CEO James Gunn. The new DCU, which is streaming with a HBO Max subscription, is coming together, although Matt Reeves' The Batman franchise is set outside of it. And Mike Flanagan recently spoke to the possibility of Robert Pattinson's Bruce Wayne joining the burgeoning shared universe.
What we know about The Batman Part II is limited, as it's not expected to arrive in theaters until 2027. The upcoming DC movie has a ton of hype surrounding it, as does the Clayface movie that was written by Flanagan. The Midnight Mass director recently appeared at Motor City Comic Con (via ScreenRant) and mused on the idea of Reeves' franchise moving into the DCU proper. He said:
Of course, yeah. I gotta be careful. I know DC fans, especially, I don't want to get on anyone's bad side with this kind of stuff, because James Gunn is running DC his way, and I think it's great. I have no idea what the plan is for any of that. I do know, though, that Matt Reeves is a creative powerhouse…. Pattinson's Batman was excellent.
He's not wrong. Reeves brought his own take on Gotham City to The Batman, and that version of the DC city was further expanded in the Emmy-winning spinoff The Penguin. There's no shortage of passion and ideas, although it's unclear if we'll ever see that take on The Dark Knight within the newly formed DC Universe.
Mike Flanagan understands how passionate DC fans are, so he seemingly wanted to tread lightly when discussing the possibility of Robert Pattinson's Batman joining the DCU. For his part, the Clayface movie is expected to be part of the larger universe, despite being horror fueled and R-rated.
While Flanagan won't be directing Clayface, the fact that the horror icon is involved in the forthcoming DC project is thrilling, as is the fact that it's set in the DCU. Later in the same appearance, the director of Doctor Sleep spoke more about the possibility of The Batman joining the larger shared universe, offering:
I think the world in the Gotham that he built is wonderful. I think The Penguin works on the big screen and on television. I do think there is a way to harmonize all of these elements into the DC Universe, which I think is what James is doing in his way. The thing is, I trust James, and he has not let me down as a fan. So I'm excited to see how they pulled this off, and how it could all connect, the ways it could all connect, that's up to them.
He's not wrong. James Gunn has shown a true passion and talent for bringing comic book stories to life on the big screen. This started with his acclaimed work on the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise (which is streaming with a Disney+ subscription), as well as The Suicide Squad and even his superhero horror movie Brightburn. Now he's the architect behind the DCU, in addition to personally writing and helming Creature Commandos, Superman, and Peacemaker Season 2.
The Batman Part II will hit theaters on October 1st, 2027, so we have some serious waiting to do. As for Clayface, that's expected next September 11th as part of the 2026 movie release list.
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