The Batman Filmmaker Matt Reeves Addresses If He’ll Change Anything During the Coronavirus Shutdown

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused countless films and TV productions to shut down in recent weeks, as governments encourage that people stay home and social distance to slow the virus’ spread. One upcoming blockbuster that has been affected by those changes is The Batman, the latest film that will follow DC’s iconic caped crusader. It’s unclear when production on the film – as well as countless other projects – will be able to officially resume, something that has created an interesting conundrum for the film’s writer-director, Matt Reeves. As Reeves recently told Deadline, The Batman was a quarter of the way through filming when the shutdown occurred, but he does not plan to rewrite any of the film’s script during this time away.

“It took me two years to work on that story, and it’s a very specific mystery noir that’s been really thought-out by me and my partners,” Reeves explained.

Instead, this downtime is apparently allowing Reeves an opportunity to look over footage that was already shot and look for “happy accidents” in regards to tone.

“It happens any time you shoot anything. The unexpected — happy accidents and things you didn’t quite expect: That is the lightning in a bottle for something that is alive,” Reeves explained. “I would say that the changes really have to do with ‘Oh, seeing the tone of this’ with these scenes we haven’t done which connect to that part of the storyline. It feels like there might be an opportunity to explore some of that unexpected tone that we found. With these movies, you never have enough prep time, because they’re so complex and so enormous in so many ways. It also gives me a moment to think about the larger sequences that have yet to come up and how I want to realize those.”

Another question that has hung over The Batman is whether or not production will finish in the UK or relocate elsewhere, something that Reeves does not currently have a definitive answer on.

“It’s way too early to say,” Reeves revealed. “I can’t imagine we wouldn’t finish in London. The situation is fluid.”

The Batman will star Robert Pattinson as the titular caped crusader, with Zoe Kravitz as Catwoman, Colin Farrell as The Penguin, Paul Dano as The Riddler, Jeffrey Wright as Commissioner Gordon, John Turturro as Carmine Falcone, Peter Sarsgaard as Gil Colson, Jayme Lawson as Bella Real, and Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth.

The Batman is set to be released on June 25, 2021.