The Batman Cast List Might Spoil Major DC Villain Appearance

We’re going to issue a potential spoiler warning right here for The Batman, folks! The time right before the release of a major movie is the most bizarre. After years of hoping to maintain every level of secrecy a lot of the potential surprises it seems like at the last minute something comes out in the most innocuous way. Something like that has now happened with Warner Bros.’ The Batman and though it has previously been the subject of speculation by some DC fans, this new round of news will only make the potential reveal seem inevitable. Once again, potential spoilers below!

As fans may already know, Eternals and Dunkirk actor Barry Keoghan has already been confirmed to appear in the film, with previous reports putting his role as being a police officer; but the official cast listing from Warner Bros. however tells us a different story. In the official credits for The Batman, Keoghan’s character is listed as “Unseen Arkham Prisoner,” with another credit elsewhere on the list giving Mike Marino the credit for “Prosthetics Design -The Penguin & Unseen Arkham Prisoner.” This is far from confirmation that Keoghan is playing the new version of The Joker for Matt Reeves’ films but it almost certainly has fans convinced that this is the case.

Keoghan has been rumored to be taking on the clown prince of crime for quite some time now, and the addition of someone being credited with creating his “prosthetics design,” despite also being called “unseen,” certainly lends a bit of credence to that rumor.   

 A report earlier this year from The Hollywood Reporter revealed that WB had been testing two different cuts of The Batman, one with a certain character and one without. The trade couldn’t reveal who that character would be but fans have speculated that it might be Keoghan as The Joker. Assuming this “Arkham Prisoner” really is “unseen,” perhaps they really could be easily cut out. We we won’t know if that’s the case until closer to the film’s release date, assuming the leaks and spoilers stop right up.

WB’s official description for The Batman reads as follows:

Two years of stalking the streets as the Batman (Pattinson), striking fear into the hearts of criminals, has led Bruce Wayne deep into the shadows of Gotham City. With only a few trusted allies-Alfred Pennyworth (Serkis), Lt. James Gordon (Wright)-amongst the city’s corrupt network of officials and high-profile figures, the lone vigilante has established himself as the sole embodiment of vengeance amongst his fellow citizens. When a killer targets Gotham’s elite with a series of sadistic machinations, a trail of cryptic clues sends the World’s Greatest Detective on an investigation into the underworld, where he encounters such characters as Selina Kyle/aka Catwoman (Kravitz), Oswald Cobblepot/aka the Penguin (Farrell), Carmine Falcone (Turturro), and Edward Nashton/aka the Riddler (Dano). As the evidence begins to lead closer to home and the scale of the perpetrator’s plans becomes clear, Batman must forge new relationships, unmask the culprit, and bring justice to the abuse of power and corruption that has long plagued Gotham City.

Who do you think Barry Keoghan will end up playing in The Batman?