'Law & Order: SVU' Star Christopher Meloni Volunteers to Be Batman

Ben Affleck may be out as Batman, but if Law & Order: SVU star Christopher Meloni has any say in [...]

Ben Affleck may be out as Batman, but if Law & Order: SVU star Christopher Meloni has any say in things, he'd be in as the Caped Crusader.

In a post on Twitter Tuesday night, Meloni volunteered to suit up as Batman, tagging DC Comics in the process.

"Yo @DCComics this is what the kids call, "going VIRAL"! Pull the trigger. I'm ready. I'm....BATMAN." Meloni wrote.

His tweet was in response to a fan's reaction to a report from We Got This Covered that Robert Pattinson is being considered for the role -- a report that was itself inspired by artist BossLogic's recent piece featuring the Twilight star as Bruce Wayne. The idea of Pattinson as Batman was such a hard pass for the fan that they suggested Meloni.

And at this point that's all it is: rumor and suggestion. News broke recently that with Ben Affleck not returning for Matt Reeves' The Batman, the writer and director is looking for a new actor to fill the role and both Reeves and Warner Bros. are being very picky about who they choose.

A report from Variety's Justin Krill indicated that they are looking for a very specific age range for the actor who will take on the heroic role, though that certainly hasn't stopped fans from clamoring for their favorites, such as Armie Hammer or John Hamm and even Pattinson and Meloni, too. Whoever ends up being cast, the exiting Affleck has put his stamp of approval on the future of the character, sharing in a tweet that he's "excited" for Reeves' film.

"Excited for The Batman in Summer 2021 and to see Matt Reeves' vision come to life,' Affleck wrote.

Whoever ends up suiting up as the hero, it will be in a film that Reeves has described as being unlike anything else Warner Bros. has coming up within their superhero universe.

"Right now, I'm involved in The Batman," said Reeves. "What it will be called ultimately, I don't know. Aquaman is going to be very different from the Todd Phillips Joker movie, and that's going to be different from Shazam and Harley Quinn. Warners believes they don't have to try to develop a giant slate that has to have all the plans for how it's going to connect. What they need to try and do is make good movies with these characters.

"It's very much a point of view-driven, noir Batman tale," Reeves said of his take on the Caped Crusader. "It's told very squarely on his shoulders, and I hope it's going to be a story that will be thrilling but also emotional. It's more Batman in his detective mode than we've seen in the films. The comics have a history of that. He's supposed to be the world's greatest detective, and that's not necessarily been a part of what the movies have been. I'd love this to be one where when we go on that journey of tracking down the criminals and trying to solve a crime, it's going to allow his character to have an arc so that he can go through a transformation."

The Batman is scheduled to premiere in theaters on June 25, 2021.

What do you think of Meloni's tweet? Let us know in the comments below.

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