The landscape of gender in superhero movies has evolved a lot in recent years, with women being celebrated for adapting the stories of an array of female heroines in front of and behind the camera. One project that arguably ushered in this acceptance was 2017’s Patty Jenkins-directed Wonder Woman — which, before its release, was met with a wide swath of reactions from some in the industry. This included Avatar and Titanic director James Cameron, who criticized the live-action take on the character for being “objectified.” In a recent interview with Time Magazine, Cameron looked back on those comments, and also argued that even more women should be helming superhero blockbusters, even those with male characters. This includes him flat-out advocating for a woman to helm a Batman movie, which has not happened yet.
“I don’t have an issue with Wonder Woman. I loved the movie,” Cameron clarified. “What was elusive to me at the moment was it’s OK if the woman wants to be beautiful and dress well not for the male gaze, but for her own gaze in the mirror, right? I had maybe missed that part of it at the time,” he says. “You know, life is about stumbling and people push back and we talk about it and things get better.”
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“It was necessary to have a female director own a major action movie, though Kathryn Bigelow had been doing that for a while.” Cameron said, referencing his ex-wife. “She would have turned down any superhero movie she was offered if it was a female lead. And that’s the healthier perspective, I think, personally. Why not have women direct male characters? Have a woman direct Batman. Now, you’re talking.”
What is the next Batman movie?
At the moment, there are actually two big-screen takes on Batman set to arrive in the coming years, beginning with Matt Reeves’ sequel to The Batman, which will be arriving in the fall of 2025. There’s also The Brave and the Bold, a film set in the new universe shepherded by DC Studios co-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran, which will follow the dynamic between the Dark Knight and Damian Wayne / Robin. It does not have a director yet.
“This is the introduction of the DCU’s Batman,” Gunn told reporters when announcing their slate. “It is not Robert Pattinson. It is not Ben Affleck. We’re working with Robert on Batman 2 and dealing with that with Matt Reeves, and we’re working with Ben Affleck, who really wants to be… has been a part of our architectural team trying to bring things together and he really wants to direct one of our projects and we’re excited for him doing that, but this is the story of Damian Wayne, who is Batman’s actual son who we didn’t know existed for the first eight to ten years of his life.”
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