As widely announced, the long-awaited The Batman will take place in a new universe called Earth-Two, detached from the DC Extended Universe. We still know very little about the new universe that will be inaugurated by the upcoming work of director Matt Reeves, but recently, the existence of a historic DC villain linked to Superman in this narrative universe has been confirmed.
The confirmation came thanks to the tie-in novel Before the Batman: An Original Movie Novel (The Batman), which describes the events that lead to the story that will be narrated in the film. Specifically, a passage from the novel reads: "My dad and I need to get away. Maybe Metropolis. I hear LexCorp Race Team is taking on new mechanics."
Created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, Lex Luthor first appeared in 1940 Action Comics #23 and is one of Superman's most celebrated and beloved adversaries. Endowed with a brilliant criminal mind, Luthor over the decades has gone from a typical mad scientist to an industrialist being represented with the traits of a tycoon, while in more recent times he was instead represented on the p of today's big-tech tycoons.
The character has been portrayed multiple times in live-action films and series with the outstanding performance of Gene Hackman in the Superman saga directed by Richard Donner, Kevin Spacey in Superman Returns, and Michael Rosenbaum in the TV series Smallville. In the DC Extended Universe, Luthor was played by Jesse Eisenberg in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, who later also appeared in Justice League and Zack Snyder's Justice League.
Directed by Matt Reeves and written by Mattson Tomlin with the contribution of Reeves himself, the new film dedicated to the Dark Knight will star Robert Pattinson as a young Bruce Wayne in his second year as a Batman. Zoë Kravitz will play Selina Kyle, Colin Farrell will be Oswald Cobblepot aka Penguin and Paul Dano will portray the film's main villain, the Riddler. Other names involved include John Turturro as Carmine Falcone, Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth, Jeffrey Wright as Commissioner James Gordon, Peter Sarsgaard as District Attorney Gil Colson, while debut actress Jayme Lawson will play a new character named Bella Real.
Two years of stalking the streets as the Batman (Robert 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 (Andy Serkis), Lt. James Gordon (Jeffrey Wright)- amongst the city's corrupt network of officials and high-profile ps, 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 (Zoë Kravitz), Oswald Cobblepot/aka the Penguin (Colin Farrell), Carmine Falcone (John Turturro), and Edward Nashton/aka the Riddler (Paul 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.
The Batman will arrive in cinemas on March 4, 2022. As confirmed recently, it will run for 2 hours and 47 minutes, excluding the credits
The confirmation came thanks to the tie-in novel Before the Batman: An Original Movie Novel (The Batman), which describes the events that lead to the story that will be narrated in the film. Specifically, a passage from the novel reads: "My dad and I need to get away. Maybe Metropolis. I hear LexCorp Race Team is taking on new mechanics."
Source: Amazon
No further details about Metropolis or LexCorp are added in the book. However, this passage implies the existence of a specific incarnation of Lex Luthor in Earth-Two.Created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, Lex Luthor first appeared in 1940 Action Comics #23 and is one of Superman's most celebrated and beloved adversaries. Endowed with a brilliant criminal mind, Luthor over the decades has gone from a typical mad scientist to an industrialist being represented with the traits of a tycoon, while in more recent times he was instead represented on the p of today's big-tech tycoons.
The character has been portrayed multiple times in live-action films and series with the outstanding performance of Gene Hackman in the Superman saga directed by Richard Donner, Kevin Spacey in Superman Returns, and Michael Rosenbaum in the TV series Smallville. In the DC Extended Universe, Luthor was played by Jesse Eisenberg in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, who later also appeared in Justice League and Zack Snyder's Justice League.
Source: DC Comics
At the moment there is nothing to suggest that there are references to Metropolis, LexCorp or Lex Luthor himself in The Batman. However, during the filming of the movie we already saw some inhabitants of Gotham in the costumes of Superman and Wonder Woman. If this further confirms the existence of other DC characters on Earth-Two, it is good to reiterate that in the intentions of Matt Reeves and Warner Bros. this new universe will remain centered on the personal adventures of Batman and other Gotham City characters.Directed by Matt Reeves and written by Mattson Tomlin with the contribution of Reeves himself, the new film dedicated to the Dark Knight will star Robert Pattinson as a young Bruce Wayne in his second year as a Batman. Zoë Kravitz will play Selina Kyle, Colin Farrell will be Oswald Cobblepot aka Penguin and Paul Dano will portray the film's main villain, the Riddler. Other names involved include John Turturro as Carmine Falcone, Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth, Jeffrey Wright as Commissioner James Gordon, Peter Sarsgaard as District Attorney Gil Colson, while debut actress Jayme Lawson will play a new character named Bella Real.
Source: Warner Bros. Pictures
Below you can read the official synopsis of the film:Two years of stalking the streets as the Batman (Robert 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 (Andy Serkis), Lt. James Gordon (Jeffrey Wright)- amongst the city's corrupt network of officials and high-profile ps, 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 (Zoë Kravitz), Oswald Cobblepot/aka the Penguin (Colin Farrell), Carmine Falcone (John Turturro), and Edward Nashton/aka the Riddler (Paul 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.
The Batman will arrive in cinemas on March 4, 2022. As confirmed recently, it will run for 2 hours and 47 minutes, excluding the credits