With the MCU essentially complete, the DCEU finally has a chance to rake in some of that delicious money that the MCU will certainly be leaving behind. Its no secret that large numbers of fans have decried Brie Larson’s Captain Marvel as being another piece of SJW propaganda, despite Disney’s numerous attempts to silence that opinion in the form of copyright claims and clear bias on coverage. While movie review aggregate sites like Rotten Tomatoes continue their long watch in protection of Lady Brie’s honor against the troll army harassing her portrayal of a failed character (and her ever disappearing charisma), Warner Bros has taken a different approach.
I was one of those people that complained when it was announced that Heath Ledger would be playing the Joker in Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy. I complained about this for weeks, writing how the casting foreshadowed the death of the Joker as a character. When the first recording of Heath Ledger’s Joker laugh came out, I very quickly learned to swallow my words. Despite the many urban legends surrounding his portrayal of the character, very few people can find any flaws in it. Potential psychological damage aside, Heath Ledger brought us a Joker that could exist in our modern times, in the “real world.”
When Ben Affleck was cast as the Dark Crusader, I kept my highly skeptical opinion to myself. Truth be told, I enjoyed Affleck’s portrayal of the Dark Knight, from an almost perfect impression of Bruce Wayne’s mannerisms to the fighting style that he used. It was a brutal style designed to maim and cripple, exactly how I would imagine a real-life Batman to engage multiple targets simultaneously. Affleck’s Batman came very close to the comic book portrayals, it is truly a shame to see that he has given up the role under rumors that the studio is looking for a younger actor to portray the iconic character. (There’s always Deathstroke, Ben.)
Thirty years ago this month, Michael Keaton’s casting of Batman was highly criticized by fans, how dare they put a rom-com guy inside the Cowl? Turns out, fandom was wrong, and Keaton gave us two of the most iconic live action superhero portrayals in modern cinema. In an age before YouTube, fans made their displeasure known to the studio by flooding them with letters demanding that the role be recast, and while rumors say that the studio thought about recasting the role, they instead went through with their decision.
In a case of history repeating itself, we have another high profile rom-com actor being cast as the Dark Knight for the upcoming The Batman trilogy, which makes sense. The DCEU has a clear direction into the movie going market, and despite any protests, Robert Pattinson did an outstanding job portraying Edward Cullen in The Twilight series of films. As his acting chops have increased, so has the variety of characters he can portray in the screen. Seeing how far actors like Leonardo Di Caprio have come from their previous typecast characters, I am excited to see what type of Batman we will get from Pattinson and what seems to be the new direction of the DCEU.
With Matt Reeves at the helm, and other upcoming contributions to the DCEU like Birds of Prey and Wonder Woman 1984 in the horizon, and box office successes Wonder Woman, Aquaman and Shazam to guide the journey forward. As a customer and fan, I hope that Warner Studios has learned the harsh lessons they have been handed in the small screen. As a cynic, I fear that they won’t. There is a shift in the air, and a huge burden has been placed on Pattinson’s shoulders to carry the rest of the DCEU into cinematic records. But with the decline of orders for Batman titles, the cannibalistic practices inside the comic book industry, and the era of SJW infestations within the industry, this movie couldn’t be more important.
If this movie is a financial and historical success, will it help rescue the comic book industry? Will the DCEU step up its game now that the MCU has finished their widely successful line of films? What do you think about Battinson being cast as the next version of the Dark Knight? How will he mesh with Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker?
Let us know what you think in the comments below.
