What Could The Batman Sequel Bring Us?

 

So The Batman has officially been out for almost a week now and after having seen it twice I'm quite eager to see where this inevitable sequel could go. As of right now there is no confirmed sequel for Matt Reeve's The Batman, but given that the film opened up to $134 million domestically and will no doubt make even more money in coming weeks I feel like an announcement is just a matter of time.

This Batman film has Batman portrayed by Robert Pattinson, in only his second year and solving his first case in figuring out who The Riddler is and who he's targeting. In his investigation he works alongside GCPD's Lt. Jim Gordon portrayed by Jeffrey Wright. To quickly summarize Batman and Jim find Riddler at a diner, Selina Kyle finds her friend murdered by the hands of her father Carmine Falcone, attempts to kill him, Riddler murders Falcone before he's caught and when Batman visits Riddler in prison he finds out The Riddler set up bombs around Gotham which go off and floods the city. His followers wait at Gotham Square Garden to murder the mayor elect, but Batman stops them and rescues people from the flood.

Batman leading civilians out of the flood.

Gotham is left in a state of turmoil. There's going to be a lot of confusion and criminals are going to be clawing at each other to gain the power that Carmine Falcone had on the city. In the ending we saw Penguin staring off into the sunset overlooking Gotham. He was Falcone's right hand man so the logical step is for him to replace him, but no one is going to let him take that spot willingly. There's going to be bloodshed. Warner Bros. announced that a HBO Max series starring the Penguin is on the way and that it will take place after the events of The Batman. Given that information it's safe to assume that Penguin will be fighting to become the top dog mob boss in Gotham and given such by the time The Batman sequel comes out Penguin will probably be established already as a serious mob boss. I doubt he will be given main villain status, but I'm certain he will return in some capacity.

All of this chaos could also be a set up for a No Man's Land type of story. I personally haven't read the comic, but I know that Rocksteady's Arkham City storyline was partially influenced by the same comic. In Arkham City Gotham's worst criminals were fenced in with each other in the downtown section of Gotham and many were at war with each other to claim turf in Arkham City. In The Batman sequel I can see the same thing happening. Gotham is sort of cut off by the flood and the national guard has been called in for rescue and relief. With Falcone out of the picture the likes of gangster Batman villains like Black Mask, Scarface, and Two-Face could be making grabs for power along with Penguin.

That is one direction they could go, but within the film there were other teases about where things could go. To a mixed reaction in the end of the movie when The Riddler is in prison he is talking to another inmate. At first it seems like it's Harvey Dent since it appears the prisoner's face is burned, but then the prisoner starts laughing maniacally which of course means The Joker. Though Matt Reeves came out and said it doesn't necessarily mean that The Joker will be the main villain of the next movie the fact that he's there does bring up the possibly. We could see Joker as the next main Batman villain and given the character that direction could go anywhere. He could fit into the No Man's Land-like storyline or it could be completely different. The Joker is a character that Warner Bros. loves because he prints money so they could forgo any plans to push Joker into the spotlight.

A panel from Paul Dini's Heart of Hush

There are a lot of villains still that haven't been seen in a big live-action film yet and one of those is Hush. During the orphanage scene when Batman finds the projector that reveals some parts of his father's past, Edward Elliot, Hush's father is brought up and even the word hush is brought up on screen overlaying Elliot. In the comic storyline Hush Riddler was a primary character in the story so Matt Reeve's could bring that for inspiration, but Heart of Hush is also another route he can go. Batman has a lot of crazies in his rogues gallery, but Hush has to be somewhere near the top of the list. Hush whose real name is Thomas Elliot could go after Bruce Wayne because he believes Riddler's story that Bruce's dad had him killed, but the twist is he's not mad that his father's dead he's mad because Thomas Wayne took the opportunity to kill Wayne himself. Hush is an absolute nutjob in the comics and killed his own parents when he was a child. This could be enough motivation for him to want to personally wreck Bruce's life. One thing that Hush is also known for is impersonating Bruce Wayne and it could be cool to see Robert Pattinson playing his own villain.

Matthew Reeves has also indulged his interests on tackling Mr. Freeze. 

Mr. Freeze hasn't been seen in a movie since the infamous Batman & Robin in the 90s where he was portrayed by Arnold Schwarzenegger. It's been over twenty years since he's been in a film including the fantastic Batman & Mr. Freeze: Subzero animated movie so I say he's due for another appearance. I don't see how he could tie in with the aftermath of the flood and the grab for power, but he could be a subplot antagonist.

Batman Court of Owls #1 Cover

Lastly, for hinted villains there is The Court of Owls. This villainous organization was created in 2011 by Scott Snyder. I would describe them as Batman's version of the Illuminati. They consist of Gotham's wealthiest families and operate behind the scenes influencing Gotham's politics and corporate operations. They would tie in nicely after the events of The Batman. If Falcone was truly running Gotham for 20 years then it would mean that the court has remained dormant for some time and with the flood and chaos of criminals running to grab power that could bring the return of The Court of Owls. Batman himself has also undergone change in this film. He was a recluse staying out of public society and spending the majority of his time being Batman. With Alfred and the new mayor pushing him to do more with his resources we could see Batman develop his Bruce Wayne persona and start some relief efforts for the flood and other philanthropist acts. Of course in doing so he would also attract The Court of Owls. Since they consist of Gotham's nobles they would want Bruce Wayne in their ranks and knowing what The Court of Owls does Bruce Wayne would refuse and try to take them out as Batman. It could become quite a thriller to see Bruce Wayne being hunted while Batman hunts The Owls all while a gang war ensues above that also the Owls and their talon assassins are participating in.

The end of The Batman also gave us a Batman who has grown. In the final conflict we see Batman save a number of people from the flood with even a young woman holding on to him as she's taken away by the national guard. Batman has learned that his actions has some crazy people to be inspired to take actions in their own hands and he realizes he must be more than a symbol of vengeance to make some positive change in Gotham City. I expect to see Batman getting more of a positive reception from the public. In the beginning we saw a man cower in fear after Batman saves him from a group of thugs, perhaps now citizens would not be afraid of him, only the criminals will. Because of this we would likely see the development of the Bruce Wayne persona. The mayor elect and Alfred told Bruce he could be using his family's legacy for philanthropy and with the aftermath of the flood Bruce could use his money for relief efforts. He could learn that he can do good for the city as both Batman and Bruce Wayne.

Selina Kyle getting flirtatious with Batman

The state of Selina Kyle has also been left up in the air. At the end of the film she heads off into Bludhaven. It's likely she'll return for the sequel, but what would that mean for the character? She was not yet given the moniker of Catwoman in The Batman and perhaps she cat burglar escapades has garnered enough attention from the press to give her the title of Catwoman. How she would weave into the overall story is anyone's guess. 

Out of the possible avenues, I personally think that the No Man's Land esque storyline is the most likely option for the sequel. As for villains I would like to see I'm eager to see Clayface in live-action and Poison Ivy on the screen. Poison Ivy is one of the most underrated villains in my opinion even in the comics so I think she deserves a movie where she is the star and also how climate change and environmentalism is a concern right now she could vibe with audiences on a personal level. What do you think could happen in the next Batman movie? Let me know down below.