Some big updates out of the DC Cinematic Universe: Ben Affleck’s solo Batman film (unofficially dubbed The Batman by the media) will feature a plethora of classic Gotham villains. This comes at a small price, however. Red Hood, a Punisher-esque vigilante previously adapted in 2010’s Under the Red Hood animated movie, will not feature in the upcoming film as previous rumors suggested.
It’s all good though, since Birth.Movies.Death reports that Affleck’s Batman is going to feature plenty other enemies of the Dark Knight:
It's going to be crammed with Bat villains, which means that just about every major bad guy you've ever wanted to see in a movie will be in this movie. According to my sources Affleck and Geoff Johns, who has been working with him on the film, want to make the definitive Batman film. They want to tell the ultimate Batman story, and to do so they're going to bring in all the big guns. They're going to have a big, sprawling Bat universe already in place.
Definitive Batman film, you say? Sign me up. And wait, there’s more. In DC’s upcoming version of the Avengers, Justice League Part One, Batman v Superman veteran Jeremy Irons will reprise his role as Alfred “The Butler” Pennyworth. Roger Friedman of Showbiz 411 claims Irons personally confirmed this to him:
This is news to me. Maybe the fanboys and girls know it. But Jeremy Irons is bringing Batman’s butler Alfred to Zack Snyder’s “Justice League of America.”
Irons mentioned this to me the other night as I was congratulating him on yet another wonderful dramatic performance, this time in “The Man Who Knew Infinity.”
Casting Alfred isn’t Earth-shattering news, but it’s nice to know Bruce Wayne’s primary support system is part of Snyder’s Justice League vision. It certainly wouldn’t seem right to not include him.
Justice League Part One arrives in theaters Nov. 17, 2017. While there is still no official release date for The Batman, expect Ben Affleck to suit up sometime in 2018.
