Pattinson Makes Head-Turning Statement About The Dark Knight

Citizens of Gotham, Batman is once again coming to bust some bad guys. And it sounds like the latest iteration of the Caped Crusader will be more conflicted than ever.

At least that's the word from the actor who's set to don the cape and cowl in the upcoming superhero flick The Batman. 

Robert Pattinson recently sat down with The New York Times' Kyle Buchanan, who took the opportunity to ask Pattinson about his role as the Dark Knight in the soon-to-shoot Batman movie. The actor was quick to praise director Matt Reeves, and offered his own read of the notoriously complex superhero he's about to play.

"I love the director, Matt Reeves, and it's a dope character. His morality is a little bit off. He's not the golden boy, unlike almost every other comic-book character," Pattinson began. "There is a simplicity to his worldview, but where it sits is strange, which allows you to have more scope with the character."

The actor then revealed why he was drawn to the character — and in doing so, he made a head-turning comment about Batman.

"Batman's not a hero," said Pattinson. "He's a complicated character. I don't think I could ever play a real hero — there's always got to be something a little bit wrong."

By the sounds of it, Pattinson and Reeves are apparently aiming take the "hero" out of the superhero genre with The Batman – which some of the most intriguing news we've heard about the new movie thus far. And that's saying a lot in a week that's also seen The Batman cast Zoë Kravitz as Selina Kyle (a.k.a. Catwoman), and set its sights on Paul Dano as the Riddler. All of that came just weeks after it was reported that Westworld star Jeffrey Wright was in talks to appear as Batman's Gotham City Police Department ally Commissioner Gordon. 

Thanks to Pattinson's recent remarks, it certainly appears fans are going to see in The Batman a different version of the Dark Knight than they're used to. Though it's initially shocking to hear Pattinson say that Batman isn't a hero, it's not exactly an earth-shattering revelation to learn that the actor and his director plan to subvert the norm. 

Essentially from the day he was announced as Ben Affleck's replacement, director Matt Reeves (Cloverfield, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, War for the Planet of the Apes) has maintained that he wants to bring something fresh to the mix with his adaptation of the iconic comic book character. That vision was first teased with the news that Reeves' was scrapping Affleck's script for The Batman, and furthered when Affleck himself was relieved of his dark watch over the streets of Gotham.

In spite of its initial production turmoil, The Batman soldiered on with Reeves at the helm — though months passed with little to no news of what the director had in mind. The silence finally broke earlier this year when Reeves revealed that his movie would be a "point of view-driven, noir Batman tale" that sees Batman flexing his detective skills that most films have barely touched on. Reeves explained to The Hollywood Reporter at the time, "I hope it's going to be a story that will be thrilling but also emotional. It's more Batman in his detective mode than we've seen in the films [...] It's going to allow his character to have an arc so that he can go through a transformation."

When it was announced that Pattinson had been tapped to wear the cape and cowl in The Batman, the internet nearly imploded at the news, with the actor himself even fearing the wrath of an insolent internet fandom. While most of those fans were intrigued by the thought of Pattinson in the Bat-suit, there were plenty who were wary of the former Twilight heartthrob bringing the requisite charm and menace required with the dual roles of Bruce Wayne and Batman. 

But fans have little to worry about. Pattinson has spent his post-Twilight years forging a reputation as one of the most fiercely devoted and adventurous actors on the planet — a reputation he's earned by delivering show-stopping performances in indie fare like Cosmopolis, The Lost City of Z, Good Time, High Life, and the just-released film The Lighthouse. Though The Batman will serve as the highest-profile film Pattinson has appeared in in years, there's little doubt the actor will bring the same sort of intensity to his role as the Dark Knight.

In fact, Pattinson's recent comments about Batman not being a hero make it seem like he has a keen read on the tortured psyche of a character that has always been one of the more complex creations in the superhero realm. What's even more encouraging is that Reeves seems bent on taking a more grounded, character-driven approach to the material. That type of approach worked wonders for another recent Gotham-set tale: Joker. Though it doesn't sound like Reeves and Pattinson are aiming to go quite that dark with The Batman, their planned character-first approach for the film should serve the noir-tinged narrative equally well. With any luck, it will allow Batman to breathe in ways he hasn't been able to in previous iterations, which means Pattinson should have free rein to deliver a Batman the likes of which we've never seen. 

Sadly, it'll be a while before we see what comes from that enticing approach. The Batman will begin filming in early 2020, but won't be out in theaters until June 25, 2021.