The following article contains spoilers forThe Batman
Pretty much everyone who sawThe Batmanlikely deduced the identity of a certain unnamed prisoner seen cloaked in shadow during a later scene in the film. Director Matt Reeves was pretty quick to confirm that, yes, the creepy dude in the cell next to The Riddler was none other than The Joker. But while this version of the famousBatmanvillain is apparently seen before truly reaching his iconic heights, fans might not be getting the new Joker-focused movie they’re expecting any time soon.
DuringThe Batmanscene in question,Paul Dano’s Edward Nashton/The Riddleris sitting in Arkham Asylum after being caught, even if it was still something he planned for. As he mopes, a chilling voice comes from the next cell, offering some unhinged words of sympathy. This is actuallyEternalsstar Barry Keoghan as the proto-Joker, proving he’s definitely got the chops for a good villain role. Many fans took this as an indication that The Joker would play a big part in a potential sequel toThe Batman. However, according to Reeves, that wasn’t the plan.
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In an interview with Variety, Reeves spoke about his actual intent with the cameo. Not exactly meant as a sequel hook, but rather as a way to further establishGotham City as its own character, the appearance of The (almost) Joker is still an important piece of the puzzle. “I thought it’d be really neat if so much of the fabric of Gotham just already existed,” Reeves explained. “And it was like an old Warner Bros. gangster movie and if you took a certain turn, you might see a character in his origins.” This effectively turns the film into a more immersive experience for those looking to really dive into Gotham as a setting.
But that doesn’t mean he has plans to use that particular element going forward. “It’s not an Easter egg scene,” Reeves said of the scene itself. “It’s not one of those end credits Marvel or DC scenes where it’s going, like, ‘Hey, here’s the next movie!’ In fact, I have no idea when or if we would return to that character in the movies.” That’s sure to be a bit of a blow to eager fans whose excitement levels rose at the prospect of a full movie starring Keoghan as the Clown Prince of Crime.
However, this might be a blessing in disguise. Across all retellings of the story, from the 1960s Adam WestBatmanseries tothe criminally underratedThe LEGO Batman Movie, The Joker has played a substantial role more often than not. So attempting to move on from that with a potential sequel toThe Batmancould free up Reeves and the rest of the team to tell some truly original stories.
Many have been saying that, whileThe Batmanisn’t the end-all take on the formula, it definitely managed to forge its own distinct identity. Perhaps that’s something worth pursuing. The Zodiac Killer-esquetake on The Riddlerwas already pretty inspired. So exploring that same line of creativity is very much an intriguing idea.
The Batmanis now playing in theaters.
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