'The Batman' Director Matt Reeves Talks Inspiration For Pattinson's Bruce Wayne And It's Pure Nirvana
Director Matt Reeves has been known as an innovator throughout his career. From making a found footage kaiju film that barely shows the monster into a terrifying experience with Cloverfield to turning a retelling of Planet of the Apes into a modern day masterwork, Reeves has proven to be an outside the box creative. With his new film The Batman, the director hopes to show a more realistic interpretation of the Caped Crusader.
In a recent interview with Esquire, Matt Reeves unpacks his inspiration for taking on an already heavily treaded character. He reveals that he wanted to do a different take on the overly done origin story of Bruce Wayne, separate from the DC Extended Universe. After a bit of research, he found his muse with the run of Batman: Year One. In the story, Bruce is wet behind the ears, just starting to become Batman and gets put through the wringer a few times. A far cry from most of the versions we have seen on screen. But this wasn't Reeves' only source of inspiration,
"Early on, when I was writing, I started listening to Nirvana, and there was something about [Nevermind song] 'Something in the Way', which is in the first trailer, which is part of the voice of that character. When I considered, 'How do you do Bruce Wayne in a way that hasn't been seen before?' I started thinking, 'What if some tragedy happened [ie: Wayne sees his parents murdered] and this guy becomes so reclusive, we don't know what he's doing? Is this guy some kind of wayward, reckless, drug addict?' And the truth is that he is a kind of drug addict. His drug is his addiction to this drive for revenge. He's like a Batman Kurt Cobain."
Now that the board was set up, who would play the part?
"Of course, the idea [to fit with the Year One story] was to make him a younger actor. And in the process of writing the movie, I watched [the fantastic 2017 Safdie brothers film] Good Time, and I thought, 'Okay, he's got an inner kind of rage that connects with this character and a dangerousness, and I can feel this desperation.' And I became dead-set on it being Rob. And I had no idea if Rob had any interest! Because, of course, he had done all of these indie movies after he established himself in Twilight."
To be honest, the choice for Pattinson was a refreshing one. He doesn't quite fit the mold of a traditional Batman, with his slender frame and boyish features, though he has the brooding smolder of a broken man. Thankfully, Pattinson was on board from the jump according to Reeves,
"And so when I met him, and he read the script, we talked for a long, long time and I realised, 'This guy is a massive fan'."
But would fans of Batman be able to wrap their heads around this version of their beloved hero?
"The people who were excited, I knew it was because they knew Rob's work post-Twilight. The people who weren't excited, I knew it was because they didn't know Rob's work post-Twilight."
And that has been the issue Pattinson faced for many years after playing Edward in the Twilight series. Changing gears completely from Hollywood tent poles to small indie roles, gave the actor more room to flex his acting chops, but to a smaller art house audience base, far away from the general audiences who don't watch films like The Light House or Cosmopolis.
At the end of the day much of this boils down to trusting the director. Reeves' track record stands strong in Hollywood. But like any creative endeavor the final product will be the deciding factor and for Matt Reeves, he seems confident in his work.
"I'm very proud of it. I felt it was the best version of the story that we could possibly do to justify having another Batman. You always have to have a reason, and from the beginning that was the mission for me."
From the state of things so far, The Batman is shaping up to be a cool, street level comic book flick with a slick original look. Need proof?
The Batman will hit theaters on March 4th.
