Ben Affleck has officially hung up his cape and announced that he is no longer going to be playing the role of Batman after playing the role in both, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League. With the news of a solo Batman film coming up in 2021 directed by Matt Reeves, there was a void to fill one of the most iconic roles in Hollywood and people are asking – is Robert Pattinson the new Batman?
The news has come out that yes, Robert Pattinson is in the final stages of accepting the role of Batman. Yes, the Robert Pattinson that we all know and love as Edward Cullen from the Twilight series. With the announcement of Pattinson as a final contender for the role of Batman in the upcoming film, there has been an uproar from Batman fans expressing how they feel about Pattinson stepping into the role of the Caped Crusader. Let’s take a look at who’s played Batman in the past and how Pattinson lines up with his Batman predecessors.
Previous Actors Who Have Played Batman
The very first portrayal of Batman was by Lewis G. Wilson, who played Batman in the 1943 series Batman at the young age of 23. In 1949, Robert Lowery took over the role for the show Batman & Robin. He was 36 at the time and had appeared in other shows prior, while Lowery seemingly came out of nowhere to play the role.
Adam West was the first actor to inhabit the Batcave for multiple years beginning in 1966 with a movie and a few animated series and then taking on an animated Batman show called The New Adventures of Batman in 1977 and other shows throughout spanning nearly two decades.
Michael Keaton then stepped into the Batmobile after West, taking on the role in 1989 for the movie Batman as well as the 1992 film Batman Returns. Next in the bat cave was Val Kilmer, George Clooney, and of course Christian Bale who played the role from 2005-2010.
Ben Affleck took on the role in 2016 and has received some backlash for his portrayal of the role. Of course, after people asking is Robert Pattinson the new Batman? We finally know that now in 2019 it appears that Robert Pattinson will indeed take on the role of Batman in the upcoming solo film, The Batman, set to release sometime in the summer of 2021.
What Fans Are Saying About Pattinson As Batman
It seems that no one actor has ever remained in the bat-suit for more than a few films and fans have always had their fair share of comments on whether or not they approve of the actor. Some fans who are in favour of the latest choice have mentioned that Pattinson is the perfect actor to take on the role of Batman.
“Twilight star Robert Pattinson will be the next Batman”
Me: pic.twitter.com/bMzKKVqpuP
— ⚡️Joey ⚡️ (@Stowejoseph13) May 17, 2019
Top reasons for this include that he ‘has the jaw for it’ as well as the ‘chops.’ After playing a vampire in four films as part of the Twilight series, Batman would be a very similar role in the character’s essence thanks to the dark mystery and broody emotional wall that Batman so often has in place. Not only that but with Pattinson’s portrayal of Edward Cullen in Twilight, he has accrued quite the commercial appeal that has lasted for over a decade now. Whether people like Pattinson or not, they will likely be intrigued to see the new Batman movie just to scope it out for themselves.
Because no one asked:
No, Robert Pattinson is not who I would’ve picked to play Batman.
Yes, I love that the internet is already losing its collective mind over it.
Learn from the past, people. This happens every time. Every. Time.
— Jamie “BatRaider” Druley (@BatRaider3960) May 17, 2019
Other fans are not so much in favour of the choice primarily due to his Twilight fame. Many fans feel that he is the wrong choice simply because of his resume and certain fans are already calling for him to not accept the role and walk away now.
Other fans are clapping back mentioning that aside from the Twilight series, Pattinson has had a very successful career in lesser known indie films, mentioning films like 2017’s Good Time and 2019’s High Life. As the lead role in Good Time, Pattinson played a man trying to fight to get his brother out of jail through a series of dangerous, gory, and drug-induced events. High Life follows Monte (Pattinson) and his daughter as they are the last survivors of a dangerous space mission and must rely on each other as they head towards a black hole.
What Happens With Pattinson As The New Batman
If Pattinson accepts the role of Batman in the upcoming movie, he will be one of the youngest actors to play the role after Christian Bale who starred in his first Batman film at 31 and Lewis G. Wilson who took on the role at 23.
It will interesting to see fans reaction to the film once it is produced – especially fans that haven’t seen any of Pattinson’s work outside of the Twilight vampire realm. Pattinson does have a resume that spans across a slew of genres and types of characters and he very well could be highly qualified to take on one of the most iconic roles in the film – Batman.