While co-CEO James Gunn is crafting the newly formed DCU, there's one franchise that's not part of it: Matt Reeves' The Batman movies. His first sequel is one of the most highly anticipated upcoming DC movies, even though Part II has been delayed until 2027. Fans are curious about what the director has up his sleeve, and I'm hoping that Paul Dano's Riddler returns. Although his latest comments about the mysterious blockbuster are seriously bumming me out.
What we know about The Batman: Part II is super limited, and it sounds like that might be the case for some actors from the burgeoning franchise as well. Case in point: Dano's conversation with Collider, which made it seem like he's not sure if he's coming back. In the actor's words:
Matt is so caring and obsessive in bringing such a point of view to that film, and I think he is going to again. I could not be more excited to see what he does, and I hope maybe I’ll get to dance again.
What do you mean you "hope", Mr. Dano? Does that mean we shouldn't expect The Riddler to pop up during the mysterious runtime of The Batman: Part II? He was the main antagonist of the first film, so I assume there are plenty of moviegoers who might share my feelings of disappointment if this comes to fruition.
Fans who spent years watching the DC movies in order will recall that Riddler was finally taken down during The Batman's ending, and promptly sent to Arkham Asylum. This opened the door for Barry Keoghan's cameo as Joker, although whether or not he gets to appear in Part II remains a mystery as well.
While The Batman's sequel is largely a mystery, Matt Reeves confirmed that production is officially underway. The promotional campaign also quickly picked up, with the filmmaker releasing brief clips of actors that have inspired theories about who they might be playing... especially Scarlett Johansson and Sebastian Stan. So while it's early, hopefully we'll get some concrete information sooner rather than later.
While the first Batman movie hit theaters back in 2022, anticipation for the sequel was buoyed by the TV spinoff The Penguin (which is streaming with a HBO Max subscription). And with fans debating which villains might appear, it's clear that folks are still invested in Reeves' take on Gotham City.
The Batman: Part II is currently expected to arrive in theaters on October 1st, 2027. Since its not part of the 2026 movie release list, fans are going to have to try and be patient before we get information about whether or not Paul Dano will appear.
