The Batman Part II will show more Bruce Wayne—and a villain we’ve never seen on screen

The world’s moodiest billionaire is coming back, and this time, he’s finally stepping out from behind the cowl. According to director Matt Reeves, The Batman Part II will put a bigger spotlight on Bruce Wayne himself, not just the bat-shaped vengeance engine he becomes at night.

In an interview on the red carpet with Josh Horowitz, Reeves said the 2027 sequel will shift focus from just Batman to the man beneath the mask, played by Robert Pattinson. “The first is so focused on Batman,” Reeves said, “but I never wanted to lose Rob at the centre of these stories.”

Where previous Bat-franchises usually hit us with the origin story up front, dead parents, pearls, darkness, etc. and then dive into the villains, Reeves has a different plan: start from the trauma and slowly reveal the man. “We did something that referred to his origins,” Reeves explained of the first film, “but with Part II, you start to see who Bruce really is.”

The villain in this one won’t be from the usual Rogues Gallery rotation. Reeves teased that the new antagonist is someone who’s “never really been done in a movie before,” swerving away from Joker, Penguin, Riddler, or any other Arkham regulars.

Matt Reeves reveals THE BATMAN PART 2 will feature a new villain and test Bruce Wayne in new ways - YouTube

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Who could the mystery villain be?

Since Reeves is going off-menu for The Batman Part II, it’s time to crack open the lesser-known pages of the Bat-canon. Here are a few possibilities that fit the bill, iconic in the comics, but never given a proper big-screen spotlight:

• Professor Pyg – A deranged surgeon who kidnaps people and “perfects” them by turning them into doll-faced zombies called Dollotrons. Equal parts Hannibal and Eyes Wide Shut, and honestly, a perfect fit for Reeves’ horror-leaning Gotham.
• Hush – Aka Thomas Elliot, a childhood friend of Bruce Wayne who turns villainous and wraps his face in bandages. Dark, psychological, and deeply personal, exactly the kind of emotional weight Reeves loves and would mean we’d see more Bruce.
• The Court of Owls – A secret society of Gotham’s ultra-rich who run the city from the shadows. Their creepy, cult-like Talon assassins could add a conspiratorial thriller edge and give Bruce a reason to investigate his own family’s legacy.
• Calendar Man – OK, hear us out. Yes, he’s a guy who commits crimes on specific holidays. But in the right hands (read: Matt Reeves’), he could be reimagined as a Zodiac Killer-type obsessed with dates, rituals, and macabre theatre.

Of course, there’s always a chance that Reeves is planning to Frankenstein a few characters into something totally new, much like how his Riddler pulled from Zodiac and incel culture in The Batman.

The script, co-written by Reeves and Matson Tomlin, is already complete, with production aiming for spring 2026. The film has an official release date of the 1st of October, 2027, meaning you’ve got plenty of time to rewatch the first one, read every fan theory, and argue about which obscure Batman villain is finally getting their moment.

Pattinson is back as Gotham’s saviour-in-progress, but don’t expect crossover chaos; this Bat-verse remains totally separate from James Gunn’s freshly rebooted DC Universe, which kicked off with Superman earlier this year.

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