DC fans are counting down the months until The Batman comes to theaters. The DC Extended Universe has been plagued by missteps, but many are optimistic that The Batman can turn things around and reinvigorate the franchise. Originally, Ben Affleck was set to direct and star in the film, but he left the project in the beginning of 2019. Now Matt Reeves will direct Robert Pattinson in a movie that follows a younger version of the character.
The first trailer for The Batman gives the impression the film will have a fairly dark tone. Very little about the plot is known, but the movie will focus on a version of Batman who's only a few years into his career as a superhero. Many fans assumed that meant the movie would be based on a comic story like The Long Halloween or Batman: Year One. At last year's DC Fan Dome, Matt Reeves corrected that assumption.
Reeves explained that his main inspiration for the film is a story called Ego: A Psychotic Slide Into the Heart of Darkness. The comic is a dark, cerebral story that explores that core elements of Batman and his history. In many ways, it seems a perfect method for introducing a brand new version of the character and his world. A movie based on Ego could break Batman all the way down in order to build him back anew.
A Psychotic Slide
Nowadays dark superhero stories are all the rage. Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy offered and gritty and realistic take on Batman. Then Zack Snyder's run with the character turn the doom and gloom up to eleven. Batman: Ego came out in 2000, well before the heyday of dark looks at comic characters. Ego was ahead of its time.
The book opens in the aftermath of yet another Joker crime spree. Batman is exhausted, both physically and mentally, but there's still plenty of work to be done. He's chasing down a low-level thug named Buster Snibbs, who ratted out the Joker's location to Batman the night before. Batman finds Snibbs, but only just as Snibbs is preparing to commit suicide. When Batman barely manages to save Snibbs's life, the man is furious. He explains that the Joker will make him pay for his betrayal. Snibbs has no faith in Batman or the police being able to contain the Joker. He's already killed his family to spare them from the Joker's retaliation, and when he gets the chance he shoots himself.
Even today few comics go that dark, much less begin that dark. Batman is deeply shaken by his encounter with Snibbs. He returns to the Batcave, wracked with guilt, and promises to retire his alter-ego. The force of that conviction splits his mind in two. The part of him that hungers for revenge against Gotham's criminal underbelly is represented by Batman. The part of him that can't accept what he's become is represented by Bruce Wayne. The two of them need to settle their differences.
Into the Heart of Darkness
As the book progress, Bruce and Batman enter a debate about their history, relationship to each other, and role in Gotham's current condition. They revisit moments from their shared past and try to reason out how they should proceed from their predicament. Batman argues that the best way to prevent another tragedy like Snibbs's suicide is to kill the Joker. Bruce refuses to accept that option, even when Batman suggests they split minds entirely (like Two-Face), so Bruce can avoid the guilt of the murder.
Bruce believes that if Batman is allowed to pursue his desires unchecked, he'll bring more tragedy to Gotham than even the Joker. Their argument reaches a stalemate. To break out of it, Batman summons the mental image of the gun that killed Bruce's parents. He tells Bruce to shoot him in order to free them from each other. Instead, Bruce tells Batman he will take on the guilt and responsibility of his crusade against crime. All Batman has to do is become a symbol of hope as well as fear by promising never to kill.
Batman accepts Bruce's offer. The two of them merge back into one mind. The book closes with the Joker escaping custody the very next night and taking a nightclub hostage. Batman feels reinvigorated after his ordeal, and he swoops into the night to save the day.
The Batman certainly won't be a direct adaptation of Ego. For one thing, the movie doesn't have anyone playing the Joker. Instead, Reeves's film will likely take the concepts of Ego and use them as a means of reinventing a character who's seen three different iterations over the course of a decade. By exploring Batman's psyche and firmly nailing down the character, Reeves and Pattinson will be free to add their own ideas to the beloved mythos.