The Brave And The Bold: A Controversial Change Could Make Batman Movie History
Fans still don't know much about "The Brave and the Bold," Batman's fresh foray into the rebooted DC Universe, but they do know one thing for certain: it's a tale about Bruce Wayne's Batman and his assassin-trained son Damian Wayne as Robin. James Gunn and Peter Safran confirmed as much when they revealed their plans for the rebooted DC Universe. However, the in-universe future of Batman beyond this movie is less certain. In fact, the possibility exists that "The Brave and the Bold" could do something very brave and very bold indeed: killing off Bruce's Batman and seeing a new Dark Knight rise in his stead.
It may sound like an outlandish idea to get rid of the DC Universe's most iconic character so early in the new continuity, but the chance of such a thing happening is more likely than one might think. Gunn and Safran noted that "The Brave and the Bold" is specifically inspired by Grant Morrison's "Batman and Robin" comic book run, which started out by exploring the death of Bruce during the "Final Crisis" crossover while focusing on a brand-new Dynamic Duo in original Robin Dick Grayson as Batman and Damian as the new Robin. In comic book continuity, Bruce and Damian don't get to spend much time together before the former is temporarily killed off, and there's every chance that could be replicated for the on-screen version.
Perhaps the most important element of this theory is that it lines up with Gunn's philosophy regarding the new universe. "It's going to be interesting stuff, if nothing else," he told El País. "That's what I'd rather make, stuff that's interesting and doesn't work, than stuff that is just the same old thing that we've seen again and again."
There's plenty of other notable versions of Batman
"The Brave and the Bold" paving the way for a new Batman other than Bruce Wayne would certainly be a first for the superhero's cinematic live-action projects, but it's certainly not an unexplored idea in other media. In fact, there's a ton of major instances of DC Comics rewriting the status quo to feature other Batmen as the protectors of Gotham City.
As mentioned prior, Dick Grayson holds the mantle as Damian Wayne's partner during his early stint as Robin. The anti-hero Azrael gets his start by taking over as Batman after Bane breaks Bruce's back in "Knightfall." Stories like "DCeased" have seen Damian himself become Batman when the time is right. There's even a longstanding element of modern Batman continuity in which Bruce creates Batman Incorporated, a force that employs numerous variations of Batman to protect the world. So on, and so on.
Even other "Batman" adaptations have followed this route, with the animated series "Batman Beyond" being entirely predicated on Bruce handing over the mantle to Terry McGinnis and the movie "Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox" exploring an alternate reality in which Bruce's father Thomas is Batman. Heck, Christopher Nolan's live-action flick "The Dark Knight Rises" teases Joseph Gordon Levitt's character becoming the new Batman at the end. In any case, exploring the DC Universe through the lens of a non-Bruce Batman is less of a far-fetched idea than some might think, and it could be exactly what this version of the Batman mythos needs to distinguish itself from past incarnations.
Passing the mantle is so hot right now
There was a time when theatrical comic book adaptations seemed to have far more trepidation about featuring versions of major characters that weren't the most recognizable to general audiences. Every single theatrical "Spider-Man" movie up until 2018 strictly featured Peter Parker's version of the wallcrawler. Such is still the case with characters like Superman, Wonder Woman, and, indeed, Batman.
Nonetheless, recent years have marked a major sea change when it comes to depicting alternate versions of well-known superheroes. 2018's "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" blew the door off its hinges by introducing a ton of multiversal Spider-Man variations like Miles Morales and Spider-Woman to the big-screen. Similarly, the fallout from "Avengers: Endgame" has led many Marvel Cinematic Universe icons to pass their mantles on, like with Anthony Mackie's Falcon becoming the new Captain America and Florence Pugh's Yelena Belova emerging as the new Black Widow.
The truth of the matter is that comic book films have become such a popular facet of mainstream culture that audiences are far more receptive to the idea of fresh versions of their favorite superheroes than they may have once been. Casual fans would probably be able to swallow a different version of Batman in the DC Universe — and even if they couldn't, there's always Matt Reeves' "The Batman" franchise as an alternative. From this perspective, it's a no-lose situation to try something different.