James Gunn's Batman Movie Is Being Held Up By An Evil Clown - But It's Not Joker
As the SAG-AFTRA actors' strike appears to be winding to a close after seven long months, Hollywood is looking forward to a packed slate of production schedules. Over at Warner Bros. Discovery, a new Batman flick titled "The Brave and the Bold" will debut the Bat-family under James Gunn's rebooted DCU, but it will reportedly have to wait until its director can get around to it.
Director Andy Muschietti reportedly has the "IT" prequel series "Welcome to Derry" in the pipeline ahead of his work on "The Brave and the Bold," according to Deadline. Muschietti directed both "IT" and "IT 2," and his Max series will reveal the origins of Stephen King's eldritch clown, Pennywise. Principal photography began on the series in May 2023 but was halted in July as the SAG-AFTRA strike began.
Created by Andy Muschietti alongside Barbara Muschietti and Jason Fuchs, "Welcome to Derry" stars Taylour Paige, Jovan Adepo, Chris Chalk, and James Remar. The show promises to scare up the dark history of Pennywise. Fans will recall that the children who encounter the killer clown in "IT" aren't the first to face him. It is a cosmically ancient being that appears in the town every 27 years, meaning there's plenty of lore to mine for Muschietti's TV series.
The IT prequel takes precedence over Batman for director Andy Muschietti
"The Brave and the Bold" will not be related to 2022's "The Batman," which brought Robert Pattinson from vampire to vigilante. Instead, it will be yet another reboot of the Caped Crusader, this time adapting Grant Morrison's beloved comics run of the same title. The film will mark the return of Robin to the silver screen for the first time since 1997's "Batman and Robin." In the comics, we're dealing with the Damian Wayne version of Robin, so that's expected in the movie as well. It might also be the first time we see a live-action Dick Grayson Batman — if the comics are anything to go by.
According to Deadline, "The Brave and the Bold" is still in early production, so it makes sense that "Welcome to Derry" would be the priority for Warner Bros. Discovery. In the meantime, those looking for Gotham-centric hijinks can still look forward to "The Penguin" series, also coming to Max, which spins off from Matt Reeves' "The Batman" with Colin Farrell reprising his prosthetics-heavy role as the Gothamite crime lord. Actor Michael Kelly, who also plays a role on the series, revealed that he'd been a day away from wrapping on "The Penguin" when the strike began.