Posted in: Batman, Movies, Warner Bros | Tagged: paul dano, the batman, The Batman Part II

The Batman: Paul Dano On How Striving For "Content" Leads To Bad Films

The Batman star Paul Dano said as soon as the word "content" came into play regarding comic book movies, it became "quantity over quality."

Comic book movies didn't exactly have a great 2023 across the board, with some exceptions [mostly in animation]. People have been talking a lot in the last couple of months about the shift that has become more and more prevalent in the last couple of years which is filmmaking by way of committee instead of by creatives. Dakota Johnson spoke up about this issue concerning Madame Web as she seemed to go out of her way to ensure the "blame" for that movie didn't get thrown on director SJ Clarkson. There have been some exceptions to the "movies by way of committee" way of thinking, including The Batman. Whether you love or hate that movie, it's very clear that it is a work that director Matt Reeves poured himself into, and Paul Dano, in an interview with the Independent, would agree. "There are enough comic book movies where you just know what you're gonna get," Dano explained. "Reading the script for The Batman, you knew it was a real film. Every sentence… that's just [writer/director] Matt Reeves."

Much like Johnson, Dano does not seem too happy with the current direction of Hollywood when it comes to comic book movies. In fact, Dano linked it back to a specific word that has become extremely popular in the last couple of years: content.

"It's an interesting moment where everybody has to go like, 'OK – what now?' Hopefully, from that, somebody either breathes new life into [comic book movies] or something else blossoms which is not superheroes," Dano said. "I'm sure there will still be some good ones yet to come, but I think it's kind of a welcome moment. … It's a larger thing, too. As soon as the word 'content' came into what we do – meaning making movies or TV – it meant quantity over quality, which I think was a big misstep. And I certainly don't need that as a viewer or as an artist."

He's right in that there are plenty of exceptions, but things generally look dire. The Batman being a hit was a big deal the same way that Joker being a hit was a big deal or Iron Man breaking through to the general public back in 2008 was a big deal. However, in the rush to make as much money as possible, which is what studios do, they have lost track of why people keep returning to these movies because of the characters. They keep coming back to Batman movies because they love the character of Batman and what good writers, directors, and actors do with that character. Filmmaking by way of committee and focusing on "content" is just executives thinking audiences are so braindead that they will accept anything with the right buzzwords attached. That isn't the case; we have seen movies that seemed like sure things either bomb or underperform over and over again, and focusing on the art of filmmaking over making content is the right step forward for this genre, once again breaking boundaries.

The Batman: Summary, Cast List, Release Date

From Warner Bros. Pictures comes Matt Reeves' The Batman, starring Robert Pattinson in the dual role of Gotham City's vigilante detective and his alter ego, reclusive billionaire Bruce Wayne. Two years of stalking the streets as the Batman (Robert Pattinson), striking fear into the hearts of criminals, has led Bruce Wayne deep into the shadows of Gotham City. With only a few trusted allies—Alfred Pennyworth (Andy Serkis), Lt. James Gordon (Jeffrey Wright)—amongst the city's corrupt network of officials and high-profile figures, the lone vigilante has established himself as the sole embodiment of vengeance amongst his fellow citizens. When a killer targets Gotham's elite with a series of sadistic machinations, a trail of cryptic clues sends the World's Greatest Detective on an investigation into the underworld, where he encounters such characters as Selina Kyle/aka Catwoman (Zoë Kravitz), Oswald Cobblepot/aka the Penguin (Colin Farrell), Carmine Falcone (John Turturro), and Edward Nashton/aka the Riddler (Paul Dano). As the evidence begins to lead closer to home and the scale of the perpetrator's plans becomes clear, Batman must forge new relationships, unmask the culprit, and bring justice to the abuse of power and corruption that has long plagued Gotham City.

Starring alongside Robert Pattinson (Tenet, The Lighthouse) as Gotham's famous and infamous cast of characters are Zoë Kravitz (Big Little Lies, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald); Paul Dano (Love & Mercy, 12 Years a Slave); Jeffrey Wright (No Time to Die, Westworld); John Turturro (the Transformers films, The Plot Against America); Peter Sarsgaard (The Magnificent Seven, Interrogation) as Gotham D.A. Gil Colson; Jayme Lawson (Farewell Amor) as mayoral candidate Bella Reál; with Andy Serkis (the Planet of the Apes films, Black Panther); and Colin Farrell (The Gentlemen, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them). The Batman was released on March 4, 2022. The Batman Part II will be released on October 3, 2025. However, The Penguin spin-off show will be here sooner as it is set to stream on Max later this year.

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