DC’s Next Batman Will Copy The Biggest Element From James Gunn’s DCU Batman

by

Even before James Gunn’s planned DC Universe movie, The Brave and the Bold, starts filming, a new animated series called Bat-Fam will explore a similar idea. The show will center on the relationship between Bruce Wayne (Batman) and his strong-willed son, Damian Wayne (Robin).

James Gunn has consistently stated that his plan for a live-action Batman in the DC Universe, specifically in The Brave and the Bold, relies on introducing Damian Wayne as the primary Robin. He wants to highlight the extensive and intricate Bat-Family, which hasn’t been fully explored in movies. Interestingly, this key relationship between Batman and Robin will first be thoroughly developed in a series on Prime Video before appearing in the film.

During the announcement of DC Studios’ new film lineup, James Gunn and Peter Safran emphasized that The Brave and the Bold would be the movie to introduce the new Batman for the DC Universe. Importantly, the film will be inspired by the popular comic book storyline by Grant Morrison, focusing on Batman learning he has a biological son named Damian Wayne, who was trained as an assassin by the League of Shadows.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, James Gunn referred to Damian Wayne as both a “little son of a bitch” and “our favorite Robin.” This reveals that the complex relationship between father and son, and the broader interactions within the Bat-Family, will be central to the new Batman movies.

The new animated series, Bat-Fam, will introduce the idea of a close-knit Batman family much sooner than the upcoming live-action movie. Premiering on Prime Video November 10th, the series continues the story and visual style of the holiday film, Merry Little Batman. That film showed a more relaxed and down-to-earth Bruce Wayne, and Bat-Fam will build on that by showing what happens when a large, diverse group of heroes and villains all live together at Wayne Manor. Expect to see some familiar and exciting villains as well!

As a huge DC fan, what really excites me about this new series is how it’s setting up the Bat-Family for the bigger DCU we’re all hoping for. It looks like the show is going to start by really focusing on the core relationship between Batman, Alfred, and Damian – who they’re calling ‘Little Batman,’ which is adorable! – and then slowly introduce some really interesting new layers. The best part? They’re bringing in Damian’s grandfather, Ra’s al Ghul, and playing him as a genuinely funny, but still important, character – they even call him ‘Pap Pap’! It feels like this animated series is going to be the first thing to really get audiences invested in the whole, complicated Bat-Family dynamic that James Gunn and Peter Safran are building towards in live-action.

How Soon Will James Gunn’s The Brave and the Bold Be Here?

Though fans can enjoy a family feel with the “Bat-Family” series now streaming, the new Batman planned for James Gunn’s DC Universe will take much longer to appear in theaters. DC Studios hasn’t set a release date for “The Brave and the Bold” yet. While Andy Muschietti is confirmed to direct, James Gunn has explained that the project is moving forward carefully, and the script needs to be finalized before they can announce a schedule.

With the first DCU movie, Superman, just released and other projects still in development, The Brave and the Bold is likely to be one of the last films to come out, potentially in late 2028 or 2029. This timing allows Matt Reeves’ The Batman series (with The Batman Part II coming in October 2027) to continue as its own separate story without conflicting with the main DCU timeline.

James Gunn’s approach to The Brave and the Bold will be noticeably different from the tone of the ‘Elseworlds’ films. While Matt Reeves’ The Batman is a dark, realistic detective story, Gunn has said he doesn’t want his DCU Batman to be comedic or overly dramatic, or simply a copy of the previous brooding style. He shared this in an interview with Rolling Stone.

The upcoming series is expected to capture the energetic, high-stakes, and often over-the-top feel of the comic books it’s based on. This means a shift away from a realistic style towards a more fantastical and dramatic atmosphere, which will allow for the introduction of characters like Damian Wayne and other members of the Bat-Family. These characters are better suited to a slightly more theatrical version of Gotham. At its heart, the story will focus on Batman’s growth as he transitions from a lone crime fighter into a strict, but sometimes struggling, father figure, and learns to deal with the challenges Damian presents. This will create conflict and drama through family dynamics, rather than solely through street-level crime.

Read More

2025-11-09 08:04