Is Robert Pattinson’s Batman in ‘The Flash’?

Editor’s Note: The following contains spoilers for The Flash.DC’s The Flash is one of the latest films to explore the multiverse, managing to feature multiple renditions of your favorite superheroes, such as Superman and Batman. Bruce Wayne’s vigilante alias saw a blast from the past in more ways than one, seeing Michael Keaton don the suit for the first time since Batman Returns in 1992, and giving the audience more reprisals from Ben Affleck, and even George Clooney.

But one version of Batman not featured in the newest DCEU installment was that of The Batman of 2022, played by Robert Pattinson. Despite playing the exact character that has been adapted on the screen many times before, this take on the Caped Crusader was left out of The Flash and is not included in the DCEU, and may not even be in the upcoming DCU.

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What Is the Difference Between the DCEU and the DCU?

In 2013, the Superman film Man of Steel kicked off the start of the DCEU, a cinematic universe of DC Comics characters. The term “DC Extended Universe” came from the writer Keith Staskiewicz when characters like Batman and Superman began to appear in DC films together, and Warner Bros. Discovery made the name official with the launch of HBO Max (now Max). The DCEU is made up of films that feature characters like Henry Cavill’s Superman, Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman, and Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn. The role of Batman is portrayed by Ben Affleck, who will most likely not return to the role after his appearance in The Flash. Audiences had first seen Affleck in the bat-suit in 2016, with the DCEU’s Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice.

So, is the DCU different from the DCEU? The short answer is yes. The upcoming DC Universe is being referred to as a “soft reboot” of the DCEU after Batman v. Superman and Justice League performed poorly commercially and critically. Being led by James Gunn and Peter Safran, the newest attempt at a DC Comics cinematic universe is intended to be stronger competition for the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), with the latter being viewed as the better of the two superhero franchises. Gun and Safran have stated that the first official DCU film will be in 2025 with Superman: Legacy, which will not see Cavill in the title role. The casting for the new Superman has not been released.

Since The Flash is intended to make the transition between the DCEU and the DCU more smoothly, this reboot’s Batman may not be Battinson nor Batffleck, but someone else entirely. It is currently unclear who will play the role of Batman in the DCU’s future films. However, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav has stated that there are “not going to be four [different] Batmans” in the DC’s re-imagining.

Which Universe Does Robert Pattinson’s Batman Exist In?

Where does that leave Pattinson and director Matt Reeves’ Batman if he is not in the DCEU or the DCU? The reason why Pattinson was not featured in The Flash, and may not appear in future DCU films, is that he is not currently connected to any official superhero universes… yet.

The Batman was intended to be a DCEU project before Ben Affleck confirmed his exit as both the main actor and director by 2019. After the Cloverfield director took on the film, all connections to the DCEU were removed once Reeves realized that it would take away from the story he wanted to tell. The film, as well as future sequels and spin-off projects like The Penguin, takes place in an alternate Earth known in the comics as “Earth-2.” The existence of the multiverse in the DCEU and DCU, made possible by The Flash, is what allows Pattinson’s Batman to exist separately from other versions of the millionaire superhero.

Will Pattinson’s Batman Appear in Future DCU Films?

While Pattinson’s Batman will most likely not appear in the DCEU, with the final films of the universe being Blue Beetle and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, The Flash’s incorporation of the multiverse may allow Battinson to have a place in the DCU after all, especially with a confirmed The Batman sequel.

With the uncertainty of The Flash’s Ezra Miller appearing in future films, as well as the messy DC timeline that may become even more confusing with a new universe, the future of all DC Comics’ on-screen worlds is up in the air. However, The Flash shows audiences that all of these characters exist only a few possibilities, and a couple of universes, away. Which is not that far, right? If Nicholas Cage’s Superman that never was can appear in a film with Christopher Reeve’s Superman from the 1970s and ’80s, there is definitely room for Robert Pattinson to appear in future DC films.

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