A sequel to Matt Reeves’ The Batman is now confirmed to happen outside the DC Universe, and the movie’s official title was also announced, and it’s breaking a decades-old Batman sequel trend. The big screen has seen various live-action versions of Batman, some more successful than others, and while the DCU brings back Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck’s versions in The Flash, in a different universe Robert Pattinson played Bruce Wayne in the movie simply titled The Batman.

The Batman follows a younger Bruce Wayne in his second year of crime-fighting in Gotham City, and who alongside James Gordon (Jeffrey Wright) and the Gotham City Police Department is going after a mysterious serial killer known as The Riddler (Paul Dano). This leads Batman into Gotham’s criminal underworld, led by Carmine Falcone (John Turturro) and Oswald “Oz” Cobblepot (Colin Farrell), where he also meets Selina Kyle (Zoë Kravitz). The Batman was teased as the first entry in a new Batman trilogy, but news about the sequel were slow following the movie’s success, but it’s now confirmed to happen and has been given an official title: The Batman - Part II.

The Batman - Part II Is The First-Ever Numbered Batman Movie Sequel


The Batman - Part II marks a first in Batman’s film history as it’s the first sequel to be numbered. Batman’s first big screen adventure happened in 1943 as a 15-chapter theatrical serial, and it was simply titled Batman, and in 1949, a second serial was released titled Batman and Robin. Years later, in 1966, the now classic Batman TV series got a film adaptation with the same title and starring Adam West and Burt Ward. The Caped Crusader didn’t return to the big screen until 1989 with Tim Burton’s Batman, which got a sequel in 1992 titled Batman Returns. Though not a sequel to Batman Returns but still a continuation of Warner Bros’ Batman movie series, Joel Schumacher brought Batman Forever, followed by the sequel Batman & Robin.

The Caped Crusader got another chance in 2005 in Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins, the first entry in what would become his Dark Knight trilogy. Batman Begins was followed by The Dark Knight (widely regarded as one of the best superhero movies ever made) and The Dark Knight Rises, continuing the trend of giving more specific titles to Batman sequels instead of numbering them.

Why A Part II Title Makes Sense For The Batman's Sequel


The Batman - Part II’s title is a lot more significant than being the first numbered Batman movie sequel, as it immediately shows that it’s a more grounded sequel. "Part II" could be hinting at The Batman 2 being a more direct continuation of the events in the first movie, and it’s especially exciting given the introduction of Barry Keoghan’s Joker at the end. The Batman teased a team-up between the Joker and Paul Dano’s Riddler now that they're cell neighbors in Arkham Asylum, so The Batman - Part II could see this partnership blossoming. The Batman’s ending saw the title character aiding recovery efforts after Gotham was almost destroyed and vowing to inspire hope in the city, but it surely won’t be able to shake off all the chaos he and Selina went through. Although Warner Bros. could change The Batman - Part II’s title at some point, for now it’s one that makes sense and makes the sequel a lot more exciting.