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The CW's Arrowverse Has No Plans For Batman To Appear
Despite Batwoman coming to the Arrowverse, there are still no plans for Batman to ever appear. Going into the 2018-2019 TV season, the Arrowverse has big plans. There will be four Arrowverse shows on the CW's schedule and another, concerning Batwoman, is in development. While the Legends won't be part of this year's annual crossover event, the upcoming Arrowverse crossover will introduce Batwoman and her home turf of Gotham City to audiences.
If Batwoman's introduction isn't a big enough reason, the existence of Gotham would seem to require Batman. Yet, The CW and Arrowverse disagrees. While Bruce Wayne exists somewhere in the collective world of Arrow, The Flash, and Supergirl, he won't be making an appearance... at least not yet.
EW reports that The CW president Mark Pedowitz confirmed a Batman-less Arrowverse during the summer TCA 2018 press tour. Pedowitz explained that his network is confident in a Batwoman series and that it'll take place in Gotham. Batman won't appear, though, and there's no chance of a Batman spinoff in the future. Pedowitz elaborated, saying:
"There’s no discussion about a [Batman] series. Batman already exists in the Arrowverse because last season Oliver Queen mentioned his name at one point. And Batwoman, if the series goes forward, lives in Gotham. There’s no plan at this time to have Batman appear."
The news isn't all that surprising. As alluded to by Pedowitz, there have been multiple references to Batman over the years and throughout the various Arrowverse shows. Oliver Queen name-dropping Bruce Wayne in Arrow season 6 was the most notable example. But there have been subtle mentions of "dark knights" and shadowy vigilantes working in the dark for a long time now. Yet, with these metric ton of Batman hints, the universe has never real come close to introducing the caped crusader.
Batwoman entering the scene for the Arrowverse crossover (and, hopefully, beyond) is a big step. If the Batwoman series does become a reality, it would considerably open up the Arrowverse. This is especially true with the information that Batwoman, just like the comics, will live and operate in Gotham. Batman might be off-limits, but there's a very real chance that the villains that Arrow hasn't used would be up for grabs in Batwoman.
It does seem slightly bizarre for so much Bat-related material to come to the Arrowverse without the man himself, yet it could work. Supergirl was able to go an entire season without properly introducing the Man of Steel. Even when Superman was cast on Supergirl, he only appeared in four episodes during season 2. Of course, like Supergirl and Superman, there's always a chance that Batman could appear down the line. Once Batwoman is established, Batman could make an appearance. For the moment, though, it's probably for the best that Batman (continues) to sit out of the Arrowverse.
