Could a Black Catwoman be the right move for the DC film universe?

If Catwoman is going to be in Matt Reeves’ The Batman, could the character be played by an African-American actress?

Word is the Catwoman is starring in Matt Reeves’ The Batman and, Already, there are rumors of who could be playing the role. Most of these are fancast pitches or desires from stars who wish to play the Gotham femme fatale’. One of these includes rapper Nicki Minaj. Now, I am not here to deny Nicki Minaj the role and consider her unworthy.

What one cannot help but notice is other recent castings of Catwoman. Now, we have the new animated TV series DC Super Hero Girls, which is an actual television series unlike the original web episodes. In this new series, we have Catwoman, voiced by the queen herself – Cree Summer. On top of that, this Catwoman is also depicted as black. And coming later this year to DC Universe is the new Harley Quinn animated series. The show will also include Catwoman, who’s voice is that of Sanaa Lathan. Two Black women voicing Catwoman. What are the odds?

Now, one can easily dismiss these as simply just voice actress roles. After all, Bart Simpson, believe it or not, is not voiced by a man. Staying within the realms of DC, a British actor voiced the Arabic Ra’s al-Ghul, and a black man has voiced Vandal Savage. And it’s pretty clear Vandal Savage is white. Hence, these two Black women playing Catwoman means nothing; they just have the right voice. There’s no doubt that’s how they landed those roles. Nonetheless, it does feel as if things are almost falling into place. Disney just released their remake of The Lion King, which features a predominantly Black voice cast. In addition, upcoming The Little Mermaid remake will feature a young, Black actress in the lead role. If anything, the time is now.

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Why Catwoman though, you ask? First, we have to discuss the demand for more inclusion and diversity within pop culture. Many will scream out just make your own character or find another diverse character that already exists. The problem here lies that a brand new character is not as guaranteed to do adequately. The same goes for an already developed character that is not as well-known. For example, Vixen versus Catwoman – does your mom know who Vixen is? The answer is probably, no. The studios know this, as this helps plant more butts into theater seats.

Another reason is that this scenario has some leverage. Remember Eartha Kitt from the Adam West Batman television series of the sixties? Eartha was most likely not a welcome addition during the sixties. But over time, people have come to love and embrace Eartha Kitt’s Catwoman, for she came off as more dangerous than Julie Newmar’s. Batman: Hush even has a small homage to her in the animated feature.

Then we have Halle Berry in the 2005’s Catwoman. Yes, it’s not a good film, at all. This was hardly Halle Berry’s fault though; after all, she is an Academy Award-winning actress. With the history of that film’s production, its script and direction, a Black or White Catwoman from anyone couldn’t save that mess of a film. With this history, making Catwoman black is not as hard as say casting a Black man for Superman.

LONDON – AUGUST 2: Actresses Sharon Stone and Halle Berry pose at the press junket for “Catwoman”, ahead of Tuesday’s UK Premiere, at The Dorchester Hotel, on August 2, 2004 in London. (Photo by Steve Finn/Getty Images) /

However, there exists some pushback to such an attempt, and not just by comic book purists and nerds. Imagine a sexy, urban-based criminal who steals, seduces men and has no problem with fighting the authorities. “You want to give that role to a black woman,” they will cry out. Hence, the moral crusaders will scream racism and instead maybe recommend someone who does not fit into any racial stereotype. There are ways around this, though. Catwoman has many interpretations, origins and backgrounds.

Tim Burton made her a secretary, Bruce Timm made her an environmentalist of high society and, at one point in the Golden Age, she owned and operated her own pet store. What is interesting is these first two are not comic accurate, at all. Yet many fans still accept and love them. Do not worry. We do not have to go the dominatrix/prostitute route of the lower east-end and so forth. This character has incredible range, and it’s because of this lack of a definite origin that casting her with a Black actress can totally work.

Next. The Batman: Esposito and Foxx on the shortlist for role. dark

What do you think? Is now the time to cast Catwoman as a Black woman? Let us know in the comments below.

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