Robert Pattinson’s return as Batman is reportedly coming sooner than you think

When you think of the best actors to play Batman, it's incredible to be able to say that Robert Pattinson has already etched himself a place on that list (and it's pretty high, let's be honest). He played the role in Matt Reeves' 2022 film The Batman and very quickly put his own stamp on The Dark Knight, providing audiences with a thrilling performance as the young vigilante attempting to make a difference in the corrupt Gotham City.

The film was a roaring success, a huge win for DC and Warner Bros. at a time when the franchise wasn't producing many hits. Naturally, that success has guaranteed it two more movies which, perhaps most impressively of all, managed to survive DC Studios' culling of almost all DC projects to launch their own new shared universe under the new leadership at Warner Bros. Discovery.

We know Pattinson will return as the Caped Crusader within the next three years, but now a new report has revealed that comeback could come much sooner than expected.

Robert Pattinson rumored to appear in The Penguin as Batman

Robert Pattinson is set to don the cape and cowl again in Matt Reeves' much-anticipated sequel The Batman - Part II but it sounds like there is a chance he could appear on our screens sooner than that. Speaking on the most recent episode of The Hot Mic, insider Jeff Sneider claimed that Robert Pattinson will appear in Max's upcoming spinoff series The Penguin as The Dark Knight himself! (H/T: Comic Book Movie).

That's not entirely shocking as Pattinson has been rumored to appear in the series for some time now, but that was just speculation. This has added some weight to the rumors, because even though there hasn't been any official confirmation from anyone involved in the show yet, fans will no doubt be looking out to see if Batman makes his presence felt throughout the eight-episode run.

The Penguin stars Colin Farrell, who reprises his role as the titular character from The Batman. Oswald "Oz" Cobblepot had only just begun making a name for himself in that movie as one of Carmine Falcone's right-hand men, running The Iceberg Lounge in the heart of Gotham City's criminal empire. The series will see the character ascend to his more comic-accurate heights as he attempts to win the power struggle that Falcone left behind after his death at the hands of The Riddler.

From the show's first trailer, it's set to deal with a lot of the aftermath from The Riddler's attack in The Batman, as parts of the city will still be flooded. And with much of Gotham in ruin, that's where we should probably expect Cobblepot to swoop in and attempt to claim what he believes is his. It looks like a very violent war will ensue.

Taking that into account, it's not too surprising that there is a possibility of a Batman appearance. Gotham City is only so big and it's unlikely that amount of public crime would go down without The Dark Knight catching onto it at some point. And honestly, this would be a great way of building up the hero as the mysterious protector that he is. The idea of Batman looming over the show makes it that much more exciting because, just like in Gotham itself, he could drop in and save the day at any moment.

This is also a great way of building hype for the sequel. The Penguin is designed to bridge the gap between the two movies, and as it's a continuation of the story, it would make sense to remind viewers that Batman will be back in the future. It's been two years since we last saw Pattinson don the mask in The Batman and it will be another two years before we see him don it again in The Batman - Part II (the movie was moved to October 2026 from its initial 2025 release date), so this would be a pretty neat way of bridging the gap in that sense as well.

The upcoming series is expected to have influences of The Sopranos, making it rather different to its film predecessor. But if you've watched the trailer, you can still see Matt Reeves' influence, with his instantly recognizable Gotham City looking eerily beautiful in the sunlight, just as it did in the 2022 film (Reeves is an executive producer on the show, along with Dylan Clark and Farrell himself among others).

The Penguin is currently set for release on Max in September 2024.