Matt Reeves' The Batman Is Inspired By Jekyll & Hyde
Who is The Batman?
Key to any Batman story is the dichotomy between the Caped Crusader and Bruce Wayne, and how the two view the other. It's going to be central to Matt Reeves' upcoming Bat-movie too, and the director has revealed his inspiration behind looking at the two personalties.
Speaking on the Television Critics Association tour, Reeves was asked by IndieWire about his approach to Batman's identity, and whether he thinks the real person is Bruce Wayne, or if the real one is Batman, to which he responded:
"I think that it’s interesting, because one of the things that I’ve found interesting, just as we’re working on the story, is looking back at Jekyll and Hyde, and the idea of your shadow-self, and the idea of, we are all multiple things. It’s different aspects of who we are, and I think there are times when maybe the surface of Bruce is not really who he is, but that’s his disguise. There are times when Batman’s the disguise, but there are times when his true essence comes out, because by being veiled, a kind of instinctual side comes out that’s very pure.”
It's an interesting, if not altogether surprising, way of looking at the character, with the pair in a struggle for control. It's something that's been the basis for Batman stories before: it was among many inspirations of Tim Burton's Gothic take on the character, and the 1998 comic Batman: Two Faces was based on the novel directly. Continuing his answer, Reeves added:
"It’s not an easy question to answer, in that I think that we are all made up of so many different aspects of ourselves that make the whole. I don’t know if you could ever reduce anyone to one part of what they express. That’s what’s fun about his character, is that there’s a very bright light that shines on his shadow side. The idea of all of that is incredibly exciting. It’s part of what makes it fun for me to work on.”
The Batman is expected to start shooting early next year, and it sounds like Reeves' script is shaping up nicely. Now we just need confirmation on who'll actually be playing the Jekyll and Hyde figure.
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