8 Movies We Didn’t Know Were Origin Stories Going In

6. The Batman

Spiderman No Way Home Poster
Warner Bros. Pictures

To state the obvious, the one caveat here is that Matt Reeves' The Batman has not actually been released yet.

Clearly next year's The Batman will be an origin tale for Robert Pattinson's titular Dark Knight, but it's recently been revealed that this film will also be a bona fide origin story for Zoe Kravitz's Catwoman.

During an interview with Empire, Kravitz explained how the March 2022 release will serve as the origin for her Selina Kyle as she ascends to taking on the Catwoman moniker.

As the Big Little Lies star detailed:

"This is an origin story for Selina. So, it's the beginning of her figuring out who she is, beyond just someone trying to survive. I think there's a lot of space to grow and I think we are watching her become what I'm sure will be the femme fatale."

For those pondering whether The Batman will introduce a Selina who is already comfortable in her Catwoman skin, Kravitz's comments clarify that we will instead by getting a Kyle who is just finding her feet amongst the heroes and villains of Gotham City.

Whether Paul Dano's Riddler gets a full origin story in the film remains to be seen, although we do know that Colin Farrell's Oswald Cobblepott will be an established rogue looking to solidify his grip on Gotham. Similar to how Cobblepott will be starring in a spin-off TV series, it's believed that Zoe Kravitz's Catwoman will be another who'll be returning in future The Batman-related projects.

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Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.