Robert Pattinson’s Batman Has Big Emo Energy In The First ‘The Batman’ Trailer

Fans might have to wait over a year to see Robert Pattinson transform into the Dark Knight, but a new trailer offers viewers an idea of what to expect when The Batman heads to theaters on Oct. 1, 2021. On Saturday, Aug. 22, director Matt Reeves debuted a preview that shows how Pattinson's Batman will likely be a lot darker than his predecessors. In addition to introducing Jeffrey Wright’s James Gordon and Zoë Kravitz’s Catwoman, Robert Pattinson’s The Batman trailer shows the Dark Knight will be a lot darker and grittier than before.

The Batman, which was originally slated to be released on June 21, 2021 before it was pushed back to October of next year due to the pandemic, is set two years after the vigilante first takes up his superhero role. While introducing the trailer during DC's virtual FanDome event, Reeves emphasized that Pattinson's character isn't Batman as we know him yet.

"It’s about the early days of him being Batman and he’s very far from being perfect," Reeves said. "One of the things that are interesting is learning how to be Batman. It's a criminological experiment. He's trying to figure out what he can do to change this place. He's seeing he's not having any of the effect he wants to have. That's when the murders start to happen ... and it opens up a whole new world of corruption."

Although Christian Bale, Michael Keaton, and Ben Affleck's iterations of the caped crusader are all known for their grit and seriousness, the new trailer seems to tease Pattinson's Batman will be even darker and grittier. The preview shows the caped vigilante on the scene of a murder and confronting different criminals while Nirvana's "Something in the Way" plays in the background. During the trailer, fans also get to meet James Gordon and Catwoman, who are played by Jeffrey Wright and Zoë Kravitz and look markedly different than their predecessors.

Reeves said that while the movie won't show the character's original start to becoming Batman, it'll still end up showing his early days. In addition to sporting a suit that's meant to look homemade, Pattinson's Batman will still be working out how to fulfill his crime-fighting role.

"Without being an origin tale, it ends up touching on his origins," Reeves said. "It's a detective story, a mystery, it's got, of course, action, and it's incredibly personal for him. He's kind of a growing legend and [criminals] are afraid of him. He's not a symbol of hope yet. One of the things he has to deal with is how he's perceived ... What was exciting for me was not doing the origin [story] but to meet him in the middle and to see him make mistakes and grow and fail and be heroic in a way that felt very human and very flawed."

Unfortunately, fans have to wait until October to see the whole film, but judging by the preview, The Batman will be even darker than previous films — and well worth the wait.