The Batman 2: Jeffrey Wright Excited by the Direction of Matt Reeves’ Script

Next spring Matt Reeves’ long-anticipated The Batman Part II is expected to finally go in front of cameras at Warner Brothers’ Leavesden studios in London. When that happens it will mark nearly four years to the day since Reeves’ previous DC crime epic opened in cinemas in March 2022. Both this time gap and fans’ enthusiastic embrace of the first installment has made excitement for the sequel palpable. And when we caught up with actor Jeffrey Wright ahead of his collaboration with Spike Lee and Denzel Washington in this weekend’s Highest 2 Lowest, the man behind the Jim Gordon mustache seemed pretty keen to be returning to Gotham as well.

“I haven’t read it yet, no,” Wright says of the much rumored about The Batman Part II screenplay. “But I’ve heard some things.”

Reeves reportedly turned in the completed draft for The Batman sequel, which he co-wrote with Mattson Tomlin, in June of this year. Since then DC Studios co-head James Gunn has teasingly said of the script: “It’s great.” Furthermore, the larger Warner Bros. Discovery studio apparatus seems likewise happy with the treatment since WB recently signaled that it’s full-steam ahead for production to begin in early 2026 and onward to a October 2027 release date.

While Wright hasn’t read the script yet, he seems pleased with what he knows.

“I’m liking what I’m hearing,” says the actor. “And I have huge respect for Matt’s Gotham-building skills. So I’m excited to jump in there and read what he has, which I’m sure will be rich and satisfying to play, and ideally for audiences to take in as well.”

It’s cryptic but likely tantalizing for many fans who have previously praised Wright’s chemistry with Robert Pattinson in 2022’s The Batman as the best onscreen iteration of the Dark Knight and his partner in law enforcement. While there have been other great Gordons, Reeves’ focus on the detective work and crime procedural aspect of the Batman mythos allowed a lot more breathing room for Gordon and his eccentric ally in a mask to play off one another. To put it another way, there has been no other pairing where Batman and Gordon act like a couple of David Fincher gumshoes and slink around a deserted parking garage at night, only to discover that when their mysterious serial killer says they should plan to use “a thumb drive,” he means literally a hard drive that can only be accessed by way of a severed thumb.

“This guy’s hilarious,” Wright’s Gordon simultaneously grumbles and delivers with severe understatement.

How that dynamic might be deepened or enriched in The Batman Part II remains to be seen, but here is to hoping it gives the actor and Pattinson some more budding bromance moments.

The Batman Part II opens on Oct. 1, 2027. Also stay tuned to Den of Geek for more of our conversation with Wright about Spike Lee, Denzel Washington, and what he feels is his most underrated film…