Batman: John Ridley Miniseries to Star a Person of Color as the Caped Crusader

The previously announced Batman miniseries from 12 Years of Slave and The Other History of the DC Universe writer John Ridley will feature a person of color in the cape and cowl and not Bruce Wayne.

As revealed in a press release, the yet-to-be-titled miniseries will star “a version of the Caped Crusader different from what many fans know and existing alongside the current Batman run by James Tynion IV and Jorge Jimenez.” That last bit seems to suggest that this new Batman will work opposite Bruce’s Dark Knight to protect Gotham.

Ridley, who is working with Batman Universe and Doom Patrol artist Nick Derington on the four-part miniseries, elaborated on his take on Batman during DC FanDome’s Legacy of the Bat panel.

“I think it’s a pretty safe bet that if I’m writing Batman, it’s probably a little better than a 47% chance he’s going to be a person of color,” said Ridley during the panel.

Ridley also revealed that the miniseries will focus on longtime Batman ally and head of Wayne Enterprises Lucius Fox and his family.

“[Fox] has a family and this is a family that has secrets, has kept secrets from one another,” said Ridley during the Legacy of the Bat panel. “It’s a little bit different dynamic than the Batman that we’ve always seen.”

The key art for the miniseries, which was drawn by artist LADRÖNN, was also revealed during the panel. Check it out below:

The new project was first announced by Lee while talking to THR earlier this month about the state of DC Comics in the wake of mass layoffs at the comic book publisher. Lee didn’t go into any further detail about the mini-series or how it’ll play into what James Tynion IV is doing on the main Batman book, Tom King and Clay Mann are planning in their Batman/Catwoman maxi-series, and Geoff Johns and Jason Fabok are about to unleash in Three Jokers. But Lee did tease that Ridley’s series would bring some major status quo changes to the character.

Since DC Comics first began teasing a big continuity-shattering event called 5G last year, there have been many rumors about major changes coming to the Dark Knight. With 5G‘s emphasis on generations of heroes and superhero legacies, some believed 5G was set to introduce Bruce Wayne’s successor in the cape and cowl. Interestingly, current Batwing Luke Fox was rumored to be the character to succeed Bruce Wayne as the Dark Knight. The focus on Luke’s father, Lucius, in the new miniseries could mean that Luke is still set to don the cape and cowl, even if 5G itself is dead after the departure of former DC publisher Dan DiDio, the crossover event’s mastermind and biggest champion, earlier this year.

Was Ridley’s mini-series ever tied to 5G in the first place? We don’t know. It could also be a new direction for the Caped Crusader unrelated to what DiDio had planned.

We’ll find out for sure when the miniseries hits stands in January 2021.