Robert Pattinson is officially the new Batman

The Batman has a new hero in the person of Robert Pattinson, Warner Bros has confirmed today.

Pattinson is replacing Ben Affleck as the Caped Crusader after Aflleck stints as Batman in two titles directed by Zack Snyder: 2016’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and 2017’s Justice League.

Pattinson’s first Batman film is titled, The Batman, to be directed by Matt Reeves is expected to hit the cinemas on 25 June 2021. Pre-production is expected to start this summer and no official date has been set for the filming. Originally scheduled to start shooting in 2017, The Batman will be the first solo Caped Crusader film to form part of the DC Extended Universe.

Pattinson beat other contenders to land the role. His past film credits include roles breakthrough performances in the Harry Potter and Twilight franchises. He spent some years steering clear of the mainstream and has worked with directors such as David Cronenberg, David Michôd, the Safdie brothers and James Gray. His recent collaboration with the French director Claire Denis, erotic sci-fi mystery High Life, won Pattinson considerable acclaim. He also stars in one of the best-reviewed films from this year’s Cannes festival: Robert Eggers’s The Lighthouse, an intense psychodrama set in 19th-century Maine.