According to an interview with Empire Magazine, Raimi revealed that he’s “always loved Batman” and told the magazine that he wants to do a Batman film. Specifically, Raimi mentioned that he’d “come running” if he ever “saw the Batsignal up in the air.” The OG Spider-Man director also added The Shadow to a list of characters that he’d like to do a movie on.
Sam Raimi’s penchant for dark and visually impressive movies would make him a perfect fit for a Batman film. Unfortunately, we don’t think that Raimi will get a chance to fulfill his dreams anytime soon. Matt Reeves effectively has cart blanche with the Batman franchise right now following the success of The Batman, with spin-offs like The Penguin for HBO Max already confirmed and a potential series featuring the Arkham Asylum. If you’re looking to check out what a Batman film directed by Raimi could look like, you’ll want to check out 1990’s Darkman. The classic superhero film starred a fresh-faced Liam Neeson as a brilliant scientist who invents a technology that lets him change his identity for 99 minutes. However, after his laboratory blows up, Neeson’s character is permanently scarred by the unfortunate accident, leaving him mentally unstable and consumed by vengeance. If this all sounds very familiar to you, it’s because Raimi developed the film after he couldn’t secure the rights to Batman and The Shadow. Matt Reeves is probably going to go back to direct the expected The Batman sequel, but just in case Warner Bros. is listening, consider us huge fans of a Raimi-directed Batman film. With all the multiverse stuff going on right now, Raimi’s Batman film could coexist with Matt Reeves’ own dark and gritty take. It’s not like Warner Bros. isn’t already set to do this with next year’s The Flash (yes, it’s been delayed) seeing both Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck reprise their former roles in the upcoming DCEU feature film. Speaking of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, the Benedict Cumberbatch-led multiversal adventure is hitting theaters on May 6. You can check out the film’s latest trailer at Super Bowl LVI alongside a more extensive look at Moon Knight, which will premiere on Disney+ on March 30.
