What the New Batmobile Tells Us About Robert Pattinson's Batman
We can always count on the various iterations of Batmen to deliver in a few key ways: They always wear black. They always talk in a grumbly voice. And the Batmobiles they drive are always pretty representative of the Batmen who drove them.
On Wednesday, Matt Reeves shared the first look at the new Batmobile from his upcoming Batman movie. So, what can we decipher about Robert Pattinson's Batman based on what we see of his new ride, which looks like a Dodge Charger from the front and a Ford GT with it’s rear bumper removed from the back? Let’s take a look at the previous Batmobiles for context.
The one from the original TV series, based on the Lincoln Futura, was a bit silly, but married nicely with the Bap! Pow! Zoom! campiness of Adam West’s take on the cape crusader. The car looks like it was made for a cartoon.
The Batmobile from Tim Burton’s Batman (1989) had the cock-car proportions of a wealthy person’s ride from the '30s. It was overcompensating. Makes sense because Michael Keaton’s Bruce Wayne was not only the most old-money and traditional of all of the Batmans on the big screen (remember that long ass table he busted out for dinner at his place with Vicki Vale?) he was one of the shortest at a respectable but not towering 5’ 9”.
Director Joel Schumacher’s Batman Forever Batmobile had exposed ribs, as if it were designed by someone who made strappy latex S&M gear. It was the kinky Batmobile. Remember that Batman Forever is the movie that introduced NIPPLES TO BATMAN’S CHEST. Yes, children, Batman has NIPPLES.
Then, there is the Tumbler Batmobile, introduced in Christopher Nolan’s trilogy—a tank-like car that could have only been developed by someone with big military industrial complex moolah and connections, of which Christian Bale’s Bruce Wayne had plenty. This is the Batman that justified the Patriot Act, ok? While Ben Affleck's most recent Batmobile also had big military vibes, the car he drove as Bruce Wayne was a gull-winged midlife crisis Mobile, the automotive equivalent of a back tattoo.
So what does this new Batmobile say about the Robert Pattinson Batman? Well, for as aggressive and Death Race meets Mad Max as it is, it’s not ridiculously over the top. And, for a Batman that's supposed to go back to his detective roots, it's certainly more subtle than Nolan's tank. It’s less about impressing people with his wealth, or threatening villains with missiles. It’s a little more chill. A little more analog and '70s. This Batman might actually be kind of, dare we say, fun and cool? You could see this Batman pulling up to a red light, giving you a “What’s Up” kind of nod, and then speeding off into the night. This Batman wants to do donuts in the parking lot of an In N Out. This Batman would sell you weed in that same In N Out parking lot.
Batman's new ride is good. And, more importantly, it's a promising suggestion that Pattinson's Batman is going to be pretty cool. Or at the very least won't be a sad Batffleck.
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