From Gotham to Gotham Central?
According to Deadline, HBO Max has given a series commitment a new DC Comics drama exploring the Gotham City Police Department and set in the Batman continuity established in Matt Reeves' upcoming film The Batman.
The untitled series will be from Reeves, Boardwalk Empire creator Terence Winter, The Batman producer Dylan Clark, and Warner Bros. Television. The article claims the new series will be written by Winter and "is set in the world Reeves is creating for The Batman feature and will build upon the film’s examination of the anatomy of corruption in Gotham City, launching a new Batman universe across multiple platforms. The series will extend the world established in the movie and further explore the myriad of complex characters of Gotham."
Reeves remarked, "This is an amazing opportunity, not only to expand the vision of the world I am creating in the film, but to explore it in the kind of depth and detail that only a longform format can afford — and getting to work with the incredibly talented Terence Winter, who has written so insightfully and powerfully about worlds of crime and corruption, is an absolute dream."
Kevin Reilly, chief content officer at HBO Max, president TNT, TBS, and TruTV, teased potential long-term plans for an integrated Batman universe. He stated, "Our collaboration with Warner Bros. and DC allows us to elaborate and grow fan connections across these powerful brands for years to come. This is Batman as most audiences have never seen before, and we know fans will want to spend more time in this new world inspired by the film."
The new series joins a number of DC Comics TV series for HBO Max, including the upcoming Green Lantern and Strange Adventures shows from Greg Berlanti and Justice League Dark from J.J. Abrams. Also, HBO Max currently shares Doom Patrol with DC Universe and is the streaming home for the CW’s Batwoman.
This will be the second TV series set around the GCPD, after the recent Fox series Gotham, which was set in the years prior to Bruce Wayne becoming Batman. At the moment, there's no indication that Robert Pattinson will appear in the upcoming series as Batman or Bruce Wayne, but Jeffrey Wright seems a natural possibility to appear as Commissioner James Gordon.
The Batman is currently scheduled to be released in theaters on October 1, 2021.