With shooting on The Batman Part 2 having been at a standstill for several weeks, DC Studios has found a way to get production rolling again. And that emergency exit goes by the name of Steven Soderbergh. The director of Traffic and the Ocean's Eleven trilogy will lend Matt Reeves a hand for the final weeks of the shoot, after the latter had to step away from set to deal with a family matter. That said, we've learned that the filmmaker isn't leaving the project, since he'll continue to oversee his film and make sure the new footage honours his vision. It's a fairly rare situation in Hollywood: an Oscar-winning director agreeing to help out a colleague in order to wrap a blockbuster, with no attempt to make the film his own. According to DC Studios, Steven Soderbergh offered his help of his own accord, out of admiration for Matt Reeves' work on the first The Batman. The two men will work closely with the cast and the technical crews to shoot the remaining sequences and slot them in with the footage already in the can.
For the nosy among us — and we count ourselves in — the exact nature of this family drama remains unknown to this day. Matt Reeves has given no details about the personal situation that forced him to step away from the shoot temporarily, and neither Warner Bros. nor DC Studios has said anything further on the matter. The director simply referred to a difficult period, without wishing to reveal its nature. Steven Soderbergh has therefore come to lend a hand so that production can carry on in keeping with that vision. He has in fact said he was impressed by the precision and consistency of Matt Reeves' work. His role will be to allow him to finish the film in the best possible conditions, not to rework its artistic direction or start over from scratch. Matt Reeves himself was keen to set the record straight on social media, after an announcement that might have suggested a change of director. He confirmed that he isn't leaving The Batman Part 2, and even thanked Steven Soderbergh for coming to his aid during this difficult time.
A faint whiff of Justice League
The situation inevitably brings Justice League to mind, even if the circumstances and the studio's stated intentions are different. A quick reminder: back in 2016, Zack Snyder left the production after the suicide of his 20-year-old daughter, Autumn Snyder. The director chose to step away to cope with that family tragedy. Warner Bros. handed the remaining work to Joss Whedon, known for the first two Avengers films, who reworked part of the film and oversaw substantial additional scenes. The result profoundly altered the tone and direction of the feature, to the point that fans spent years demanding the release of Zack Snyder's original cut. In 2021, Zack Snyder's Justice League finally landed on HBO Max, offering a very different version from the one that hit cinemas.
The French release date for The Batman Part 2 remains set for 16 February 2028, precisely because Steven Soderbergh's arrival is there to get the shoot moving again and keep that schedule on track.
