The Batman may have the longest runtime to date for a film about the Dark Knight, but some audiences got the chance to see an even longer version.
According to the latest Heat Vision newsletter, some test audiences saw an early cut of Matt Reeves’ The Batman that ran four hours. That would make it the second-longest superhero film after Zack Snyder’s Justice League cut, which dropped last year on HBO Max. Of course, the theatrical version of the movie will be much shorter, as The Batman‘s official runtime is two hours, 55 minutes, making it the longest Batman movie after Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises clocked in at two hours, 44 minutes.
Superhero movies have been spending years extending their runtimes, and they’re not alone. Many blockbusters have inched closer to the three-hour mark, though Avengers: Endgame is still the only film in the genre to breach that barrier, coming in at three hours and one minute. The Batman will come close to challenging that, with a reported eight minutes of credits and the other two hours and 47 minutes devoted to the latest take on exploring the Dark Knight’s crusade in Gotham.
Of course, the film will have to do a lot, including introducing Reeves’ more grounded take on the hero. The director recently likened Robert Pattinson’s Batman to a more relatable James Bond, saying, “Batman is an amazing myth that has endured for over 80 years. And it’s because of that crazy mix. There’s a part of it that is just simply cool, right? He looks cool. He’s got a cool car. He’s got all the stuff. He’s like James Bond, I guess, in a certain way, right? But there’s also something very relatable to the pain that he’s gone through.”
Along with showcasing Batman’s early years, the movie will introduce new versions of Catwoman, the Riddler, and the Penguin, the latter of which will be getting his own HBO Max spinoff series. Reeves is also working on another show for the streaming service focused on GCPD, though rumors have suggested both Batman and the Joker will loom large on the series. With all that in the mix, it’s no wonder Reeves had a four-hour cut of the film he was keen to get in front of audiences.
The theatrical cut of The Batman is scheduled to debut March 4.
Source: Heat Vision @ The Hollywood Reporter
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