Matt Reeves’ The Batman is set to have multiple spin-offs, including an exciting Arkham Asylum TV show project. Compared to the other Caped Crusader movies, The Batman was a much darker tale and did a lot more in terms of world-building. The movie’s almost three-hour runtime is filled with showing off the rich Gotham locations, such as The Iceberg Lounge, and detailing the city’s politics. While all of this detail elevates the superhero movie, there’s so much backstory that can’t possibly fit into The Batman: Part II.
That’s why, along with the sequel, The Batman is getting not one but two spinoff series. Colin Farrell is returning in The Penguin, a spin-off based on the gangster villain, and the second spinoff series is Arkham Asylum (which will be based around Arkham State Hospital as it’s called in the 2022 movie). Arkham Asylum is the institution where most of Batman’s enemies are locked up and can be seen in most of the movies, and it’s the main location in the hugely influential video game, Batman: Arkham Asylum. But the upcoming HBO series is by far the most unique-sounding depiction of the hospital.
Arkham Asylum TV Show Latest News
The Batman writer and director Matt Reeves is heavily involved in the project, but as he’s also busy with the Penguin spin-off series, as well as The Batman: Part II, he won’t be the showrunner. Instead, it has been revealed that Arkham Asylum’s showrunner is Antonio Campos. Campos hasn’t worked on any DC project before, but he is a well-established filmmaker, having written several thrillers and directed the Tom Holland-starring The Devil All the Time. Campos has also directed an episode of the extremely violent Netflix series, The Punisher, which could mean that Arkham Asylum could be a more R-rated outing than The Batman.
While development is underway on Arkham Asylum, Penguin is more along in the development stages, and, as all the attention is on the Farrell-led show, details are sparse on Arkham Asylum. However, Matt Reeves has shed some light on the series. A third The Batman spinoff was in the works, which was titled Gotham PD and would have followed Gotham’s finest in The Batman world. But Reeves’ revealed that Gotham PD and Arkham are the same project, stating “The GCPD thing, that story has kinda evolved,” which means that the police department will have a large role in the series too.
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The Batman’s Arkham Asylum TV Spin-Off Confirmed
With a showrunner firmly in place and strong ideas surrounding the show’s themes and tone, Arkham Asylum has been confirmed ever since March 2023 (via CBR). Campos will not only serve as the series showrunner, but he’ll also direct the show too (via Variety), though it isn’t clear if he’ll direct every episode. The series will be exclusive to HBO, presumably released in an episodic format. Although it isn’t clear how many episodes the series will be, it’ll likely be eight episodes based on the fact that the Penguin spin-off will be eight episodes, and that Peacemaker, another spin-off series based on a DC movie, was eight episodes too.
Arkham Asylum TV Show Release Date
Although Arkham Asylum is confirmed, that doesn’t mean it’ll be released anytime soon. It doesn’t have a confirmed release date, and, as Penguin is currently the priority of the two series, it could even be a couple of years before Arkham Asylum sees the light of day. Penguin doesn’t even have a release date yet, but principal photography began at the beginning of 2023 (via Slash Film). Between the production, post-production, and marketing of the series, Penguin will realistically premiere in early 2024. But as The Batman: Part II has an October 2025 release date, Arkham Asylum should be released before then, as it’ll likely tie into the sequel.
Arkham Asylum TV Show Cast
A series based in and around Arkham Asylum opens up tons of possibilities of villains in Batman’s Rogues Gallery showing up. However, other than the Riddler (Paul Dano) and Joker (Barry Keoghan), it isn’t clear how many villains are in Arkham Asylum during The Batman. Reeves has actually discussed the possibility of Keoghan reprising his role as the Joker for the series (via IGN), and Dano could do the same. As the series will heavily feature Gotham PD, there’s a chance that Jeffrey Wright and Colin Farrell could reprise his role as James Gordon and Cobblepot too.
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Although The World’s Greatest Detective would ordinarily be saved for a big-screen outing, that might not be the case when it comes to Reeves’ Batman universe. It has been rumored that Pattinson’s Batman might be in Penguin, and if that’s the case, it’s possible that the Caped Crusader could show up in Arkham Asylum too. Based on The Batman deleted scene where he speaks with the Joker, it’s already clear that Batman frequents Arkham Asylum in this universe, even to seek advice from those he locked up in there. This could definitely happen given Reeves’ hint of the Clown Prince of Crime appearing.
Arkham Asylum TV Show Story Details & How It Connects To The Batman
With Arkham Asylum being in such early development stages and not having a release date yet, not many story details have been revealed. However, Reeves has let slip what the tone of the show will be like, and it’s totally unlike any other superhero release. The director explained that the series will feel like a horror movie in a haunted house, which is exactly how a show based on Arkham Asylum should feel. The filmmaker stated, “it’s like a horror movie or a haunted house that is Arkham. The idea, again the way that Gotham is a character in the movie, I really want Arkham to exist as a character.”
Regardless of whether the Riddler and Joker return, it’s all but certain that many familiar names and faces from Batman’s Rogues Gallery will appear, and it’ll be fascinating to see which actors will play them, as they’ll undoubtedly have roles in The Batman’s sequels too. However, The Batman universe does risk repeating a Spider-Man mistake, as two spinoffs are primarily based on the Dark Knight’s villains, and that hasn’t exactly worked well for the Sony Spider-Man Universe, which includes Venom and Morbius. Nevertheless, Arkham Asylum has huge potential to expand the universe in a refreshing, thrilling, and horrifying way.
