Refreshingly for a modern superhero movie, 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:The Batman has no post-credit scene. It does, however, have a scene right at the end that, had this been part of the Marvel machine, likely have been used as a mid-credit scene to 🗹tease the next outing. While the Riddler is left to rot in his cell at Arkham, a prisoner speaks to him. But who is this prisoner, what does it mean, and will he be back in the next Batman movie?
We have some concrete answers,♌ but we don’t know for sure what they mean. Still, there are more than enough clues here for us to analyse and dissect exactly what the scene means.
Major spoilers follow for The Batman. But really, the title should have given that away.
Why is there no post-credit scene in The Batman?
While the MCU didn't invent post-credit scenes, the idea has become synonymous with the universe, with sequences often being used to tease either the current character's next appearance, or the next movie or television show in the continuity overall. It's a technique used so reliably that the MCU has begun to wink at it with jokes and Easter Eggs, and often having multiple scenes per credit sequence. Most recently Spider-Man: No Way Home caused some controversy because its post-credit scene was a trailer for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, a trailer that was publicly released shortly after.
This may be why The Batman doesn't have a post-credit sequence. While the DCEU has tried to copy the MCU, The Batman exists outside of this universe as its own thing, and therefore might have wanted to avoid leaning into superhero tropes. There's also the added pressure a post-credit scene brings. If you introduce a character in a post-credit sequence, you're basically telling the audience they're coming back in the sequel. This way, you keep the audience guessing.
All The Batman h🍷as is the brief flash of the URL , which appears during a key plot point anyway.
Is the prisoner at the end of The Batman really the Joker?
That depends. The character is called Unnamed Arkham Prisoner, and since no reference to his name or story is made in the movie, that's all we have to go on. However, Matt Reeves has that it’s the Joker. In a movie as intricately built as The Batman, relying on interviews from the director to help tell the story feels like it undercuts the very anti-superhero feel Reeves has created on screen.
Of course, in the film itself, there are some hints. The character tells Riddler to "smile," and the scene ends with the two sharing an increasingly twisted and maniacal laugh. He also says that "Gotham loves a comeback story," which may be a reference to how reviled Jared Leto's Joker was - although that could be a reach given that Phoenix has played Joker since, albeit away from the superhero feel of Leto's DCEU flick.
Even if this character is to star as Joker in The Batman 2, it's safe to say they're not the Joker yet. Joker is a legendary character in Batman lore, and if Riddler was in the cell next door to the Joker, you'd think someone would have mentioned that. On top of that, a major part of the movie is that all of the criminals and most of the justice system are all working together under Carmine Falcone. It's not the Joker's style to be involved in such an intricate network, and if he had previously tried to upend it, that probably would have come up somewhere in the runtime.
Who plays the prisoner at the end of The Batman?
Here's where things get complicated. The prisoner is played by Barry Keoghan, who first gained fame for his lead role in The Killing of a Sacred Deer. He's since appeared in The Green Knight, Dunkirk, and Chernobyl, as well as having previous experience in the superhero realm 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:through Druig in Eternals. Simply put, he has way too much pedigree to be brought in for Unnamed Arkham Prisoner, but he's not such a huge star (and we barely see his face) that you'd call it stunt casting. Had it been Joaquin Phoenix or Jared Leto, you're introducing weird timeline shenanigans that feel more like part of current superhero cinematic tropes, and had it been a superstar like Leo DiCaprio, you're once more basically telling the audience they're coming back in the sequel. Casting Keoghan keeps us on our toes.
He could be the Joker, but he also could have been brought in purely to keep us telling the story of The 🌠Batman in our head, imagining what Riddler and Unnamed Arkham Prisoner might be getting up to behind bars. Even after the credits roll, Riddler and Keoghan’s character stay in our minds.
Will The Batman 2 be about Joker?
I'm going to move away from the relatively objective analysis here and get into the more subjective realm. While yes, the prisoner is almost certainly supposed to feel like Joker, and Keoghan's casting suggests it's more than a bit-part, we have no idea right now what The Batman 2 will look like, or even if it will happen - Reeves has said he's developing it but there has been no official pick up by Warner Bros. yet. In his interview where he confirms the character is Joker, he goes on to say that it’s not supposed to set up a sequel, though it clearly demonstrates Reeves’ interest in the character.
Instead, I want to ask should The Batman 2 be about Joker. It pains me to say it, but I don't think it should. Keoghan could well prove to be inspired casting as the most grounded Joker yet, and there are (admittedly not entirely credible) rumours circulating that Anya Taylor-Joy is being touted for Harley Quinn. Take that with a pinch of salt as rumours 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:also suggest Sony is chasin🌄g he♔r for Black Cat, although since Keoghan,168澳洲幸运5开奖网: Zoe Kravitz, and Jeffrey Wright have all played for Team Marv𝔉el previously, she could end up landing b🍬oth - or both rumours could be false.
Harley Quinn is my favourite character of all time. Margot Robbie and Anya Taylor-Joy are two of my favourite female actors around today and I'd bash my fingers with hammers for the privilege of seeing them both in the role. If a third universe strand was created with Saoirse Ronan as Harley too I'd get a chainsaw out. But have we not seen enough Joker stories?
Not only is there Leto and Phoenix, the spectre of Heath Ledger still looms over Batman, and the Arkham games were built entirely around the Clown Prince. Zsasz was relegated to a sidekick in Birds of Prey. Calendar Man could be terrifying if done well, so could Professor Pyg. We're still owed a good Poison Ivy. Lady Shiva played by Jennifer Henwick is right there. Please, no more Joker. Sorry Barry, but please.