Robert Pattinson Replaced By Bat-Mite In DC's The Batman Parody Poster
DC parodies The Batman by replacing Robert Pattinson with Bat-Mite in a new poster for April Fools' Day. There have been various cinematic takes on the iconic DC character over the years, such as Tim Burton and Michael Keaton's, Christopher Nolan and Christian Bale's, or even Will Arnett's from The LEGO Batman Movie. With the newest iteration of the Caped Crusader, director Matt Reeves and Pattinson provided a decidedly darker take on the character with an exceptionally brooding Bruce Wayne and an inventive take on Gotham City's mythology.
With a script by Reeves and Peter Craig, The Batman's main focus is the psychological game of cat-and-mouse between the Dark Knight and an enigmatic serial killer known as the Riddler (Paul Dano). Supporting characters include Zoë Kravitz as Selina Kyle/Catwoman, Jeffrey Wright as Lieutenant Gordon, John Turturro as Carmine Falcone, Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth, and Colin Farrell as Oswald Cobblepot/Penguin. The Batman was released in theaters on March 4 and quickly became the highest-grossing movie of 2022 so far.
With The Batman still showing in theaters on April Fools' Day, DC is pulling out all the stops for its promotional campaign. In a parody poster shared by the official DC Comics Twitter account, Bat-Mite has hilariously taken the place of Pattinson, recognizing that "Nobody asked for this. Literally no one," though James Gunn chimed in with the reply, "I did." Check out the poster below:
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First appearing in Detective Comics #267 in 1959, Bat-Mite is depicted as a small, child-like man similar to the Superman villain Mister Mxyzptlk. Instead, the imp idolizes Batman and dresses up in an oversized costume to accompany him on various adventures, much to the dismay of the real Dark Knight. Bat-Mite also possesses magical powers granted to him by the Fifth dimension. Tonally, the character is the complete opposite of what Reeves and Pattinson were going for in The Batman, which is what makes the poster's juxtaposition that much funnier.
Gunn's response is a reference to a line from Peacemaker in which John Economos (Steve Agee) casually mentions Bat-Mite as a “two-foot-tall interdimensional imp who stans Batman.” Afterward, Gunn confirmed Bat-Mite is DCEU canon. Whether or not this has actual ramifications in the extended universe remains to be seen. The Batman parody poster was nothing more than a lighthearted April Fools' joke by DC, but if they ever get serious about a Bat-Mite movie, Gunn should get first dibs on the project.
Source: DC/Twitter, James Gunn/Twitter