After recently revealing that his version of the dark knight was inspired by Kurt Cobain, The Batman director Matt Reeves elaborated on the similarities between the vigilante and late Nirvana frontman, pointing out that they're both addicts.
“Early on, when I was writing, I started listening to Nirvana, and there was something about [Nevermind song] ‘Something in the Way,’ which is in the first trailer, which is part of the voice of that character,” Reeves explained in an interview with Esquire. “When I considered, ‘How do you do Bruce Wayne in a way that hasn’t been seen before?’ I started thinking, ‘What if some tragedy happened [ie: Wayne sees his parents murdered] and this guy becomes so reclusive, we don’t know what he’s doing? Is this guy some kind of wayward, reckless, drug addict?’ And the truth is that he is a kind of drug addict. His drug is his addiction to this drive for revenge. He’s like a Batman Kurt Cobain.”
He also revealed that he drew inspiration from classic 1970s films like The French Connection, Chinatown and Taxi Driver, as well as the Batman: Year One comics.
Reeves shocked the internet when he cast Robert Pattinson as Batman, but he knew the Twilight star was perfect for the part after seeing his performance in Good Time. “Of course, the idea [to fit with the Year One story] was to make him a younger actor,” he said. “And in the process of writing the movie, I watched [the fantastic 2017 Safdie brothers film] Good Time, and I thought, ‘Okay, he’s got an inner kind of rage that connects with this character and a dangerousness, and I can feel this desperation.’ And I became dead-set on it being Rob. ”
The Batman is set to hit theaters on March 4. Watch the trailer above.