Batman Has At Least Two Animated Projects Coming This Year

Thanks to the Annecy Animation Festival in France, trailers are now out for both Batman: Caped Crusader Season Two and Batman: Knightfall Trilogy (Part One). It’s going to be a busy time for the Dark Knight in 2026, zipping between two alternate universes, and neither will make it easy for him.

Caped Crusader Season Two continues from where the original left off 10,000 years ago (is it too much to ask to get the same kind of production schedule that Invincible enjoys, Amazon?) Despite the best efforts of an unhinged rich man in a bat suit, crime is up in Gotham. It’s due to the influence of the Riddler and his gang. Co-creator Bruce Timm said this world would have very different takes on the villains, and I suppose so. Riddler and Joker both appear in the below trailer but they have swapped personalities: Riddler is loud and forceful, while Joker is quiet and manipulative on an emotional level.

On to Batman: Knightfall. It’s three animated direct-to-video movies covering the entire comic book saga of the same name. The roided-out Bane is new to Gotham, but makes an immediate impression by hatching the ultimate scheme to take Batman out. The first part is scheduled to be released later this year, but it’s already done…the completed film was screened at Annecy yesterday.

The movie will star the voices of Anson Mount (Star Trek: Strange New Worlds) as Batman/Bruce Wayne, Michael Mando (Spider-Man: Brand New Day) as Bane, and Pablo Schreiber (Halo) as Jean-Paul Valley/Azrael, the guy who will eventually have to suit up after Wayne is incapacitated. It’s expected later this year, and it hasn’t been rated but all three are aiming for an R.