The Oscar-winning screenwriter John Ridley is working on a new graphic novel series revolving around the head of Wayne Enterprises, Lucius Fox, and his family.
- Aug 24, 2020
AceShowbiz - Oscar winner John Ridley is creating a four series comic book that will introduce a black Batman.
The "12 Years a Slave" screenwriter and producer let the news slip during a virtual chat with DC Comics Chief Creative Officer Jim Lee during the marathon DC FanDome on Saturday (22Aug20), revealing the series will launch in January (21).
"I think it's a pretty safe bet that if I'm writing Batman, it's probably a little better than a 47 per cent chance he's going to be a person of colour," said Ridley.
Ridley's limited Batman series will focus on the family of Lucius Fox, the head of Batman Bruce Wayne's company, Wayne Enterprises.
"He has a family and this is a family that has secrets... from one another," Ridley added. "It's a little bit different dynamic than the Batman that we've always seen."
Lucius Fox, one of the most prominent black characters in Batman comics, was portrayed by Morgan Freeman in director Christopher Nolan's "Dark Knight" films. In the comic books, his son, Lucas, is the vigilante Batwing.
Meanwhile, Jeffrey Wright appeared as the first Commissioner James Gordon of colour in "The Batman" trailer, which closed the DC FanDome event.
Promoting his new movie, which he confessed is only 30 per cent complete due to the coronavirus shutdown, filmmaker Matt Reeves revealed the upcoming HBO Max Batman series he is working on with"Boardwalk Empire" creator Terence Winter will take place a year before his new "The Batman" film, starring Robert Pattinson, as a "masked vigilante... starts to unsettle the city."
"The story is actually a battle for his soul," Reeves explained.
