With Brad Pitt rumored to be up for a role in The Batman 2, speculation is running wild as to what villain he might play. The original reporting suggested the movie would feature “two middle-aged male roles, said to be antagonists.” It further added that Pitt had been approached about one of the two roles.
While just a rumor, this report is interesting giving earlier reports regarding Scarlett Johansson playing a villain in the movie. This suggest an affiliation with at least one of the newly reported male antagonists. While Batman has one of the most extensive rogues’ galleries in all of comics, there is still a limited number of such links. This limits the number of potential roles for Brad Pitt, but also offers some interesting possibilities.
Two-Face
(Image Source: DC / Chris Samnee)
Once upon a time, “Handsome” Harvey Dent was the District Attorney of Gotham City, a friend of Bruce Wayne, and an ally of the Dark Knight. However, an acid attack warped his mind as much as his face. As the crime boss Two-Face, Harvey tried to bring order to the underworld of Gotham City. However, his ideas of order were balanced by the chaos of a coin-flip.
Two-Face has previously been played in the movies by Tommy Lee Jones and Aaron Eckhart. However, neither of their characters really reflected the whole of Harvey Dent in the comics. A fuller portrayal of the villain could fit the criteria outlined by Matt Reeves when he said The Batman 2 villains had “never really been done in a movie before.”
Additionally, with Reeves having previously adapted aspects of the classic Long Halloween storyline, it would make sense to bring Two-Face into The Batman 2. The inclusion of Scarlett Johansson offers another intriguing angle. It’s possible she might play Gilda Dent/Holiday opposite Pitt’s Harvey Dent/Two-Face.
Mr. Freeze
(Image Source: DC / Chris Skinner / Sideshow Collectibles)
Originally, Mr. Freeze was introduced as a simple bank robber, who could not survive outside sub-zero temperatures. He was revamped for Batman: The Animated Series as a scientist with a tragic past and a lost love. This new origin was later adopted as comics canon, and brought into 1997’s Batman and Robin movie.
An nuanced villain like Dr. Victor Fries is the sort of role that Brad Pitt could explore and truly do justice. He would also act as a dark mirror to Bruce Wayne, who is similarly motivated by the loss of his family in The Batman 2. Another interesting twist might be Scarlett Johansson playing a revived Nora Fries, who turns to crime as Mrs. Freeze alongside her husband, as in one comic book storyline.
Professor Hugo Strange
(Image Source: DC / Brian Bolland)
In an interview with Variety, Collin Farrell confirmed that The Batman 2 would be “an investigation into the psychology of the characters of Bruce Wayne and Batman.” With that in mind, the character of Professor Hugo Strange would be an ideal villain for the film. While not the most well known of villains, he is one of Batman’s oldest enemies, first appearing in 1940.
While some versions of Hugo Strange are mad scientists who create monsters, most have been psychiatrists who sought to dominate Bruce Wayne psychologically. The character has never been featured in a film, but was the chief villain of the video game Batman: Arkham City. An intimidating figure mentally and physically, the bad doctor would be an ideal role for Brad Pitt.
Mad Hatter
(Image Source: DC / Tim Sale)
Continuing with the theme of Batman’s psychological enemies, the Mad Hatter offers an interesting dark horse candidate for a Brad Pitt role. Originally, Jervis Tetch was introduced as as a thief with a penchant for Lewis Carroll. Later stories retconned him as a scientist, who used his special hats to manipulate the minds and memories of other people.
Usually Tetch is portrayed as an unattractive and anti-social figure. Putting Brad Pitt in such a role would seem to be casting against type. On the other hand, Collin Farrell underwent a similar transformation to portray The Penguin in the first The Batman film. Given Pitt’s reputation as a “character actor in a leading man’s body,” playing the Mad Hatter would give him another chance to prove he’s more than a pretty face.
Kite Man
(Photo Credit: DC Studios/Max)
The character of Kite Man has always been a joke. First introduced in 1960, he was silly even by the standards of Silver Age supervillains. He was retroactively given the secret identity of Charles “Chuck” Brown by writer Tony Isabella. This was a reference to the Peanuts comic strip and Charlie Brown’s eternal struggle with the kite-eating tree. He also played a comic-relief role in the Harley Quinn animated series, earning a spin-off, Kite-Man, Hell-Yeah!
The Matt Reeves’ Batman movies have not been noted for their humor. However, it might be amusing if Brad Pitt had a role as Kite Man or a similar joke supervillain. There is a precedent for this, as Pitt had a comedic cameo in Deadpool 2 as The Vanisher.
However, it seems unlikely Pitt would be openly courted for a bit part. And yet, the normally silly villain was given a serious storyline in Tom King’s Batman comics. Given the dark edge Reeves gave The Riddler, it’s possible he might do the same with another humorous villain in The Batman 2.