Warner Bros. went all out for Batman Day. They released a special comic book, The Batman of Two Worlds, featuring a story that connects Matt Fraction’s current Batman run with Scott Snyder’s acclaimed Absolute Batman. LEGO Batman: Legacy of The Dark Knight received a DLC expansion, and Matt Reeves shared a new image of Robert Pattinson from The Batman: Part II. Yet that isn’t the only Batman film set for release, as a new trailer showcases a film without Bruce Wayne as the titular hero.
Warner Bros. Animation released the trailer for Batman: Knightfall – Part 2: Knightquest. After being defeated by Bane, Bruce Wayne is left with a broken back and needs to recover. Yet Gotham City needs a Batman, particularly as Bane has released many of Gotham’s criminals into the streets to wreak havoc. Instead of passing the mantle to Dick Grayson/Nightwing or Tim Drake/Robin, Bruce Wayne ultimately picks Jean-Paul Valley/Azrael. The animated film is set for an unspecified 2026 release date. See the trailer below.
The animated Knightfall trilogy adapts the comic storyline of the same name that was published from 1993 to 1994. “Knightquest” is the second entry in the series and was part of the wave of replacement-hero comics in the 1990s, which saw classic superheroes replaced by grittier, edgier versions. This ultimately highlighted what made the classic hero so special. Here, Jean-Paul Valley was depicted as a more violent version of Batman, with no qualms about killing and a more cybernetic, 1990s-inspired design.
Batman: Knightfall – Part 1: Knightfall was released digitally on August 25, 2026. The animated film features Anson Mount (Star Trek: Strange New Worlds) as Batman, with Michael Mando (Spider-Man: Brand New Day) voicing Bane. Batman: Knightfall received an R-rating, making it one of only two animated Batman films to earn that mature rating, alongside 2016’s The Killing Joke. Knightfall earned a 92% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 12 reviews.
With Knightfall and Knightquest set for 2026, the trilogy’s third and final chapter, KnightsEnd, is set for release in 2027. This animated Batman trilogy certainly helps ease the wait for Matt Reeves’ The Batman: Part II, which was originally set to open in both October 2026 and 2027 before being delayed until February 18, 2028. There is also no word on when James Gunn’s DCU Batman film, The Brave and the Bold, will open in theaters.