The Batman Director Reveals The One Rule Warner Bros. Had For His Movie

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Matt Reeves has said that Warner Bros. asked for The Batman to be PG-13 from the very start, a request the acclaimed director was more than happy to oblige. The film sees Robert Pattinson play a younger Batman, a different version than seen onscreen before, as he takes on his first major villain, Paul Dano's murderous Riddler. Joining Pattinson and Dano is an impressive ensemble, including the likes of Zoë Kravitz as Selina Kyle, Andy Serkis as Alfred Pennyworth and Colin Farrell in an unrecognizable role as the Penguin.

But although The Batman looks like the grittiest big-screen take on the Dark Knight yet, many fans were disappointed at the movie's surprisingly low PG-13 rating. Fans have begged for a darker take on the DC superhero for years, and Reeves' Batman entry looked to tick all those boxes, but the movie's audience rating may hint that it isn't as bleak as some fans were hoping for. That being said, Dano recently admitted that his time as the Riddler gave him trouble sleeping, reinforcing initial thoughts regarding theThe Batman's grim tone. Fans would also do well to remember that arguably the most highly regarded entry in the Batman franchise, The Dark Knight, was also rated a mere PG-13, despite packing plenty of incredibly dark moments.

Related: How The Worst Batman Adaptation Made The Riddler A Great Dark Knight Villain

And while talking about The Batman with Collider, Reeves has revealed the origin of that much-discussed rating. Reeve's stated that, while a PG-13 was his "intention from the beginning",  it was also what Warner Bros. wanted from the start, quoting them as saying "it's important to us that the movie be PG-13. We want to make sure that we can get this… It's a Batman movie, and we're