Forbes Top Ten List of Directors after Nolan leaves Batman

Top Ten Directors To Take Over Batman After 'The Dark Knight Rises'
We’re just thirteen and a half weeks from the release of The Dark Knight Rises, the final Batman film in director Christopher Nolan’s critically acclaimed blockbuster franchise. What a lot of people still might not realize is, this isn’t just Nolan’s final Batman film in the franchise, this new movie will literally end the existing Batman series completely. No more sequels, no more stories about this particular Batman and Joker and so on.

While we all eagerly anticipate The Dark Knight Rises and trade guesses about what’s going to happen in the end, let’s take some time to talk about Batman’s cinematic future. Obviously Warner Bros. will not just stop making Batman films, they will insteadreboot the franchise and build a brand new bat-world on the big screen. So, with Christopher Nolan gone, who will WB turn to? Here are the top ten directors most likely on the list to take over the Batman franchise…

Ben Affleck — There should be no doubt that Affleck is one of the best new directors in Hollywood. With only three feature films on his directing resume, he set the bar high with the phenomenal Gone Baby Gone (which should’ve earned him Oscar nominations for Best Director and Best Picture) and continued proving his talent with The Town (another film that deserved some Oscar nominations). His upcoming film Argo is already getting some good early buzz. Affleck is a comic book fan, having of course starred in many early films by comic book writer/fan Kevin Smith and later taking on the role of Daredevil on screen. With a solid history of directing crime thrillers and detective stories, Ben Affleck has to be on the short-list of best filmmakers to take over Batman once Nolan has moved on. Remember, too, that Affleck was offered the Superman franchise by WB before Zack Snyder eventually took the project.

Duncan Jones — Another new director who is among the best emerging talents in filmmaking, Jones has two films under his belt, both of them doozies. His first, Moon, is a brilliant sci-fi picture of the mind-bending variety, an instant classic that many critics compared to 2001: A Space Odyssey. He followed that up with the mainstream sci-fi action film Source Code, which by the way stars Jake Gyllenhaal, the actor who almost got the job playing Batman in Chris Nolan’s films. Having proven himself a top-notch director with great vision and the ability to direct solid action thrills, Duncan was another director offered the director’s chair for the Superman franchise. He turned the offer down, because he felt he wasn’t ready for a big blockbuster like that yet. In a few more years, though, he might feel differently if WB comes to him with the Batman franchise.

Nicolas Winding Refn — If you haven’t heard of Refn yet, you should have. His recent film Drive got rave reviews and was quite popular with audiences, and rightly so. It’s a fabulous crime drama that many people (including me) put on their list of 2011′s best films. Refn has also directed other crime thrillers, including the Pusher series and Bronson (starring Tom Hardy, who portrays the villain Bane in The Dark Knight Rises). Refn is positioned for a big breakthrough in Hollywood, and his status as an “emerging talent” with strong indie cred and a definite sharp style, not to mention his past expression of interest in making a Wonder Woman film, make him a strong contender similar to where Christopher Nolan sat in his career when WB hired him to reboot Batman.

Guy Ritchie — Having racked up a fat $1 billion in box office with two Sherlock Holmes movies, Ritchie definitely has to be one of WB’s current favorite directors. His resume of action-packed crime capers and flashy cinematic style make him an ideal candidate for eventually taking on a high-profile superhero franchise, and he seems particularly well-suited for Batman. By the time the Caped Crusader is due a reboot, Ritchie will probably be done with the Holmes series and ready to tackle something new for the studio. Consider, too, that with Zack Snyder helmming the Superman reboot Man of Steel, much of Ritchie’s visual style would sit very comfortably alongside Snyder’s, different but with some similarities at the same time.

David Yates — This is a name that might surprise some readers, but it shouldn’t. Having steered the last four films in the Harry Potter franchise, Yates has probably brought WB the most money of any single filmmaker. He’s also been in charge of one of the most complicated, must-get-it-right film franchises of all time, doing a remarkable job transitioning the series from the more youthful thematic appeal to the increasingly more mature, darker narrative tone of the later half of the franchise. Just consider the scope of these films, the huge cast and wild sets, the effects and action shots, and the need to be faithful to a beloved popular character with a rabid following. Time and again, David Yates proved his huge talent is up to any task, and his current status as blockbuster director comes after a foundation in serious crime and intrigue storytelling in acclaimed series like State of Play and Sex Traffic, giving him a great combination of talents and background for taking over the Batman franchise.

Neill Blomkamp — Jumping back to directors with relatively short but strong resumes, Blomkamp is most known for his Oscar nominated sci-f action film District 9, which happens to be his only feature-length film released so far. But that was one heckuva introduction! And he’s following it up with another sci-fi movie, Elysium, starring Matt Damon and Jodie Foster, releasing in 2013. So Blomkamp is positioned for a real rise as one of the best new modern directors, making him an attractive option for a superhero franchise in need of a reboot and brand new direction. Personally, I think his sci-fi background and style make him a great candidate for taking over Green Lantern on film (Blomkamp can do amazing things with a smaller budgets), or perhaps helming a Wonder Woman adaptation. But he’s also sure to be a name that comes up in the studio discussions about Batman as well.

Matthew Vaughn — He makes crime thrillers, he makes fantasy films, and he makes superhero movies. Vaughn is definitely a versatile director, and his short directing resume is nonetheless a good one, including one of the best entries in the X-Men franchise. In the comedy superhero movie Kick-Ass, he provided an excellent and hilarious Batman nod with Nicolas Cage’s Big Daddy persona, in a film with a mixture of the outlandish and the grounded-in-realism touch. It appears that Vaughn will be tied up with the X-Men franchise for at least another film or two, but after a few years when WB is ready to bring Batman back to the big screen, Vaughn might be free and will likely be another name under consideration.

Rupert Wyatt — What it lacks in quantity, Wyatt’s resume makes up for in quality. Only two feature films, but they are The Escapist and Rise of the Planet of the Apes, and that makes him instantly one of the most high-profile top new talents in filmmaking. He’s handled serious crime drama, and he’s handled an action-packed sci-fi adventure with an outlandish premise that Wyatt made entirely believable. Finding a new director who can be trusted with a major franchise reboot, and who not only delivers but far exceeds every expectation, is rare. So I have to think WB will have their eye on Wyatt as a potential Batman director, although he’ll probably be busy with the future installments of the Planet of the Apes series.

Zack Snyder — That’s right, the go-to superhero film director who was able to step in when others feared to tread with Watchmen and later with Man of Steel. Despite some naysayers, Snyder has earned the title “visionary filmmaker,” having delivered one of the greatest superhero comic book adaptations of all time with Watchmen (second only to The Dark Knight, and to be honest I rank the Watchmen: The Ultimate Cut as tied for first place on the all-time-best list). Even his less popular films, such as Sucker Punch and Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole, are very underrated and misunderstood. It’s likely that Snyder will stick with the Superman franchise and so would be unavailable to also take on a reboot of Batman as well. However, there’s a chance other directors might balk at the challenge of having to follow Nolan’s trilogy. Well, Snyder’s never been afraid of a challenge, and he’s WB’s go-to guy when they need someone they can trust and depend on to step in and deliver a great superhero adaptation. If Man of Steel is as big of a hit as everyone expects it to be, Snyder will almost surely be on the short-list of names to consider when it’s time for Batman to reboot. And remember, Nolan will probably remain as a producer on the Batman franchise, just as he’s a producer on the Superman franchise, so if he and Snyder enjoy the collaboration and it’s a success, they just might decide to see if lightening can strike twice.

Darren Aronofsky — The final name on my list is one from the past, and one of the most often discussed “what-if” scenarios among Batman fans. Before Christopher Nolan came into Batman’s life, there was a time when fan hopes for a dark, serious Batman adaptation seemed on the verge of coming true via Aronofsky, with a film based on Frank Miller’s Batman: Year One story. The famous script for that adaptation was the subject of much debate, because it was at once stunningly brilliant and shockingly divergent from the source material. Bruce Wayne a toothless car mechanic? Alfred the streetwise owner of an auto-body shop? And wow, so much brutal violence… it would’ve surely ended up with an R-rating. So it was a film that Aronofsky later admitted he never really expected the studio to make, it was just a labor of love to create something radically different than anyone had seen or expected. Years later, Aronofsky was on tap to direct what everyone thought would be the definitive Wolverine film, based on the famous 1982 limited series by Chris Claremont and Frank Miller. When Aronofsky unexpectedly pulled out of that project, fans were heartbroken. But does this mean Aronofsky might want another chance to put on his “superhero director hat” if Batman once again is looking for a director? Maybe, and I bet WB will consider the possibility as well.

So there you have it, dear readers, my list of the top ten directors most likely to take over the Batman franchise after Christopher Nolan’s series is ended. What do you think of the contenders, and who is your personal favorite? I’m sure everyone has their own suggestions for directors I failed to mention, too, so sound off in the comments below! (Note: This is not my list of personal preferences, FYI — although I’d be fine/happy with anybody on this list — so remember this is a list of directors I think will probably be offered the job.)

thecolorsblend wrote:My take on this remains unchanged. I would imagine most directors would want to come onboard and make their own version of Batman... and if their version is too similar to Nolan's, they'd be reluctant to do so because of the inevitable comparison. I think WB's best bet is to go completely in the other direction and make something that is as different from Nolan as Nolan was from his predecessors.