Batman: Caped Crusader already has some serious talent attached to it with the likes of Bruce Timm, J.J. Abrams, and Matt Reeves serving as executive producers. And now, another legend is joining the creative team.
Comic book scribe Ed Brubaker has reportedly signed on as head writer for the upcoming animated series. According to the Hollywood Reporter, Brubaker is "running the writers room alongside Timm and acting as Timm's right hand." He'll also be earning an executive producer credit on the show.
THR also reports that the first season of Batman: Caped Crusader will consist of 10 episodes. While details remain under wraps, there's a ton of hype surrounding the upcoming series, which is said to return to The Dark Knight's noir roots. When Batman: Caped Crusader was first announced early last year, the producers referenced Timm's Batman: The Animated Series as inspiration behind the new show. In the brief teaser, they said the goal was to "once again reinvent Batman and his iconic rogue’s gallery with sophisticated storytelling, nuanced characters and intense action sequences all set in a visually striking world."
While Brubaker is best known for resurrecting the character Bucky Barns as the Winter Soldier for Marvel, he's got an extensive writing career which includes the likes of Batman, Daredevil, Captain America, Iron Fist, Catwoman, Gotham Central, and Uncanny X-Men. He also specializes in writing for the crime fiction genre, which seems like a perfect fit for Caped Crusader.
In a statement to THR, Brubaker attributed the original Batman: The Animated Series as one of the things that made him want to write superhero comics. He also praised the talent and vision for Caped Crusader.
“Here’s something few people know, but the original Batman: The Animated Series was one of the things that made me want to write superhero comics in general, and Batman in particular. If not for what Bruce Timm and all the talented writers and artists did with that show, things like my revamp of Catwoman with Darwyn Cooke (who worked on BTAS) and Gotham Central with Greg Rucka and Michael Lark, would never have happened. So when Bruce Timm offered me the chance to come work on this new reimagining of Batman with him, James Tucker, J.J. Abrams and Matt Reeves, I jumped at it.”
“Their vision for the show, with a slightly more pulpy take on the character, and a new way of looking at the world of Gotham, set in the past but viewed through a modern lens really sold me, and so far every part of it has been a blast to work on. I can’t wait until the rest of the world can see what we’ve been building the last few months in the writers room. All I can say is, it’s not what anyone is expecting … but in a good way.”
Batman: Caped Crusader does not yet have a premiere date. When it does arrive, the series will air on both HBO Max and Cartoon Network.