Story of How Director Matt Reeves Reportedly Gained Full Creative Control of THE BATMAN
Director Matt Reeves almost didn't direct The Batman for Warner Bros. but he changed his mind when the studio offered him full creative control, the same kind of creative control that the studio gave James Wan to direct Aquaman.
There's a fascinating report from Splash News that breaks down the events of how Reeves ended up replacing Ben Affleck in the director's chair and how Reeves used the tough situation that the studio was in to his advantage to get what he wanted. They explain:
When Reeves entered the picture, though, the DCEU was in another tough spot. After a very drawn out “will they or won’t they?” romance between Affleck and the crown jewel of the DCEU slate, The Batman, Affleck stepped down as the film’s director. This was mere weeks after asserting publicly that he was going to stay on. Reeves saw an opportunity to not only replace Affleck as the director of The Batman, but to also get into the driver’s seat for the project. He didn’t want to merely direct the movie that Affleck bailed on, but rather he wanted the power and control to make his movie. With Warner Bros. scrambling to replace Affleck after the most high-profile “director departure” in the DCEU’s history, Reeves knew he had leverage in the situation because the studio was vulnerable.
Warner Bros. wasn't interested in playing that game at first. The studio wanted Reeves to report to Geoff Johns and they wanted him to use the script that Affleck, Johns, and Chris Terrio developed as the basis for the film. Of course, that's when Reeves walked. They say:
Warner Bros. tried to stick to its guns during these negotiations, with Johns being “the guy you have to answer to,” and seemingly stating that the script by Affleck, Johns, and Chris Terrio had to be the basis for The Batman. Reeves didn’t go for this. After places like Variety had proclaimed it practically a done deal, Reeves brought the studio to its knees once more by officially walking away from the negotiations.
According to their inside source, it all came down Reeves wanting "the same control over The Batman as Wan has over Aquaman." After waiting a few days before they made a move, the studio started to notice that Reeves walking away was "rapidly becoming another black eye for the the DCEU, and they (bat)caved." According to the report:
They went back to Reeves, told him he had the final say on all things The Batman, and that’s why he came back and officially signed on. In the press release from Warner Bros. on the hiring of Reeves, they made mention of his talent for “world-building,” as that seems to be the vital ingredient in their arrangement. Reeves didn’t want to simply be a director-for-hire; He wanted to build up a world for The Dark Knight.
So, if this is all true, whatever story elements we've heard regarding The Batman can be thrown out the window and discarded because Reeves is going to make the Batman film that he wants to make, not the one the studio wants, and I'll be honest... that gives me hope that fans will get a great Batman movie. But we'll just have to wait and see.