'The Batman' Spin-Off Series At HBO Max Loses Showrunner Terence Winter

There's trouble in Gotham City, and it would seem that not even The Dark Knight can save the day.

Over the summer, news surfaced of a spin-off series at HBO Max that would explore "the anatomy of corruption in Gotham City" in the same universe as Matt Reeves' forthcoming movie The Batman. At the time, Boardwalk Empire creator Terence Winter was heading up the project, but unfortunately creative differences have resulted in him leaving the show. That explains why Winter recently boarded the new TV series adaptation of Dial M for Murder.

The Hollywood Reporter has news on Terence Winter leaving The Batman spin-off series at HBO Max. The report says "Winter's vision for the drama did not match what Reeves and other producers had in mind." Winter's involvement in the series was one of the reasons the project was so enticing, especially considering how he handled police corruption and organized crime in Boardwalk Empire. But based on what we've seen so far from The Batman, it seems like Reeves and the producers know what they're doing, so maybe this is for the best.The Batman spin-off series is going by the working title Gotham Central, but it doesn't have an official title yet. However, the working title is a reference to the comic book series GCPD by Ed Brubaker, Greg Rucka, and Michael Lark, which focused on the activity of the Gotham City Police Department. It's a fairly standard crime procedural kind of series that just so happened to take place in one of the most crime-ridden cities in the world, full of the maniacs and villains that Batman has to deal with.

In those comics, Batman is merely a side character and the focus is put on Commissioner Gordon and the Gotham police department. In the series, the story would unfold before the events of The Batman, during the first year that Bruce Wayne became the masked vigilante. It's not clear of Jeffrey Wright would reprise his role as Gordon, or if Robert Pattinson would occasionally appear as the Caped Crusader. But either way, the series on the hunt for a new showrunner and writer.

When the show was announced, it was said the series would launch "a new Batman universe across multiple platforms" and would provide "an unprecedented opportunity to extend the world established in the movie and further explore the myriad of compelling and complex characters of Gotham." Does that mean this series will be the first of several, or will the series merely be a launching point for more comics, video games, and other multimedia projects? We're not sure, but Warner Bros. will clearly get whatever they can out of Matt Reeves' new take on Batman.

Gotham Central will be produced by The Batman producer Dylan Clark, and Matt Reeves will executive produce through his 6th and Idaho production banner along with Daniel Pipski and Adam Kassan, with Rafi Crohn serving as a co-executive producer.

Though there's no release window set for HBO Max series, The Batman is slated to arrive in theaters on March 4, 2022.