The Batman's Muscle Car Batmobile Was Built By Bruce Wayne

Folks have been champing at the bit for Matt Reeves' "The Batman," already once delayed from its original June 2021 release date amid the global pandemic. Empire Magazine's latest issue, which hits shelves on December 23, confirms a release date of March 4, 2022 for "The Batman" (over a year from the date it wrapped production) alongside a feature that, the cover teases, tells "the full story The Dark Knight's radical return." The exclusive issue features interviews with director Matt Reeves, producer Dylan Clark, and cast members Robert Pattinson, Zoë Kravitz, Colin Farrell, and Paul Dano about their reinterpretation of Gotham's defender, as well as images of that sweet, sweet mid-engine '60s muscle car of his — which is indeed a Batmobile.

In the Batman issue, Pattinson confirms that the souped-up Batmobile was a labor of love. "Bruce built it himself," says Pattinson," so there's this kind of tangibility to it." With this description, the vehicle is a far cry from the militarized Tumbler that rolled its way through Christopher Nolan's "Dark Knight" trilogy. Squinting at the images released so far from the film, the car appears to be of the late 1960s — last year, Car and Driver offered the possibility that it could be a 1969 Dodge Charger, while Hot Cars suggests that the car, "oozes the Chevrolet Camaro's style with its elongated front and the fascia."

So far, the latest re-telling of the Caped Crusader saga is taking some interesting departures from the Nolan trilogy, and the Batmobile, which spits fire like the Batmobile of Tim Burton's 1989 "Batman," is a stark example. For Reeves, the car is more than a fun gimmick in the Bat's playroom; it's an extension of the man himself, adding to his intimidating aura. What might surprise viewers is how he leans into the vibe, using a horror icon as inspiration. The director tells Empire:

It has to make an appearance out of the shadows to intimidate, so I thought of it almost like Stephen King's [possessed motor] Christine. I liked the idea of the car itself as a horror figure, making an animalistic appearance to really scare the hell out of the people Batman's pursuing. There is absolutely a horror-genre aspect to this movie.

Reeves directs "The Batman" from a script he co-writes with Peter Craig ("The Town"). The DC hero picture is situated in year two of Batman's crime-fighting adventures, with Pattinson starring as the Caped Crusader, Bruce Wayne/Batman. Rouding out the cast is Zoë Kravitz as Catwoman, Paul Dano as The Riddler; Jeffrey Wright as Commissioner Gordon; John Turturro as Carmine Falcone; Peter Sarsgaard as Gotham DA Gil Colson; Jayme Lawson as mayoral hopeful Bella Reál; Andy Serkis as the loyal butler-mentor Alfred Pennyworth; and Colin Farrell as Oswald Cobblepot (don't let him hear you call him "Penguin").

"The Batman" arrives at theaters March 4, 2022.