Almost Every Recent DC Movie Rumor You've Heard Is Wrong According To A New Report

Forbes has a rumor-busting piece on the future of the Warner Bros. DC slate, so buckle up, baby. Nearly every recent rumor you might have heard about projects like The Batman, Shazam!, Birds of Prey and more appears to be dead wrong.

But first, a disclaimer: while this appears in Forbes – a very reputable publication – the story isn't from Forbes proper, but rather from their contributor network. That said, the author has been accurate in the past, so we're taking this seriously (albeit with a grain of salt).

First and foremost, let's get this out of the way: no, Robert Pattinson is not in the running to take over as the Caped Crusader. We all know that Ben Affleck is out, and will not be returning to play Batman in Matt Reeves' The Batman. Since the news of Affleck's departure broke, fan casting has swept the internet. At one point, someone, somewhere, suggested that Robert Pattinson was the number one choice to take up the cape and cowl. The rumor spiraled out, to the point where many fans assumed it was true. Sorry, it's not. Per the Forbes story:

"The new rumors about Robert Pattinson are just fan rumors right now, nothing more (although for the record he's a good actor and any negative fan reactions are unwarranted)."

I agree with that lat point, by the way. Pattinson is a good actor, and has come a long way since his Twilight days. If he were to land the role of Batman, you'd hear no complaints from me. But for now, it's not happening. The Forbes piece also adds that the film might start production a lot sooner than many people think.

So what's up with Superman? One of DC's biggest heroes has been grounded, for now. There have been a few rumors surrounding Supes. One is that Henry Cavill is no longer playing the part. Another is that he is still involved, and close to shooting a new movie. Still another rumor states that Cavill filmed a cameo for the upcoming Shazam!, while others say that there's a Superman cameo in that film, but Cavill isn't playing the role.

According to Forbes:

"Superman has been shelved for now, as a temporary measure to let Supergirl step into the limelight and carry the Kryptonian banner for a little while on the big screen."

Also: "Henry Cavill...contrary to recent rumors, is not on the verge of making another Superman picture and did not film a secret cameo for Shazam!" Forbes doesn't, however, debunk if a Superman cameo is happening in Shazam! Which means the rumor that a new actor playing the Man of Steel in that film might be true. In any case, it sounds like Cavill is not playing the role anytime soon, in any capacity.

We all know that Warners has a new Joker movie coming out, with Joaquin Phoenix taking on the role of the Clown Prince of Crime. But what about Jared Leto's damaged Joker, who first appeared in Suicide Squad? Not long after the Phoenix movie was announced, word broke that a solo-Leto-Joker movie might still happen. In addition to that, there was a rumored Mad Love-style film, with Leto's Joker and Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn.

But none of that is happening:

"The Mad Love-type Joker and Harley Quinn film has also fallen by the wayside, as has the solo Joker project for Jared Leto's version of the character from Suicide Squad."

I can't imagine anyone is upset about this news. It's for the best, honestly – let's just move on from Leto's Joker, and pretend it never happened.

In 2020, Margot Robbie will reprise her role as Harley Quinn in Birds of Prey (And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn), which has the anti-hero teaming up with other female super-characters. In addition to that, there's also a Batgirl movie in the works, with Bumblebee writer Christina Hodson handling the script.

Traditionally, Batgirl is a character associated with the superhero group Birds of Prey, which lead to a rumor that the Birds of Prey film would tie into Batgirl in some way. In addition to that, some theorized that Birds of Prey would cross over with a previously-announced Gotham City Sirens film. Once again, none of this is true:

"For the record, Birds of Prey and Batgirl will not be tied together, for those who mistakenly believed the rumors that Barbara Gordon would have a continuing arc through both films. And there is not a Gotham City Sirens project crossing over with Birds of Prey, despite rumors to the contrary."

I'm not surprised about Gotham City Sirens, which was originally going to be directed by David Ayer, and probably isn't happening at all now. I am a little surprised about the lack of Batgirl cross-over, though. But it really does seem like Warner Bros. and DC are taking a standalone approach to their new films, and not worrying about shared universes. In addition to all of this, Robbie's Harley Quinn is not expected to return for James Gunn's The Suicide Squad.

Last but not least, the Forbes piece lumps together a whole slew of rumored or previously-announced projects, and reveals that they're all either dead or on hold. You probably could've guessed that about most of these, but here we are:

"There were also projects in the works involving Booster Gold and Blue Beetle, Nightwing, Deadshot, Justice League Dark, Cyborg, Lobo, and a few others, but most of those seem to be either on hold, cancelled, or in some stage of development Hell for the moment."

Sorry, everyone looking forward to that Cyborg movie.