James Gunn cites script issues as reason for The Batman sequel delay

When news that The Batman sequel would be delayed an entire year from 2026 to October 2027, we took it about as best as we could. Yes, we want the movie sooner than later, but that extra 12 months will hopefully let Matt Reeves and company nail everything that they need to. That said, now that the Bat-Signal has dimmed, who can we look to in our time of need?

James Gunn – who stepped into his role as co-chair and co-CEO at DC Studios two years ago – is now weighing in, defending the delay of The Batman sequel. Posting on Threads, he wrote, “To be fair, a 5 year gap or more is fairly common in sequels. 7 years between Alien and Aliens. 14 years between Incredibles. 7 years between the first two Terminators. 13 years between Avatars. 36 years between Top Guns. And, of course, 6 years between Guardians Vol 2 and Vol 3.”

That’s fair in the sense that all of those numbers match up, but what James Gunn is missing over The Batman 2 in his response is that, for the most part, a sequel wasn’t exactly immediately expected (let alone teased) for any of those except for Avatar. But that delay came partly because James Cameron needed technology to be in the right place. Sure, a sequel to Ridley Scott’s Alien was discussed soon after its release but it worked as a standalone film. As for The Incredibles, that also worked by itself but got a sequel because Disney was in one of their back-to-the-well phases with their Pixar properties. When you end your movie teasing the franchise’s most famous villain, as The Batman did, fans rightfully expect something sooner than later.

For The Batman sequel, James Gunn confirmed that the issues do in fact come down to the script, which Matt Reeves just this month said was nearly finished. “The only reason for the delay is there isn’t a full script (those of you who follow me here probably know that already). Matt is committed to making the best film he possibly can, and no one can accurately guess exactly how long a script will take to write. Once there is a finished script, there is around two years for pre-production, shooting and post-production on big films.”

What do you make of the delay of The Batman sequel? Are you concerned at this point?