Can You Picture Robert Pattinson as Batman?

(SPOT.ph) Robert Pattinson is stepping farther and farther away from his Twilight days. In an exclusive Variety report, the former teen heartthrob is said to be top choice to play the caped crusader in The Batman, directed by Matt Reeves and set for release in June 2021.

This comes a few months after Ben Affleck stepped down as both director and actor for the film, a decision made after discussions with Warner Bros. Affleck  played the superhero in Justice League (2017), Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), and Suicide Squad (2016).

A standalone Batman film, the story will take us back to the younger days of the masked vigilante and is said to be set in the '90s. Which explains why the studio has set their sights on a much younger cast.   

A contender also on the short list is another Brit: Nicholas Hoult, who played the tragically loveable Nux in Mad Max: Fury Road and Beast in the latest  X-Men series. Pattinson seems to be taking the edge though, with recent films like Robert Eggers' The Lighthouse (premiering at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival) and the critically acclaimed Claire Denis film High Life under his belt. The official announcement from Reeves and Warner Bros. is coming soon, so we'll be sure to keep you updated.