Jump to content

Draft:Untitled Arkham series

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Untitled Arkham series
Genre
Created byMatt Reeves
Based on
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producers
  • Matt Reeves
  • Dylan Clark
  • Daniel Pipski
  • Adam Kassan
Production companies
Related
DCU TV series

The untitled Arkham series is an unproduced American television series created by Matt Reeves for the streaming service Max, based on the DC Comics psychiatric hospital Arkham Asylum. It was intended to be written and directed by Antonio Campos for the DC Universe (DCU), and be produced by DC Studios.

HBO Max ordered a The Batman (2022) spin-off series from Reeves in July 2020, to be based on the film's depiction of the Gotham City Police Department (GCPD). Following creative issues, the GCPD series was placed on hold by March 2022 when Reeves revealed that the project had evolved into a different series that would further explore Arkham after its introduction in the film. Campos joined as showrunner and director that October, when Reeves was developing it for the DCU. The series was no longer moving forward by July 2024.

Premise

[edit]

The series was set to explore the psychiatric hospital Arkham State Hospital and the origins of some of its inmates.[1]

Production

[edit]

Development

[edit]

In July 2020, HBO Max gave a series commitment to a television spin-off series from The Batman (2022), from the film's director Matt Reeves. It was intended to be a police procedural centered on the Gotham City Police Department (GCPD),[2][3] serving as a prequel to The Batman and exploring the corruption in Gotham City and the GCPD.[4] In August 2021, a production listing gave the series' working title as Arkham.[5] In March 2022, Reeves said the GCPD series was no longer moving forward. He explained that HBO had creative issues with the project, especially with its focus on corrupt cops,[1] and had encouraged him to focus on existing comic characters instead.[6] Reeves revealed that development of the GCPD series had led to work on a new idea based on Arkham Asylum, Gotham's psychiatric hospital that is home to various Batman villains.[1] In August, Reeves renewed his deal with Warner Bros. Television Studios, where he was developing this series and another spin-off, The Penguin (2024).[7][8] It was initially unknown if the Arkham series would move forward after Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) became the owner of Warner Bros., and had already shelved the nearly-completed DC Extended Universe (DCEU) film Batgirl that was made for HBO Max and decided not to retain that service's animated series Batman: Caped Crusader (2024), which Reeves produced.[8]

Antonio Campos was hired in October 2022 to write and direct the series in addition to serving as showrunner and an executive producer. 6th & Idaho's Daniel Pipski and Adam Kassan were also set as executive producers, along with Rafi Crohn as a co-executive producer. Dylan Clark was also set as an executive producer. At that time, the GCPD series was revealed to still be in development and would be separate from the Arkham series.[9] After James Gunn and Peter Safran were hired to serve as the co-CEOs of DC Studios that month,[10] Gunn said that studio would oversee all DC productions moving forward, and had contacted Reeves about his projects by then.[11] The pitch for the Arkham series was one of the first to be bought by DC Studios around this time.[12] When announcing the first projects for the new DC franchise the DC Universe (DCU) in January 2023, Gunn said any project that did not fit into the DCU's shared universe would be labeled as "DC Elseworlds" moving forward. This is the same as how DC Comics uses the Elseworlds imprint to mark comic books that are separate from the main continuity.[13] Reeves' Batman shared universe was set to be a part of this label,[13][14] which had been expected to include the Arkham series.[15] Gunn revealed in December that Reeves had been developing the series for the DCU, and that he would continue developing projects for both his Batman shared universe and the DCU.[12] By July 2024, the Arkham and GCPD series were both no longer moving forward at Max, the successor to HBO Max. There was still potential for a new project set within Gotham City to be developed.[16][17]

Writing

[edit]

Reeves originally said the series would build upon Arkham's introduction in The Batman, and explore the origins of different characters related to it. He wanted Arkham itself to be treated like a character in the series, similar to his approach to Gotham City in the film, and envisioned a horror tone with Arkham being depicted as a haunted house.[1]

Release

[edit]

The series was set to be released on the streaming service Max.[16]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d Sharf, Zack (March 7, 2022). "Matt Reeves: The Batman TV Series Changed From Gotham PD to Arkham After Creative Differences". Variety. Archived from the original on March 8, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  2. ^ Otterson, Joe (July 10, 2020). "Gotham PD Series From Matt Reeves, Terence Winter Set in The Batman World Ordered at HBO Max". Variety. Archived from the original on July 10, 2020. Retrieved July 11, 2020.
  3. ^ Kit, Borys (July 10, 2020). "The Batman TV Spinoff From Matt Reeves, Terence Winter Set at HBO Max". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on July 10, 2020. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
  4. ^ Patches, Matt (August 22, 2020). "The Batman HBO Max series is a prequel set in Year One". Polygon. Archived from the original on August 23, 2020. Retrieved August 24, 2020.
  5. ^ "Production Weekly – Issue 1259 – Thursday, August 12, 2021 / 148 Listings – 33 Pages". Production Weekly. August 11, 2021. Archived from the original on August 12, 2021. Retrieved August 13, 2021.
  6. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony; Patten, Dominic (March 3, 2022). "The Batman Filmmaker Matt Reeves On New Dark Knight, Pic's Sequel & Colin Farrell Penguin HBO Max Series – Hero Nation Podcast". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on March 4, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  7. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (August 23, 2022). "The Batman Director Matt Reeves Sets Multi-Year First Look Film Deal At Warner Bros. & Re-Ups With Warner Bros Television". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on August 23, 2022. Retrieved September 6, 2022.
  8. ^ a b Couch, Aaron (August 23, 2022). "The Batman Filmmaker Matt Reeves Inks Overall Film, TV Deal With Warner Bros". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on August 23, 2022. Retrieved September 6, 2022.
  9. ^ Otterson, Joe (October 25, 2022). "Arkham Asylum HBO Max Series Taps The Staircase Creator Antonio Campos as New Showrunner (Exclusive)". Variety. Archived from the original on October 26, 2022. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
  10. ^ Kit, Borys; Couch, Aaron (October 25, 2022). "DC Shocker: James Gunn, Peter Safran to Lead Film, TV and Animation Division (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on October 25, 2022. Retrieved October 25, 2022.
  11. ^ Biordi, Jordan (November 10, 2022). "James Gunn Confirms The Batman's Status in Relation to His DC Universe". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on November 10, 2022. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  12. ^ a b Tinoco, Armando (December 17, 2023). "DC Studios Co-Head James Gunn Says Matt Reeves' Batman Arkham Series In Development Is Set In New DCU". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on December 18, 2023. Retrieved December 17, 2023.
  13. ^ a b Sharf, Zack (January 31, 2023). "The Batman Part II Sets 2025 Release Date as Part of Newly Branded 'DC Elseworlds' Projects". Variety. Archived from the original on February 1, 2023. Retrieved February 1, 2023.
  14. ^ Anderson, Julia (January 31, 2023). "The Batman and Joker Are Officially DC Elseworlds Franchises, Reveals James Gunn". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on February 1, 2023. Retrieved February 1, 2023.
  15. ^ Polo, Susana (January 31, 2023). "The Batman 2 isn't the only Batman movie in the new DCU — here's how it works". Polygon. Archived from the original on February 1, 2023. Retrieved February 1, 2023.
  16. ^ a b Otterson, Joe (July 5, 2024). "Arkham Asylum TV Series Not Moving Forward at Max (Exclusive)". Variety. Archived from the original on July 5, 2024. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  17. ^ Dick, Jeremy (July 6, 2024). "Arkham Asylum Series Fate at Max Confirmed by Showrunner". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on July 7, 2024. Retrieved July 14, 2024.
[edit]
This page will be placed in the following categories if it is moved to the article namespace.
Categories:
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Draft:Untitled_Arkham_series&oldid=1234507835"