For anyone who sorely misses spending time amidst the streets of Gotham City, Matt Reeves’ upcoming DC movie The Batman: Part II is the grimmest and most corrupt oasis imaginable, and I cannot wait for it to finally arrive in October 2027. After months of casting rumors and speculation, the director formally revealed the sequel’s new and returning cast members, setting in stone Sebastian Stan’s casting news that surfaced back in January. All signs seem to point to the MCU actor portraying Harvey Dent / Two-Face, but something is amiss.
A week after rumors suggested actors are playing different roles from what’s expected (including unfounded claims about Scarlett Johansson and Charles Dance’s characters), Stan actually spoke out about it himself when talking to Deadline about his latest Cannes debut, the drama Fjord. Here’s the extremely peculiar wording he used when describing his impending performance(s):
[I'm playing] many roles in this one.
Sebastian Stan
In Gotham City, where vigilantes and theatrical villains are a dime a dozen, it’s not uncommon for actors to think of playing costumed heroes and buttoned-up alter egos as different roles. But we’re almost always talking binaries in that sense: secret identity & hero / villain. In this case, the morally upward attorney Harvey Dent and the acid-burned, coin-tethered Two-Face. To say “many roles” is a heightening that sparks lots of lofty and unlikely ideas, at least in my own head.
But as much as I’d like to broaden my speculation borders for these purposes, the outlet presents Stan’s quotes within the specific context of portraying Two Face, even if the actor doesn’t use the villain’s name himself. Speaking about the hair and makeup teams that will be crafting his presumably iconic look, the Romanian star shared this:
I’m excited, I’m nervous and trying to keep surprising myself.
Sebastian Stan
At least those notions all add up and sound completely reasonable, without immediately inspiring ideas about Sebastian Stan playing other characters. Plus, the initial Two-Face concept shots were shared by the actor’s stylist, so this does all track well enough.
However, I'm still stuck on the "many characters," which could feasibly play into the fact that he's been training and bulking up for the film. While that's a common move for actors in superhero movies, Harvey isn't any kind of superbuff, weight-lifting lawyer when he gets disfigured, and Two-Face would almost always rather use a gun than his fists. So why is Stan getting so toned up?
Scarlett Johansson’s first look sparked theories about who she'll be playing, with many fans opting for Gilda Dent, who factors quite heavily into the comics' Long Halloween arc, which is an inspiration for Matt Reeves. And who better to play a married couple within the DCU than two MCU actors?
Could Stan be playing both Harvey Dent and his own father, Christopher Dent? That's the role Charles Dance was rumored for, but who knows? Maybe Stan will also play the doomed acrobat father of Dick Grayson, and that's why he's having to build up more muscle again, for all the trapeze work. That seems like a stretch, though.
I'm sure it'll be months before we get another quote that ramps up the speculation dial quite like that, but if fellow co-stars Brian Tyree Henry or Sebastian Koch have any of their own offbeat quotes to share about their characters, I'm all (cowl) ears.
The Batman: Part II is set to swoop into theaters on October 1, 2027.
