'The Batman' Production Halted After Robert Pattinson Tests Positive For Coronavirus

The latest actor to take on the role of the caped crusader, Robert Pattinson has tested positive for the COVID-19 just days after the Matt Reeves directed “The Batman” had resumed shooting.

Though the 34-year-old actor is yet to officially confirm the news, Warner Bros. shared a statement with Vanity Fair, specifying that someone from their team has contracted the virus.

"A member of The Batman production tested positive for Covid-19 and is isolating in accordance with established protocols. Filming is temporarily paused,” the company has shared.

It was Vanity Fair that first published the report that it was lead actor Robert Pattinson who has tested positive. This marks the second time the film has been forced to delay its production. The first time was in March 2020, when the widespread coronavirus pandemic effectively shut down any and every event, production and release. Its earlier release date of June 2021 was pushed back to October 2021 as the lockdown had delayed the production by months which had only completed around seven weeks of filming.

Shooting for at least three months is still left to wrap up “The Batman” by the end of 2020 and stick to its release date. While it has not been revealed what precautions and care the cast and crew were taking to keep the virus at bay, Robert Pattinson testing positive just proves that the pandemic is still not under control.

The film will depict Pattinson as Gotham’s famous detective/vigilante Bruce Wayne/Batman during the early years of him living his dual life. “The Batman” will also star actor Zoe Kravitz as Selina Kyle a.k.a. Catwoman, along with Paul Dano, Colin Farrell, Jeffrey Wright, Andy Serkis, and John Turturro.

Despite the major delay in its production, in August during the virtual DC FanDome, Pattinson had hinted that the film is ready to resume production.

"As many of you probably already know, we were in the beginning stages of production when COVID hit, so now I'm very anxious to get back to work and continue to form this beloved character," Pattinson said. "I've always been a massive fan."

"I'm not really allowed to share anything, so I'm going to hand it over to the great Matt Reeves who's somewhere around here, and he can determine what can and can't be talked about," he added.