Steven Soderbergh to Direct ‘The Batman: Part II’ as Matt Reeves Remains Away

BREAKING: Steven Soderbergh has stepped in to finish "The Batman Part II" as Matt Reeves remains away due to family reasons.

This is a beautiful gesture, if you ask me: a filmmaker helping out a fellow filmmaker. Soderbergh has directed every kind of movie: micro-budget, small, mid-budget and big-budget. The film is in good hands.

Production was paused earlier this month in London so Reeves could focus on a serious family situation. Now, with only a few weeks of shooting left (I'd heard a little over six), Soderbergh, a longtime admirer of Reeves' work, has reached out and offered to help get the film over the finish line. Reeves will stay in contact with him throughout the remainder of the shoot, then return to oversee post-production once he's ready.

DC Studios said in a statement that Soderbergh approached Reeves himself, and that the two "will work closely together with the actors and crew to fulfill Matt's vision of the film."

Soderbergh added his own thoughts:

"I thought Matt Reeves' work on The Batman was stunning; it was intentional, specific, and rigorously coherent. The goal here is to work with Matt and his team to generate footage that will integrate seamlessly with what's already been shot so Matt can properly finish his film."

That last line says it all. Soderbergh isn't coming in to put his stamp on the movie. He's there to act as a set of hands, shoot what Reeves has planned (and no doubt storyboarded), and keep the train moving. Few directors working today are as efficient or technically versatile as Soderbergh, and he's ego-free about this kind of thing. If anyone can match another filmmaker's look without leaving fingerprints, it's him.

"The Batman Part II" is still dated for February 18, 2028. Sources say it's too early to know whether the pause will affect that date, though with Soderbergh now on board, the goal seems to be keeping things on track.