Zoe Kravitz Confirms Catwoman Is Bisexual In The Batman
Ho-hum, just another "Batman" reboot from yet another talented and acclaimed filmmaker, starring several movie stars at the absolute top of their game, set to arrive in mere days. No big deal, right? The novelty factor surrounding Matt Reeves' rapidly approaching "The Batman" has already turned the superhero movie into a must-see event, boosted by glowing reviews across the board — including by /Film's very own Chris Evangelista, who described the film in downright rapturous terms:
...Reeves and company have crafted a sprawling, ominous, dreamy epic; a mash-up of action-adventure, mystery, horror, noir, and even a little romance thrown in for good measure. There were multiple moments here where I had to stop and ask myself, "Wow, is this the best Batman movie?" It just might be.
With all that goodwill and hype going for it, it almost feels like there couldn't possibly be any further pleasant surprises to make comic fans even more excited than they already are. Thankfully, however, Zoë Kravitz has weighed in with a very promising revelation about her approach to portraying Selina Kyle/Catwoman, the classic femme fatale figure who traditionally causes just as many problems for Batman as she does teaming up with him to solve. By all accounts, that dynamic remains alive and well in "The Batman," with Kravitz's casting in the newest movie essentially serving as a righting of past wrongs. Despite silly and uninformed complaints about so-called "race-bending" (we do remember Eartha Kitt and Halle Berry previously starring in the same role, yes?), most reasonable fans gravitated towards her impressively comic-accurate look and looked forward to her particular take on the character. But fans also know that, after decades of hints and teases, Selina Kyle was canonically established as bisexual in 2015.
Does that intrinsic character trait make it to the big screen in "The Batman"? According to Kravitz herself, she fully intended for her portrayal to suggest that very thing. Read the actor's full quotes below, which contains the absolute mildest of spoilers.
And one more time, for those in the cheap seats: very minor spoilers for "The Batman" to follow!
'That's definitely the way I interpreted that'
If you'll allow me to be blunt for a moment, blockbuster movies have had a troubled history with actually taking meaningful steps for representation and inclusion — particularly when it comes to the LGBTQ+ community. Superhero movies in particular never seem willing to commit to turning the subtext of certain characters into actual text (see: Tessa Thompson's Valkyrie in "Thor: Ragnarok") or, on the rare occasions when they actually do, the results still tend to feel somewhat ... lacking. But this also applies to blockbusters in general, as most recently proven by actor Josh Gad when discussing Disney's "Beauty and the Beast" remake (though, in all honesty, I'm not sure why we're holding actors accountable for this instead of the actual writers).
All that said, we're very clearly still in the "baby steps" phase, though it's at least encouraging that actors like Zoë Kravitz are willing to speak up about these topics. In an interview with Pedestrian (via The Mary Sue), the actor took it upon herself to address Selina Kyle's sexuality in "The Batman." At least one scene in "The Batman" apparently hints at the possibility of Catwoman having a more-than-platonic relationship with another woman named Anika, whom she addresses by the somewhat intimate pet name of "baby." Of course, the trailers haven't hidden the simmering chemistry between Kravitz and Robert Pattinson, so is it fair to see her portrayal of Selina as a bisexual one? According to Kravitz, that was certainly the intent.
"That's definitely the way I interpreted that, that they had some kind of romantic relationship."
In another interview with the same outlet, director Matt Reeves had this to say about it:
"I don't think we meant to go directly in that way, but you can interpret it that way for sure. She has an intimacy with that character and it's a tremendous and deep caring for that character, more so than a sexual thing, but there was meant to be quite an intimate relationship between them."
Meaningful representation or yet another instance of not quite delivering? That's for each and every individual to decide for themselves, but it sure seems like a possible Catwoman-centric project starring Kravitz could be the perfect opportunity to dive much deeper into this aspect of the character.
Until then, you can catch "The Batman" in theaters on March 4, 2022.