Live action Batman drama puts Gotham Police on HBO Max

The Robert Pattinson "The Batman" movie is still scheduled for October 2021, so it's not out yet. But it already has a spin-off. The show doesn't yet have a title, but it'll focus on the Gotham Police Department. It'll expand on the story told by the movie The Batman after* it's released on October 1, 2021.

"The groundbreaking television series to be written by Winter is set in the world Reeves is creating for The Batman feature film and will build upon the motion picture's examination of the anatomy of corruption in Gotham City, ultimately launching a new Batman universe across multiple platforms," said an HBO Max representative this week.

Officials at HBO Max stated that they've given "a series commitment" to what they've called "an original DC drama set in the Gotham City police department. This new show will include The Batman filmmaker Matt Reeves, Boardwalk Empire creator Terence Winter, The Batman producer Dylan Clark, and Warner Bros. Television.

"This is an amazing opportunity, not only to expand the vision of the world I am creating in the film, but to explore it in the kind of depth and detail that only a longform format can afford — and getting to work with the incredibly talented Terence Winter, who has written so insightfully and powerfully about worlds of crime and corruption, is an absolute dream," said Matt Reeves.

It's very possible – maybe even nearly definite – that actor Jeffrey Wright will appear in this television show. Jeffrey Wright will play the part of James Gordon in The Batman – that's the character better known as Commissioner Gordon, played by such actors as Gary Oldman (The Dark Knight Trilogy), and Ben McKenzie (Gotham). This same character was played by J.K. Simmons in the movie Justice League, and voice by Bryan Cranston in the animated film Batman: Year One.

The writers of the officially released information on this series are a bit coy about the timing for release of this series. They've indicated that it'll be released in some way connected with The Batman, but they've not given a different "before" or "after" or "concurrently." We shall see!