Alan Ritchson has given the long-running Batman fancast a fairly decisive update without completely locking the Batcave door. The Reacher star says he has spoken with DC about working together, but those conversations currently concern somebody other than Bruce Wayne.
As our sister site IGN Middle East reports, Ritchson addressed the speculation during a Reacher panel at San Diego Comic-Con 2026. After years of fans picturing him beneath the cowl, the casting discussion has apparently moved sideways into a different corner of DC.
What did Alan Ritchson say about his DC conversations?
Ritchson said he and DC have discussed another character, but he did not announce a role, project, offer, or deal.
“I feel like I have to address this because it comes up all the time,” Ritchson said. “I don’t ever want to lead somebody on to feel like, ‘Maybe he’s…’ I’ve had a lot of conversations with DC about what to do because we would like to work together. I still never say never – maybe Batman is in the future – but I don’t think it is.”
He then supplied the detail destined to keep casting threads busy: “We’re having conversations about another character. I just don’t think Batman is in the cards for me, as much as I would love to do it.”
The comments establish only Ritchson’s account of those discussions. DC Studios has not publicly confirmed that he is attached to a project, and no character has been named. The possibilities are therefore broad, but treating any fan theory as casting news would be several leaps ahead of the available evidence.
Is Alan Ritchson playing Batman in the DCU?
Ritchson does not expect to play the DCU’s Batman in the near term, although he has deliberately avoided ruling it out forever.
The actor has responded to the Batman fancasting for years. He entertained the idea when it arose in 2023, then confirmed in August 2025 that he had spoken with DC while expressing doubt that Bruce Wayne would be his role. An appearance on Happy, Sad, Confused shortly before the Comic-Con panel revived the speculation, but his latest answer is considerably clearer.
His “never say never” caveat leaves fans a sliver of hope, because superhero casting conversations apparently require at least one emergency exit. The useful part of his answer is less romantic: the active discussion he described concerns another character.
What does this mean for The Brave and the Bold?
Ritchson’s comments do not change the publicly confirmed casting status of the DCU’s Batman, whose actor has yet to be announced.
The Brave and the Bold is intended to introduce the DCU’s version of Batman and his son Damian Wayne, separately from Robert Pattinson’s Batman films. Development is moving cautiously: IGN’s report on The Brave and the Bold’s writer said Christina Hodson was working on the film and that DC was in no rush to release another Batman movie.
For now, the firm update concerns Ritchson rather than Batman. He says DC wants to explore another character with him, while the studio’s next Bruce Wayne remains unannounced. Until DC or a reputable trade identifies the mystery role, the sensible reading is that conversations are happening and casting is not.
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